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montagves's review against another edition
3.0
3.5/5. The storytelling was good and even poetic at times, but the main characters were lacking in substance and ended up being too flat for my taste, especially in such dark and morally complex circumstances. I still really enjoyed it, though - it’s pretty much the epitome of what I look for in a summer read.
look_whos_reading's review against another edition
5.0
Alright, so this is yet another story of the Nazi occupation. And, it's SO NOT just another story of the Nazi occupation!
This is an ode to the brave and selfless acts of humanity during the terrible holocaust. The story spans a timeline from 1937 - 1943 and covers everything from the stirrings of the Reich's evil plan to its culmination.
The story is set in Warsaw, Poland where the famous Dr. Janusz Korczak set up a children's home to care for orphans and other children whose families couldn't afford to look after them. As the segregation of Jews from Poles started becoming more apparent in education, jobs, the military and in every walk of society, troubles began for Warsaw and it's people. This story is also of a young couple (the doctor's students) Misha and Sophia, who fall in love and face many trials along the way to marriage and beyond. They survived and their descendants were able to recount the terrible days, from journals, letters and other memorabilia.
As the story progresses, we see these main characters evolve with and react to the changing times - the walls go up and Warsaw becomes a ghetto, curfews are put in place, unprovoked violence starts erupting, slow starvation sets in, people (especially children) turn to smuggling rations from outside the wall, the führer tightens the noose with "shoot at sight" instructions, the Reich orders around ten thousand (per day) Jews to be put onto trains to take them to "work camps". These people are never seen again.
Misha and Sophia, like many others, flee at the risk of life to neighboring Ukraine where the Soviet is now doing Germany's bidding. Jews are hunted and killed there too. So they are forced to return to the Warsaw ghetto. Amidst all this, the good doctor continues to maintain that children should be protected from war at all costs. He goes to great lengths to stand by them and provide for them. One black morning, eventually, the guards come for the orphanage. Tens of thousands of children, led by Dr. Korczak, Stefa the housekeeper and all the teachers are marched down towards the trains to Treblinka. Among all the unmarked graves, his is the only one with a name that reads "Janusz Korczak and Children". He said, "you never leave a child alone" and so chose to die with them.
This is a harrowing tale, as are all stories of the war/holocaust. However, it is told with the children as the focal point. How does a child see war? What does it do to a young mind? The good doctor is celebrated as a ray of light in the black history of Poland - for keeping his children unscathed - through humour, love and faith.
If you're interested in first hand accounts of war, political history and human interest stories, I highly recommend this book. The writing is not graphic but there is definitely a subtext of pain and horror.
This is an ode to the brave and selfless acts of humanity during the terrible holocaust. The story spans a timeline from 1937 - 1943 and covers everything from the stirrings of the Reich's evil plan to its culmination.
The story is set in Warsaw, Poland where the famous Dr. Janusz Korczak set up a children's home to care for orphans and other children whose families couldn't afford to look after them. As the segregation of Jews from Poles started becoming more apparent in education, jobs, the military and in every walk of society, troubles began for Warsaw and it's people. This story is also of a young couple (the doctor's students) Misha and Sophia, who fall in love and face many trials along the way to marriage and beyond. They survived and their descendants were able to recount the terrible days, from journals, letters and other memorabilia.
As the story progresses, we see these main characters evolve with and react to the changing times - the walls go up and Warsaw becomes a ghetto, curfews are put in place, unprovoked violence starts erupting, slow starvation sets in, people (especially children) turn to smuggling rations from outside the wall, the führer tightens the noose with "shoot at sight" instructions, the Reich orders around ten thousand (per day) Jews to be put onto trains to take them to "work camps". These people are never seen again.
Misha and Sophia, like many others, flee at the risk of life to neighboring Ukraine where the Soviet is now doing Germany's bidding. Jews are hunted and killed there too. So they are forced to return to the Warsaw ghetto. Amidst all this, the good doctor continues to maintain that children should be protected from war at all costs. He goes to great lengths to stand by them and provide for them. One black morning, eventually, the guards come for the orphanage. Tens of thousands of children, led by Dr. Korczak, Stefa the housekeeper and all the teachers are marched down towards the trains to Treblinka. Among all the unmarked graves, his is the only one with a name that reads "Janusz Korczak and Children". He said, "you never leave a child alone" and so chose to die with them.
