All But My Life: A Memoir

Gerda’s story is truly remarkable. Her courageous story will never be forgotten. I will recommend this book to all family and friends. It was a quick read, too!

Gerda’s book is a must read. I don’t often read two holocaust books in a row since I had just finished “We were the Lucky Ones.” Typically I need time to process one before diving into another. But the compare and contrast is unavoidable. In the latter, the whole family survived their horrific ordeals. In Gerda’s situation, only she survived. She lost her loving young parents and her beloved older brother. Aunts. Uncles. Cousins. Her story is poignant as is her husband’s. Her appreciation and pride in becoming an American is remarkable. As she marvels at those who were born into that freedom and take that privilege for granted- this is not a point in the story to be taken lightly. But HER story. The story of her survival from her 15th to 21st birthday will stir your heart and cause your tears to flow in a way that I believe extends honor to her and others. Though we can never possibly understand or know exactly the pain and devastation they endured, we can read read read and learn learn learn just as Gerda intended for us to do. I was also struck with sadness at her statement that under no circumstances could she, or would she ever extend forgiveness to the Germans. What do I know about what she had to endure? Nothing. My mind cannot for a minute wrap itself around that kind of mental, physical, and emotional pain. But to never forgive is a decision, which brings with it such an inherent finality of judgement and condemnation, that I feel none of us-really ultimately ever-are in such a position to make. We are humans. Not deities. I don’t want to end on that note. It’s just a takeaway from the story. Gerda’s story is one for all of us to read and honor those who died and at the same time, take a long moment, as she did for over 70 years following her liberation, to honor the liberators. The Allies, the Americans, who from imperfect countries themselves, sacrificed so much to bring freedom to those like Gerda, who had managed somehow to survive just long enough to meet those who came to their rescue.

I've read many stories of Holocaust survivors but Gerda's is the most powerful. It's a very well written story of her five years of persecution. What I found most profound, however, was the words she wrote at the end of the book. Here she tells about her life AFTER her liberation, of finding love, raising her family. She became a voice for those who perished as she (and her husband, an American soldier who was also a German Jew), spoke around the country and world to raise awareness and advocate for those who had been Holocaust victims. But she takes it one step further as she explains her feelings and her beliefs about her five years under Hitler's rule. Surprisingly, she displays no hatred. Her attitude, outlook, and insights show what a remarkable woman she was. Truly inspiring.

Gerda Weissmann Klein tells of her experiences during WWII at the hands of the Nazis. She grew up in Poland and when the Nazis invaded in 1939, her life changed forever. First her family was allowed to live in the basement of their home, with diminishing rations. But soon all of the Jews were shipped out to camps and she was separated from her parents. Her brother, who had left Poland earlier, had a fate unknown to her. She details the work camps that she went to, with the first having reasonable people overseeing them, where they worked as seamstresses, but when that camp shut down, each camp grew worse and she held on as “all but her life” was taken from her. She had a young man who loved her almost to obsession, and he made great sacrifices to be near her, but she was troubled in that she did not feel she could fully reciprocate his feelings for her. As the war came to a close, the remaining prisoners were forced into a deadly and prolonged march across the countryside until they were liberated by the American forces. One of the soldiers took a particular care for her and spent as much time as he could to see her during her prolonged recovery. As she made steps to regain her health, she found herself falling in love and finding a path forward in life without her friends, family, and home, to a new hope and a new life.

I never want to forget the past and what others have gone through and survived This book gives a glimpse of the atrocities that so many innocent people went through. The great will to live in spite of all life’s cruelty her question why me? My answer Why not you? Thank you for sharing your story

I so enjoyed Gerda Weissmann Klein's book. All the horrors of the Holocaust, all the personal loss she endured couldn't destroy her spirit. She persevered over unwinnable odds. When she was as close as you could possibly get to death by starvation and deprivation, her life was spared. The way she met her husband, was, in itself, against all odds. This book is not fiction, and I kept having to remind myself that this woman, who was in her teens when the Nazi's destroyed her family and her world, and placed her in the first of several concentration camps, not only survived but went on to live a long, happy and productive life. To me, Gerda Weissmann Klein is a truly remarkable woman. I cried more than once as I read her story. I've spent a good deal of my life reading about the Holocaust, and I still cannot understand how or why the Nazi's did what they did, to Gerda Weissmann Klein, or the world. Nothing in my safe, comfortable life prepared my for the evil of the Nazi's. Perhaps that's why I feel compelled to read so many books about World War II. But no matter how many I read, I don't seem to be able to understand the Nazi's hate and complete disregard towards humanity. The world is still filled with too much hatred, and I believe that Gerda Weissmann Klein's book demonstrates the dangers to a world controlled by hate and violence. We see it all around the world, including in our own country. I would hope that we will eventually learn that hate is not the way, and possibly avoid another Hitler and another World War.

Hello! I'm in 8th grade. Having studied about WW2 in history class I've read many WW2 books and this has been one of my favourite books along with the Nightingale by Kristen Hannah. I would definitely recommend it especially for teens of my age. If you are interested in this historical time, this book is the perfect one for you. :))

This is an amazing story. I didn't want it to finish.

著者15歳のときに故郷のポーランドの村がナチスドイツに占領され、以後、両親や兄と引き離され、絶えずアウシュビッツへ送られる恐怖に怯えながらの工場での過酷な強制労働、解放前の厳冬に3か月に渡る「死の行進」を生き抜き、アメリカ軍の兵士と恋に落ちるまでのユダヤ人女性の自伝です。未翻訳で日本では全く知られていない作品ですが、米アマゾンではほぼ１００％☆５のレビュー、米ケーブルテレビ大手のＨＢＯでドキュメンタリー化もされ、2010年にはオバマ大統領から著者ゲルダに「大統領自由憲章」というメダルも授与されており、あまたある「ホロコーストもの」の中でも群を抜いて高評価な作品です。「私は1000年生きた」のエリー少女と比肩する壮絶な体験記ですが、本書が特に評価されている理由は、無念のまま死んだ家族や友人達の声を代弁するためにも積極的に講演会を重ね、子供たちむけの童話を書くなどのゲルダの活動の成果でもあるでしょう。また、何といってもゲルダの10代にして鋼のように強靭な独立心と精神力がには圧倒されるばかりで、その真骨頂は、ゲルダを一方的に愛する求愛者が手配してくれた庇護を、「これを受け入れたら彼と結婚しなくてはならない、それは嫌だ」と断ち切るエピソードです。一方で、過酷な状況の中、故郷と自然を夢想する描写は豊かで、強さと想像力（そして美貌も）を兼ね備えたゲルダ自身の魅力が、多くの読者を得た理由のひとつでもあると思います。写真が少ないのが残念ですが、英語も読みやすく、たくましいガール・パワーをもらいたい人にお勧めです。

An enthralling story.

What a wonderfully written book, this author had gone through so much, one of the bravest people I’ve ever learnt about, you may shed a tear or two , I did