The Escape of Mr. Trimm

Holocaust Poetry compiled by and introduced by Hilda Schiff is a collection of poetry dealing with World War II and the Holocaust. The compilation is divided into six sections: Alienation; Persecution; Rescuers, Bystanders, Perpetrators; Afterwards; Second Generation; and Lessons. There are well-known poems in this collection and poems from young children. A few of the poems in this collection already have been featured on Savvy Verse & Wit's Virtual Poetry Circle; check out "If" by Edward Bond and "The Butterfly" by Pavel Friedmann. Each poem in the collection uses all-too-familiar images to demonstrate connections with family, friends, and strangers. and as each poem unfolds readers feel the devastation and hopelessness of each narrator. Schiff says in the introduction, "The more or less contemporaneous literature of any period of history is not only an integral part of that period, but it also allows us to understand historical events and experiences better than the bare facts alone can do because they enable us to absorb them inwardly." More or less, readers of poetry will find these observations valid, as will readers of fiction. However, there are moments of levity when narrators poke fun at the devastating events of Nazi Germany's actions. Beyond the poems in the collection depicting the horrors and the losses of persecuted people in Germany, the poems of bystanders, perpetrators, and others are surprising. They talk of how they stood by and did nothing, how they want to help even if they are too late. Despite the time for help being long passed, these narrators express not guilt so much as regret -- a deep regret at having been so paralyzed by fear that they did nothing or acted contrary to who they believed themselves to be. The poems selected for the "Second Generation" section will tug at readers heart strings, deepening the sense of loss. An emptiness is present in some of these poems. Short biographies are included at the back of the book for readers interested in the poets' lives and connections to WWII and the Holocaust. Holocaust Poetry is a collection that should be read in chunks rather than all at once. Readers may succumb to sorrow if they attempt to read the entire collection in once sitting, but even then, readers will fall into the darkness and emerge in the light. Overall, the collection is a must have for anyone interested in this time period and learning more about how WWII and the Holocaust impact individual lives and families.

Shiff prefaces this book with a verse from Job 16:18: "Oh earth, cover not thou my blood, and let my cry have no resting place." This anthology gives voice to holocaust victims, it brings immediacy to the holocaust -- making it a current tragedy rather than a historical event. The poems are organized somewhat chronologically, in sections titled Alienation, Persecution, Destruction, Rescuers Bystanders & Perpetrators, Afterwards, Second Generation, Lessons, and God. A variety of writers are represented, from the famous (Elie Wiesel, Primo Levi, Sylvia Plath), to the less famous (Pavel Friedman, a child inmate of Theresienstadt camp). An appendix includes fascinating biographical sketches information on each author, which adds an extra dimension to the poetry. Much of the poetry is very readable, accessible, not as esoteric as I had expected. The overall effect is highly disturbing, yet it's inspiring that many of the writers are able to find God or meaning in such horror.

The Holocaust is undoubtedly the most horrific epoch of human violence mankind ever witnessed.Not much historical documentation was done about it because in the brutal act of murdering Six million Jews by the Nazi supportors almost an entire race got wiped out...the few that survived remained transfixed by the aftermath of that shattering experience of barbaric cruelity.The recorded facts were kept supressed for a long time.The Holocaust remained hidden like a Blackhole in the obscure labyrinths of history. Though we consider the Holocaust as a rudiment of the dead past,we still find the haunting echos even now.Just look back in retrospect even a short span of the bygone decade.There we find the demonic manifestations of the forgotten dead past!The list at random is alarming:ethnic strife in Rwanda,Cechnia,Croatians and Serbs,Jews and the Palestinens and above all Racial descrimination at different levels in almost all the continents.This is the price we pay for remaining oblivious to the lessons of the past.The dictum"Those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it" will hold true for ever.It is indeed our moral responsibility to at least remotely live through the pain and and agony...to empathise with the victims of the holocaust who suffered more by the deliberate acts of cruelity by their own fellow beings than by the stroke of fate.It will be a disdainful act if we choose to turn away from this imperious reality of the past! Hilda Schiff's compilation "Holocaust Poetry" addresses this fact with such immediacy of purpose.This is a very insightful compilation because Hilda Schiff has chosen to include as many variety of poems from different perspectives of the same reality than presenting a chosen few poets at length.This offers a panaromic insight into the holocaust in its entiriety!The poems compiled are arranged in an order that gives a graphical account of the plight of the victims.Nothing else could be a better example of Man's innate urge to destroy and above all Man's indomitable will to overcome..to eventually triumph against all odds.These poems give that rare insight into the complexity of the strange human predicament as well! Well,when striken stricken to the heart the Lion gives out his mightiest roar,smitten on the head the cobra rises it's hood...and the glory of the Self comes forth when a man is wounded to the depths!These verbal expressions form only a fractional account of the unsung saga of the holocaust victims,but they stand as the living testimony of a statement by the Greek writer Nikos Kazantzakis" Man's wings won't sprout until he reaches the brink of an abyss!"

I really enjoyed reading your book of Holocaust Poetry. It touched my heart in many different ways. I felt the sorrows of the poets who displayed their poetry in your book. Some poets lost very close loved ones and showed their love and affection through their poetry. I think that it is very important that we know about the Holocaust and how discrimination affected us and our ancestors. This book taught me that every life has it's own meaning and that we should treat other as we would like to be treated.