The Wall

I am not surprised if you have not heard of this book, but please, please read it It s one of the most incredible pieces of literature I have ever picked up It is the archives of a man named Noach Levinson who lived through the Warsaw ghetto and chronicled in minute detail his experiences and the lives of those around him It is both fascinating and terribly heartbreaking to see the way in which the Jews in Warsaw were systematically destroyed through the eyes of one of their own I have never rea [...]

Author John Hersey was a Pulitzer Prize winning writer, best known for his small first person account of the aftermath of the bombing of Hiroshima, called Hiroshima.And when he writes historical fiction, as he does in The Wall, it is very close to actual events Based on the real documents found buried inside the destroyed Jewish ghetto of Warsaw after WWII ended, it tells the story of the Jews who were trapped there by the Nazis who took over Poland in 1939, and the escalating determination to w [...]

In my ever increasing interest in the Warsaw ghetto uprising, I ve been gathering books from various libraries to try and wrap my brain around the perilous and courageous act of the Jews of Warsaw during 1943 One of the books in my pile was The Wall by John Hersey, a 640 page novel that I honestly wasn t sure I d get around to any time soon But then I read the first few pages and I was hooked It was a lot to take in I feel like I need to read it a few times to fully understand everything The st [...]

Brilliantly written the part I ve read so far forces the reader to feel the relentless closing of the ghetto

So far, the best novel I have ever read The strength of the book lies in its character development, which is deep and has a very authentic feeling Some reviewers were critical because the story is slow, but that is because the author is willing to take the time to let the reader really get to know the characters When they go through the horrific events of the story, the reader will feel compelled to stay with them, and when the book ends, some readers will feel like they had to say goodbye to se [...]

I first read this book as a 16 year old almost 40 years ago Although I have read literally thousands of books since then, this one I remember to this day It was the book that personalized the Holocaust for me as much as, or even than Flowers in the Attic, much as Schindlers List has done for so many recently, and sparked a life long interest in the Jewish culture as well I have added it to my read again list, something I rarely do.

This is written in an unusual style, as if a historian was keeping a diary of the events he witnessed in the Warsaw Ghetto, along with interviews of the inhabitants The preface refers to the Levinson Archives, discovered after that war Of course, that s just part of the fiction, but it was so believable, I didn t realize it at first Despite the terrifying situation, most of the book is about relationships and personalities Levinson, a recluse, finds a spirit of camaraderie and a family as people [...]

I was led to this author through Orson Scott Card who called him one of his favorite writers Hersey s book is a powerful study of human nature and a literary depiction of the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II One of the best WWII books I ever read.

Tremendous Hard to read, as any novel set in the Warsaw ghetto should be And yet I could not put it down.

One of the best and most important novels I ve read The story follows the lives if you can call it life of a dozen of the half million Jews trapped in the Warsaw ghetto during the war, their struggles to cope, to live life, to survive, as the wall is built, conditions steadily worsen in the face of hunger, disease, and Nazi manhunts, and fellow citizens are deported Some try to persevere, some try to escape, some try to fight back, some just give up Though this is a fictional novel, it is based [...]

Several months ago I read The Zookeeper s Wife An ok book but what I remember about it was the work done by the Polish resistance during the Nazi occupation I ve since read the Polish Resistance was the fourth largest army in WWII I wanted to read about these people Did some research and read this book as I was familiar with the author from the book Hiroshima This is a powerful, intense and heartbreaking book The author created several amazing characters which I will have a hard time forgetting [...]

I read this book a long time ago It created many pictures in my head that won t go away Since I am going to visit Warshaw in may 2017 I decided to read it again My opinion onthe Polish people has been influenceer by this book and the upcoming travel has force me to read about the Poles in the second world war I have been surprised by what I read A formidable underground army, a special bataillon to help the Jews, a decisive Roel in the Battle of Britain, strong pr sence in the Arnies that libera [...]

An incredible book that tells the story of the Warsaw ghetto from the very beginning to the heartbreaking end If you are interested in WWII literature, don t miss this one It is a work of fiction that is well researched and told in a non fiction format.

Not at all what I thought I remembered from my first reading mote than 50 years ago almost clinical in its structure.

Excellent Very similar to Mila 18 but this is based upon actual historic notes from people in the ghetto Uris book is brilliant but this book is based on real life recording of events.

A surprisingly engrossing, and lengthy, book of historical fiction about the Warsaw Jewish ghetto, the largest such ghetto established by the Nazis in Europe during World War II The book is written as if it were an organization and compilation of notes and interviews written by the fictional historian and ghetto resident Noach Levinson While historical fiction, it is based on all too real events of the period in which Germany isolated Jews in a Warsaw ghetto, a ghetto surrounded by a massive wal [...]

