Copyright protection or detective’s clue? The story of an odd signature, left in a book, which revealed an entire family history – and the one daughter who survived to tell it.
Sara Braverman: The Paratrooper Who Didn’t Jump
Hannah Senesh, Haviva Reik, and Sara Braverman set out to parachute into Europe on behalf of their brothers and sisters living under Nazi rule. Of the three, only Sara survived. This is her story.
The Rabbi, the Rebbe, and the Japanese Plan to Bring Jews to China
How one scheme to resettle Jewish World War II refugees in East Asia was serendipitously discovered by a New York rabbi.
Why Did Josephine Baker Want to Adopt an Israeli Child?
In the 1920s and 30s, Josephine Baker was one of the most successful and highest-paid entertainers in the world. During World War II, she volunteered to spy for France and helped smuggle Jews and Resistance fighters to safety. She visited Israel multiple times and even sent one of her children to be educated on a kibbutz. A glimpse into the life of one of the 20th century’s most fascinating figures, and her surprising connection to Judaism and Israel.
A Ballerina in Auschwitz: Dr. Edith Eger’s Choice
The many obituaries published about her around the world focused on the horrific moment that became inseparable from her public story: dancing before Dr. Mengele at Auschwitz. But the life of Edith Eger, who began as an anonymous Jewish girl in Hungary and became a celebrated psychologist in the United States, was infinitely larger than any headline. It is an extraordinary and deeply moving story of courage, faith, wisdom, and unyielding resilience.
The Jewish Chemist Who Dissolved Nobel Prizes to Hide Them From the Nazis
George Charles de Hevesy, a scientist of Jewish origin, won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry at the height of World War II while living in hiding as a refugee. But even before that, he had carried out a daring and ingenious operation — using his scientific expertise to conceal Nobel Prize medals from the Nazis. What does all this have to do with a mischievous landlady who served him recycled leftovers? This is the story of a brilliant and resourceful scientist.
The British-Jewish Officer Who Fooled Hitler
How did a corpse save thousands of Allied soldiers in World War II and help change the course of the war? Who was this person? Why was it said that “the only worthwhile thing that he ever did, he did after his death”? And what does any of this have to do with James Bond? This is the astonishing true story behind “Operation Mincemeat”, a tale that sounds like the plot of a first-rate spy novel but actually took place in reality.
From “The Magic Mountain” to the Fight Against the Nazis: The Story of Thomas Mann
Who was the celebrated German author who began his life as a nationalist and later joined the democratic opposition in exile against the Third Reich? What was his connection to Israel and to the National Library? And why do visitors place stones on his grave? On the 70th anniversary of the death of Thomas Mann, Nobel Prize winner for Literature, we trace the man who gave us “The Magic Mountain” and who became one of the clearest and most steadfast voices against what was happening in his homeland.
An Innocent Fairytale or a Treatment for Trauma? The True Magic of Narnia
What’s the connection between three young London girls who fled the Blitz and one of the world’s most beloved books? What was the backdrop for the tales of C.S. Lewis’s “Chronicles of Narnia”, and how does it all relate to the situation in Israel today?
The Lost Train: The Story of the Transport That Never Reached Theresienstadt
A 139-year-old book acquired by the National Library contained a unique and unexpected keepsake from a victim of the Nazis in the Netherlands. Who was Vroutje Bloemist? Why did her story suddenly attract our attention decades after her death? And what became of the Nazis’ “Lost Train,” aboard which Bloemist was a passenger?
