"In My Hands: Memories of a Holocaust Rescuer" by Irene Gut Opdyke

In the past week I read another amazing book that was recommended to me by another dear friend. As soon as I saw the title I thought, "Wait a second...I think I HAVE that book!" :-) One of my most favorite things to "shop" for (since I'm not much of a shopper at all) is books. In fact, when I was single and teaching, I'd give myself a little treat now and again and walk 1 1/2 miles to the mall and then spend HOURS in Borders, gathering books and spending the extra money I earned from tutoring after school. However, because of a very demanding teaching/grading schedule, I almost never had time to read, so I had stacks of books all over my bedroom. And if you know me at all...that spells HEAVEN to me. :-) So now, as I finally have settled into this house and fallen into a "routine" of sorts with the kiddos and housework, I am starting to be able to dive in to the huge pile of books I own and mark them off my list! (And by "list" I mean like "Epitome of Nerdness" in that I have an Excel spreadsheet alphabetically listing every single book Rich and I own, as well as a separate column for "Read".)

Anyway, I found this little treasure on one of my bookcases and dove right in. It is fabulous. I've read many books on the Holocaust survivors, but I believe this is one of the first that I've read of a Holocaust rescuer. I won't give too much of the story away, but this book is an autobiography that is well written, easy to follow, and attention-grabbing from the start. Irene is a young woman growing up in Poland that soon finds herself at nursing school many miles away from her family when the Germans invade Poland. What follows is her incredible tale of survival, sorrow, pain (she was raped by soldiers as she was trying to escape capture), and determination. She ends up working for a German officer as a housemaid while using his very own house to hide Jews in the basement. She is an amazing woman, and this book is absolutely fantastic! I think I finished it in about 5 days of reading at night before bed! I also enjoyed the pictures that were placed in the book - I love having real faces to go with the family and friends and survivors that she describes in the book!

Teaching Disclaimer: This book is fabulous for an older teen girl to read and would work well if you are teaching on WWII and want some supplemental reading. However, rape is mentioned. It is in no way graphic at ALL (basically just mentions, "I was raped") or distasteful but if your child doesn't know what rape is, it could lead to questions. She also is forced into a physical relationship with the German officer she is a housekeeper for. Again - no real details are mentioned, and she isn't explicit, but that topic also comes up. (I.E. "I slept in his bed." or "That night I found myself in his room.")