An interesting account of life in the Warsaw ghetto, albeit delivered in a slightly unusual diary like manner Much like the Ghetto must have been on a crisp April morning in 1942, the reader is introduced to a crowded group of characters, who, at points, seem overwhelming Nevertheless, as is expected for a novel of this size, the fog soon lifts and it is not difficult for the reader to quickly become absorbed in the day to day activities of each character The descriptions of living conditions an [...]

By signing a book, one provides a legacy for one s descendants In so doing, the next generation can learn about one s interests and thoughts.I inherited a copy of The Wall, first published in 1950, which was signed by my late uncle Back then, book stores were plentiful This volume contained a book mark from L Galner Books, 203 S 17th Street, Philadelphia Back then, nobody could have foreseen Barnes and Noble, Kobo and , or the term dead tree books.The Wall is a pioneering work on the Holocaust F [...]

This is in my top ten book list of all time I return to it often and when I read it, I feel like I m listening to a best friend whispering quietly.

This is a fictional account of the Warsaw ghetto uprising during WWII This was the largest Jewish uprising against the Nazis The story follows a family of Jews thrown together by various circumstances including an archivist I have wondered what the Jews felt and thought as the Nazi s herded them into a ghetto surrounded by walls that the Jews themselves had built Why it took until over 400,000 Jews had been killed, died of starvation or illness or had been sent to Treblinka before the resistance [...]

This was a strange book Because it is written as the archival records of Noach Levinson, there are large sections that are boring and dry While that is the author s purpose, that particular style the style of a recordist at governmental meetings doesn t float my boat However, some of the story is captivating and horrifying I cried over some characters deaths however, typical of the author s style throughout the novel, the author would mention thee deaths in passing, giving some less importance t [...]

This book is completely fictional, but is based on true event of the Warsaw Ghetto during WWII The book is written as a journal or archive Hersey worked as a journalist and his gift of journalism is evident in this fictional piece The format of the book takes a little getting used to, entries are not always in chronological order and they are written with some initials or abbreviations Once I was able to get into the style of writing, I was caught off guard by the depth and the meaning of so man [...]

john hersey has always been one of my favorites he writes about all kinds of stuff race relations inthe algiers motel incident andletter to the alumni, the dropping of the atomic bomb inhiroshima, the commodification of children inthe child buyer, a good soldier ina bell for adano, and the uprising in the warsaw ghetto inthe wall he has the unusual ability to be morally outraged while seeing the good in people even as an old man, he seemed willing to tear the world down to make way for a new gen [...]

We probably all read Hiroshima in Grade School or Junior High and while that is definitely a good book, having to read him for school may have turned you off of John Hersey If that s the case, I urge you to reconsider, and pick up The Wall.This fictional account of the Warsaw Ghetto covers the implementation, construction, governing, and revolt all from the perspective of journals written by a member of the central group of characters The characters are wonderfully crafted, engaging, and beautif [...]

I read this book in college It is one of the best book about the holocaust that has been written.It takes place in Warsaw, Poland during the invasion of the Nazi s Forty people made a standagainst the Nazi s occupation of their city The book lets you into their lives and what it was like.I visited Warsaw a few years ago and found what was left of the ghetto There was part of the wall,that the Nazi s erected to keep the Jews separate from the rest of the population, that was stillstanding There w [...]

I read the title and the author a few thousand times as this book sat on my mother s bookshelf I grew up in a living room lined with books, a library built by my grandmother and her daughter I finally read the book, probably 50 years later I picked it up at a used bookstore for 2 dollars so I d have something to read on a flight So a great book under my nose for years and I finally read it.Phenomenal.

A pretty decent read, but nothing special Overall, I liked this book, but there were some quirky things It was difficult to keep characters straight for about the first 1 3, until the story really picked up in pace The diary type writing was both interesting and distracting to me There were very interesting moments, yet also many slow moments that caused me to force myself to focus.

This is the third time I ve read this my grandfather an English teacher suggested this to me when I was 7 or 8th grade, telling me, the first 150 pages are slow, keep going It ll be worth it On my 3rd reading now, 16 years later, I can only say He is right It gets better In fact, it gets breathtaking Still one of my all time favorites.

I have read many books on the Warsaw Ghetto, too many to make it worse, I had seen the movie made from this book A great work but a difficult book to read without being brought down by Of course the world must never forget what happened in WW11 and with books like this, that will not happen as long as we keep reading them.

I read this many years ago and was completely pulled into the story I found the pull when re reading it.One of its main strengths are the characterization of the people and the relationships between them Another is its historical accuracy.It reminds us of what can happen when we allow evil to reign but it also reminds us of the good in people that can come out in the midst of evil.