This is a harrowing tale, as are all stories of the war/holocaust. However, it is told with the children as the focal point. How does a child see war? What does it do to a young mind? The good doctor is celebrated as a ray of light in the black history of Poland - for keeping his children unscathed - through humour, love and faith.
If you're interested in first hand accounts of war, political history and human interest stories, I highly recommend this book. The writing is not graphic but there is definitely a subtext of pain and horror.
lorees_reading_nook's review against another edition
3.0
This story is based on true events that occurred in the Warsaw ghetto during WW2. It mainly deals with the life of Missha and Sophia and their interactions with Dr Korzcak and his orphanage.
As a story about the Holocaust there is no denying its impact. Once again, I've learnt something a new about this dark area of human history. Gifford certainly did her research and many details in her story which attest to this. However, as with most stories about real lives that are narrated many years later and usually after the people concerned are no longer alive, there was quite a lot of telling and not much showing. For example, although I can imagine how claustrophobic it much have been for half a million people to be squeezed into an area of one square mile, we get no sense of this from the story. Nor, for the most part, do we really ever get a sense of the fear that these people must have lived with after the occupation of Warsaw by the Nazis.
The characterization was also rather weak but I can imagine how hard it must be to write about real people without ever meeting them in person.
In some cases I had a hard time with the construction of some sentences and had to read them a few times before they made sense. I'm not sure whether anyone else noticed this or whether it was just me.
Overall I am glad I read this book as it will probably lead me to delve further into the the real- life events on which this book is based.
As a story about the Holocaust there is no denying its impact. Once again, I've learnt something a new about this dark area of human history. Gifford certainly did her research and many details in her story which attest to this. However, as with most stories about real lives that are narrated many years later and usually after the people concerned are no longer alive, there was quite a lot of telling and not much showing. For example, although I can imagine how claustrophobic it much have been for half a million people to be squeezed into an area of one square mile, we get no sense of this from the story. Nor, for the most part, do we really ever get a sense of the fear that these people must have lived with after the occupation of Warsaw by the Nazis.
The characterization was also rather weak but I can imagine how hard it must be to write about real people without ever meeting them in person.
In some cases I had a hard time with the construction of some sentences and had to read them a few times before they made sense. I'm not sure whether anyone else noticed this or whether it was just me.
Overall I am glad I read this book as it will probably lead me to delve further into the the real- life events on which this book is based.
adastraalastra's review against another edition
5.0
Good lord. I cannot begin to say what I feel after reading this book. To put it in short, this book shows the persecution of Jews in Warsaw, and how Dr. Korczak kept bringing light to Warsaw in its darkest times. Also, this book made me cry. It is really, really hard for a book to do that.
yamoksauce's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Sometimes, I read a book, and it changes my life. This is one of those times.
A local boy scout put up a birdbox library at a nearby forest preserve as part of his eagle project. When I swung by, it was terribly rainy, and I took some five seconds to simply choose the largest book in there. I did not realize what I had selected.
The Good Doctor of Warsaw perfectly walks the line between listing facts and readability. It's not an insight into characters, but rather into real people as they lived during this time. I know a lot about the Holocaust already, from many, many classes and many, many books. However, while this is the same information, it's gleaned in a different and necessary way.
Misha and Sophia's humanity and Korczak's example of the two-way street relationship with children are lessons that will stay with me for a long time. More than that, I wish to instill those same values to others.
I am very glad to have read this book. It's wonderful and sad and very, very important. I deeply thank that boyscout, whoever left this book in that mini library, and Elisabeth Gifford, for her tireless research and amazing book.
A local boy scout put up a birdbox library at a nearby forest preserve as part of his eagle project. When I swung by, it was terribly rainy, and I took some five seconds to simply choose the largest book in there. I did not realize what I had selected.
The Good Doctor of Warsaw perfectly walks the line between listing facts and readability. It's not an insight into characters, but rather into real people as they lived during this time. I know a lot about the Holocaust already, from many, many classes and many, many books. However, while this is the same information, it's gleaned in a different and necessary way.
Misha and Sophia's humanity and Korczak's example of the two-way street relationship with children are lessons that will stay with me for a long time. More than that, I wish to instill those same values to others.
I am very glad to have read this book. It's wonderful and sad and very, very important. I deeply thank that boyscout, whoever left this book in that mini library, and Elisabeth Gifford, for her tireless research and amazing book.
ebgirl375's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
Beautiful and heartbreaking.