The Other Victims : First-Person Stories of Non-Jews Persecuted by the Nazis

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Summary: The Other Victims by Ina R. Friedman
Review: I really liked how this book showed the persecution of all people not only the Jews. In almost all other books I've read about WW2 they talk about the persecution of the Jews. This book made the Holocaust more real to me. It gave me a better perception of what the Nazis were really doing and to some extent why. I think we need to recognize the other groups that suffered also. To me this book is a monument to their suffering.

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Summary: Terrific teaching resource!
Review: In "The Other Victims", Ina R. Friedman recounts the treatment of non-Jewish people during the Nazi occupation of Germany. From Blacks to Deaf people, the Nazis used sterilization, euthanasia, and even mass murder to stop apparent "defects." Each section includes a brief description and a first-hand account of an individual from each group.

One notable story is that of Fanny Schwarz. Fanny was born deaf to deaf parents. As such, the government decided that she was defective and tried her to determine whether she should be sterilized. During the ensuing years she was sterilized twice, the second time in addition to taking her reproductive capabilities, they also took the child she was carrying. Schwarz recounts her physical and emotional pain during this dark period. Other stories are equally moving.

This book is an excellent teaching resource! I would recommend it to both students and history teachers alike. Not only does it present narratives on people often overlooked during discussions of Nazi persecution, it also does so in small chunks, easy to read or take alone in specific teaching units. Definitely a worthwhile resource!

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Summary: my review
Review: The Other Victims was a book of real life stories from the Holocaust. I liked this book because it tells how people had to go into hiding, how they had no freedom, and how they fought back. The book is mainly about people trying to escape from Germany to America or a safe country. My favorite chapter was Bubili: a young Gypsy's fight for survival. Once I started to read this book I couldn't put it down. The reason I couldn't put this book down was it was all true. I thought it was hard to believe it actually happened. The people were killed because of their religion, color, looks, and trying to stop the wrong that was going on.