In 1943, my grandparents gave their three daughters the gift of life, in the form of false Christian papers, which they purchased at great cost. The three sisters hid in Budapest under assumed identities for a year, until the end of the war. They fulfilled a promise made to their parents and survived.
It was a story of courage and resilience that was told often in my family. Unfortunately, my grandparents did not survive. They were swept up with many other Hungarian Jews and put on some of the last trains to Auschwitz.
Similarly, the new book, The Promise, tells the haunting, true story of two sisters who survived Auschwitz thanks to three gold coins that were given to them by their parents and hidden in a shoe polish tin.
The sisters portrayed in the book are Toby and Rachel. They are the mothers of the authors, Pnina Bat Zvi and Margie Wolfe. Wolfe is well known in the Canadian publishing world, for her other realistic stories, such as Hana’s Suitcase and To Look a Nazi in the Eye, which captivate and teach children about the Holocaust.
The authors, who are close cousins, wrote the story that was told to them many times by their mothers.
The picture book, which includes dramatic text and illustrations, is directed to children over nine years of age. Parents and teachers may want to read The Promise as a starting point for a discussion about the Holocaust. Both children and adults alike will identify with the plight of the sisters, who struggle to survive and stay together.
In The Promise, Toby uses the three gold coins to bribe a guard, in order to save her sister. Rachel was suffering from illness and had been selected to be killed by the Nazis. She had given up all hope, when Toby suddenly appeared and smuggled her to safety.
Snarling dogs, frightening Nazi guards and the bravery of young women trying to help each other, while their own well-being is in constant jeopardy, are illustrated starkly and poignantly by Isabelle Cardinal.
READ: TEACHING HEBREW WITH HUMOUR
The epilogue of the book shows photographs of the sisters after the war with a more current, colour photograph clearly depicting the bond between the two.
A compelling story of love, devotion and perseverance in the face of horrific circumstances, this book belongs on the shelves of every school, church and synagogue library.
The authors will be in Toronto discussing the book and the importance of literature for children about the Holocaust on Oct. 28 at 2 p.m. at Bialik Hebrew Day School. *
* The date of the discussion was incorrect in the original version of this story
