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lavanda4's review
5.0
Shmuel's Bridge is a riveting memoir describing author Jason Sommer's complicated relationship with his father and Jewish Holocaust survivor, Jay. In particular he addresses Jewishness and horrors inflicted by humankind upon others during WWII in Eastern Europe. But it is more than the horrors of Auschwitz-Birkenau. It is a story about the enduring physical and (mostly) mental effects of Jewish persecution and genocide through the eyes of father and son (his mother was American and was not involved in the war, though she visited Eastern Europe with her husband earlier). Prefacing each chapter is poetry written by Sommer, also a poet who writes frankly, introspectively and thoughtfully. Blessed with an intellectual family, he has a beautiful and poignant way with words. Jay spoke many languages and was a recognized master teacher.
At the age of 98, Jay understandably had trouble remembering things. Jason frequently showed him pictures and videos including those of their 2001 trip to Eastern Europe where they visited Jay's childhood home, the labour camp in Budapest from which he escaped, the search for Shmuel's bridge and visiting killing camps. Their trip took them to Hungary, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Ukraine. Jason's aunt and uncle are survivors as well, against all odds. However, Uncle Shmuel did not. The topic was hushed at home but discovered further details when he asked questions once at the dinner table and later in situ in Europe.
Those interested in WWII history and reflections on its multigenerational effects ought to read this. I really liked the inclusion of family photographs and maps.
My sincere thank you to Charlesbridge, Imagine and NetGalley for the honour of reading this compelling and harrowing book.
At the age of 98, Jay understandably had trouble remembering things. Jason frequently showed him pictures and videos including those of their 2001 trip to Eastern Europe where they visited Jay's childhood home, the labour camp in Budapest from which he escaped, the search for Shmuel's bridge and visiting killing camps. Their trip took them to Hungary, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Ukraine. Jason's aunt and uncle are survivors as well, against all odds. However, Uncle Shmuel did not. The topic was hushed at home but discovered further details when he asked questions once at the dinner table and later in situ in Europe.
Those interested in WWII history and reflections on its multigenerational effects ought to read this. I really liked the inclusion of family photographs and maps.
My sincere thank you to Charlesbridge, Imagine and NetGalley for the honour of reading this compelling and harrowing book.
jacquie62's review
3.0
Shmuel's Bridge: Following the Tracks to Auschwitz with My Survivor Father
Jason Sommer
Release date: 15 Mar 2022
Description:
"A moving memoir of a son’s relationship with his survivor father and of their Eastern European journey through a family history of incalculable loss.
Jason Sommer’s father, Jay, is ninety-eight years old and losing his memory. More than seventy years after arriving in New York from WWII-torn Europe, he is forgetting the stories that defined his life, the life of his family, and the lives of millions of Jews who were affected by Nazi terror. Observing this loss, Jason vividly recalls the trip to Eastern Europe the two took together in 2001.
As father and son travel from the town of Jay’s birth to the labor camp from which he escaped, and to Auschwitz, where many in his family were lost, the stories Jason’s father has told all his life come alive. So too do Jason’s own memories of the way his father’s past complicated and impacted Jason's own inner life.
Shmuel's Bridge shows history through a double lens: the memories of a growing son’s complex relationship with his father and the meditations of that son who, now grown, finds himself caring for a man losing all connection to a past that must not be forgotten."
Review:
True story of a father and son (also the author) who journey to Eastern Europe in 2001 to revisit the atrocities of the Second World War. Jason, a poet, seems to have had a complicated life growing up with his father but other than a few occasional quips, I don't think this angle was thoroughly explored, however. As with most books dealing with the Holocaust, it was an unbelievably horrendous time to be alive. And, if you were Jewish, life only got worse. The Sommers went on the trip with the purpose of finding where exactly Uncle Shmuel died, but in the process, they discovered so much more. I enjoyed their trip through Hungary, Czech Republic and Poland. Trips like this need to be taken by everyone so that we never, ever, forget what happened when Nazi Germany was in power.
I was gifted this advance copy by NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.
Jason Sommer
Release date: 15 Mar 2022
Description:
"A moving memoir of a son’s relationship with his survivor father and of their Eastern European journey through a family history of incalculable loss.
Jason Sommer’s father, Jay, is ninety-eight years old and losing his memory. More than seventy years after arriving in New York from WWII-torn Europe, he is forgetting the stories that defined his life, the life of his family, and the lives of millions of Jews who were affected by Nazi terror. Observing this loss, Jason vividly recalls the trip to Eastern Europe the two took together in 2001.
As father and son travel from the town of Jay’s birth to the labor camp from which he escaped, and to Auschwitz, where many in his family were lost, the stories Jason’s father has told all his life come alive. So too do Jason’s own memories of the way his father’s past complicated and impacted Jason's own inner life.
Shmuel's Bridge shows history through a double lens: the memories of a growing son’s complex relationship with his father and the meditations of that son who, now grown, finds himself caring for a man losing all connection to a past that must not be forgotten."
Review:
True story of a father and son (also the author) who journey to Eastern Europe in 2001 to revisit the atrocities of the Second World War. Jason, a poet, seems to have had a complicated life growing up with his father but other than a few occasional quips, I don't think this angle was thoroughly explored, however. As with most books dealing with the Holocaust, it was an unbelievably horrendous time to be alive. And, if you were Jewish, life only got worse. The Sommers went on the trip with the purpose of finding where exactly Uncle Shmuel died, but in the process, they discovered so much more. I enjoyed their trip through Hungary, Czech Republic and Poland. Trips like this need to be taken by everyone so that we never, ever, forget what happened when Nazi Germany was in power.
I was gifted this advance copy by NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.