Book Reviews,  Europe,  Jewish History,  Nazis,  NON FICTION

Fear: Anti-Semitism in Poland after Auschwitz by Jan T. Gross ** (of 4)

When the handful of Poland’s original population of 3 million Jews returned from Siberia, concentration camps, or from hiding to reclaim their property and their lives they were subjected to intense anti-semitism following the war. They were denied work, health care, access to their property, and worse still, were subjected to threats, beatings, and in a handful of towns, Kielce being the most famous, murder. The book is highly documented and littered with footnotes and references making it more academic than a story. It takes some work to move through it, but the image of Poles as deeply anti-Semitic is inescapable. Gross’s other book, Neighbors, is an account of the murder of hundreds of Jews in the village of Jedwabne, Poland during World War II, without the presence of any Nazis and Fear is a continuation of Gross’s investigation into Poland’s behavior toward Jews during and after the war.. In short, Fear, is the official account of the story of our friend, Chana Factor, and our Temple Congregant, Janine Dreyfus. October 2006.