Bella and Chaim

Encompassing this true story of Bella and Chaim, the author’s parents, with the intergenerational trauma of being a child of survivors, this memoir of love, loss and gratitude is a testament to the human spirit as well as a call to rise above ashes, victimhood and generalisations. Bella and Chaim met and fell in love in the Warsaw Ghetto where they witnessed the destruction of a way of life; sole survivors of both their families, they were in the ghetto until its last days then endured entombment for eighteen months before rescue, liberation, and immigration to begin anew in Australia. A flowing collage embraces and mingles survivor-memory, recorded and analysed historical context, and memory-fragments of Melbourne in the 1950s, with real-time musings on the light, dark and potential of being alive. It honours the murdered and the righteous, reminding us that our choices matter; ever present are the dilemmas and challenges facing us today. Augmented with photos, maps, a chapter on sources, bibliography, endnotes and an index, this book can be read as an inspirational story and/or utilised as a well-researched resource for in-depth study.

Ideal for readers interested in reading.