The Boy in the Back: A True Story of Survival in Auschwitz and Mauthausen (Holocaust Survivor Memoirs World War II)

By Fern Lebo

On his 16th birthday, June 5, 1944, Jan Blumenstein and his family are driven like livestock to the cattle cars outside of town. Today, as the chilling echoes of "never again" ring increasingly hollow, the relevance of The Boy in the Back becomes painfully evident. An unflinching chronicle of terror, determination and resilience, this book tells Jan's life story from the terror of the Nazi trains to Auschwitz, to the joy of a peaceful old age. Through his lens, we confront the October 7th massacre and the uncomfortable reality that history's shadows are creeping back into the present. Deeply moving, this memoir is essential reading for anyone who values life.

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Published Sep 19, 2025

196 pages

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