July 2, 2016

What a beautiful book you have written. Thank you for sharing your life and experiences. The relaxed, conversational prose pulled me right in. I felt as though I had met you and your family members because of the generous way you shared your stories. Although I was raised Catholic ( no longer a member) I  have never been able to fathom forgiveness. You have given me the determination to delve into this complex subject. Thank you and bless you!

Judith E. S.

.....I was moved by your experiences and your message... I too am a child of survivors and a teacher at the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, NY.     - Sandy R. 7-12-16

JANUARY 2015   Rotary Member of Highland Park            I just finished reading DESCENDANTS OF RAJGROD last night and I was moved as well as inspired by the message.... your story and your viewpoint are making me evaluate my own perspective and approach.  I come from a passionate Italian-American family with its own tendency to catalog and retain “transgressions”.  Coupled with being raised Catholic, through which we were always reminded that we were unworthy of those whose saintly suffering came before us, there’s a tendency to feel guilty or naïve about letting go of the past.

I cannot even begin to comprehend the brutality and hopelessness of your father’s childhood experiences.  I can appreciate how the circumstances created the man and I find his story inspiring yet tragic.

I can fathom how difficult it must have been for you to grow up amid the challenges related by the examples in your book.  That said, I apologize for appearing presumptuous enough to draw any parallels to my comparatively charmed upbringing.  Your message of forgiveness resonates with me.  Genuine forgiveness is about letting go of everything....and opening up my possibilities of greater things for my future.

Thank you so much for sharing your story and for writing the book.  I wish you nothing but peace and joy in your life.  I am sharing your book with my family and I want to thank you for inspiring me to go further and purer in my own personal and professional life.

Warmest regards,

Rotary Member of Highland Park

MAY 17, 2016 Review from Warsaw, Poland

Dear Karen,

I finished reading. This was without any doubts one of the most important book in my life. Not only because it is written with inner passion and with visible story-telling and writing skills, but rather because it shows also the essence of the story of my life.

I had a very difficult and dark childhood, with too strict, demanding and emotionally chaotic father who turned over years into a heavy alcoholic. I hated him so much, for who he was, for what he did to me, my sister and my mom. I was constantly afraid of him beyond my capabilities to deal with it. My life was a nightmare then. When I was a teenager I was already isolated from him. I built a shield, and I locked him outside my world. ...........I did not see that by doing this (and that could not be avoided at that time) I deeply hurt myself......,...my world turned up side down............ Now I can feel pure love for him, pure love to myself and every people, even those who did hurt me. I just let go. I let go my atheism, I know that there is a  divine power, I felt it and I keep feeling it. I am not a realigious person, but I let spirituality to my life and I understood that our material form of being is a temporary stage, we came from..... I did what you did, in my own world, I challenged my fears and hatred. And I triupmhed. I will have more challenges and happy moments but I am equipped now with a perspective on life that I think we share.

I believe your book is very important. I believe everybody should do in their life what you did in yours. I believe that we may get to the next level of our humanity if we all get what you and me understood and implemented.

Now, a young Polish guy was crying while reading many words you wrote. It was a cathartic read, as Professor Emman Chedade Randazzo stated (a Palestinian saying this... is so beautiful). I felt close to you and shared many feelings that you expressed in this memoir. I felt this obvious closeness to you, a Jewish woman from America, daughter of a man, who had to kill any love in his life in order to survive the nightmare of Shoah. And the reason he had to do that is related to evil people from my tribe, my nation. It opens up so much. I just want to say, never mind it sounds crazy, that I love you for what you did in your life to overcome what he felt about Polish murderers of his beloved ones and his own ability to love and share love.

I wish you all the best and you can be sure that there is at least this one man in Warsaw today, who is sending you the best energy all the way to Chicago and your life. I hope one day I will have a chance to meet you again .......And you can be sure I will send the same energy to Arie Kaplan, his spirit. Maybe this deed coming from a Pole, who belongs to Krystyna Franciska part of our community and opposes the Jablonski and Kordash part of our community, will bring your father's soul some calm.

J....

  November 2015   FILM DIRECTOR review

Hi Karen,

We met (briefly) in Evanston when I showed my film  in November. I finally got around to reading your book and I must admit, I wasn't looking forward to it (I've read a LOT of Holocaust era memoirs), but I found it completely compelling and engaging. Your father sounds "typical" in some ways for survivors, but rather extreme in certain colorful ways and your personal history of coming to terms with it all was very moving. And then after all that, the Epilogue … wow! A very moving book............

...........But on a more important level, your story was very moving and touching. Congratulations with it, and with getting it out there!

I had just returned from a trip through Poland before I screens at the synagogue in Evanston, and ironically one of the screenings was in Bialystok, where I had never been before. I didn't know its history, how it had had a large Jewish population, and the recent book about it which painted a very intolerant image of the city, and which got a lot of press and attention in the country, In actuality it was, after 12 trips to Poland, one of the very first places I was at besides Warsaw and Krakow - there've been a few for brief trips, but my experience in Poland is deep, but narrow. I certainly found it fascinating on that level, but also what was, and what is.

Also, I remember your saying you'd be going to Germany, I too am hoping to go there this spring, for a number of screenings. Looking forward!

Once more thank you, and congratulations. Wish you well with it and do hope to stay in touch.

 All best,

 xxxxxx