The Family: Three Journeys into the Heart of the Twentieth Century Hardcover – October 15, 2013

Not a fun book, but an insightful one. Deals with the horrors of WW2.

How does a family survive and grow in the midst of bad times? If members are struck down by cudgels, fire, poison gas, and guns can the family tree continue to blossom? Author David Laskin, in his new book, "The Family: Three Journeys into the Heart of the Twentieth Century", takes a family - his own extended one - from the shtetels of what is today's Belarus to the United States and Israel. But "three" journeys? That third "journey" ended in the killing pits at Ponar and the ghetto at Vilna and a fire pit at Klooga in Estonia.David Laskin's family on his mother's side began in the shtetel of Rakov and the yeshiva center of Volozhin, both in current-day Belarus. Their family name was Kagan or Kaganovich, which is a derivative of the priestly name of "Cohen". Many of the men were scholars and torah scribes and the women either kept the house or made the coin. Hard times in then-Russia - pogroms and government suppression and economic failures - made the idea of emigrating to "der Goldene Medina" - the United States - a very attractive one. Several members of the family went to New York City in the early 1900's. Hard work and luck turned their lives into increasingly prosperous ones. By the 1920's one branch of the US family had found success in the wholesale metals business, which the other branch became "Maidenform", an early creator of bras and girdles. Remember the old ads, "I dreamed I rode a merry-go-round in my Maidenform bra" or some-such? Well, they were the creation of Itel Kagan Rosenthal who was a fiery socialist back in Rakov til she became a sterling capitalist here in the US. But with assimilation also came a lessening of the faith - the Orthodox Jewish faith that kept the family together back in Russia - and the US branch of the family became less and less religiously observant as the generations passed along.Other members of the Rakov family emigrated to Palestine in the same time, after years of Zionist fervor back in Russia. Most worked the land and founded developments and, eventually, one grandson died in defense of Israel in the 1973 war. The family prospered in Israel and that branch of the tree grew strong. But it was the final branch, that of those family members who stayed in Poland in the darkening days of the 1930's into the years of final destruction in the early 1940's as the Germans invaded what was then Poland (the borders had changed after WW1) and killed the 15 or so members of the family unable to escape to...anywhere "safe".And that part of the story - the prosperous American branch of the family unable to help those left behind in Rakov and Vilna - is one of the most interesting. Unable to help...or unwilling? Or simply unknowing about the increasingly horrifying conditions of Jews in that widely disputed area between Germany and the Soviet Union? Those left behind sent letters to loved ones abroad asking for help in emigrating but while money was sent by the American branch, little or no real help was given to their trapped family members. All met death in the German occupation of the area, after being confined to ghettos or sent to work camps and concentration camps.David Laskin brings the book up-to-date after WW2. Family members who had separated in the early 1900's managed to find each other and relationships were established by both branches who survived - those in Israel and the United States. His book is an epic journey - both physically and religiously - of a family who survived through the horrors of war.

Although I don't usually read non-fiction, I did enjoy this book because it read more like a novel and it was a family saga. Once I got used to all of the names, it was much easier to manage. Reading this book on my Kindle made it harder to see the family tree that was included in the hardcover edition. However, a friend printed it out for me, so it made it easier to follow the 3 branches of the family. I loved the details and learned many things from reading this book. I was impressed by the huge amount of research the author did to pull his family story together. Again, parts of it were a little long, but it did manage to keep my interest throughout.

This book is so well written you feel as if you are experiencing every generationsLife. The author sets the scene and pulls the reader inside. Heartwarming andpainful at the same time

Very interesting read about 3-4 generations of a family; some of who stayed in Europe & some that came to America & some that went to Israel. Some interesting facts in this book that the reader might not know about. The only part that I found hard to remember or get thru is some of the names & Jewish names for things were hard to remember thru the book. Some names sound like could be he or she, etc. Their is a glossary & in the beginning of the book a lot is explained but it is hard to remember it all if you are not Jewish. I did enjoy this book & it did explain a lot about why the Jewish people at 1st trusted the Germans. Still hard to believe how some people can be so cruel to another people.

Disclaimer: The author is a long-lost cousin! I heard about the book from a first cousin who is thoroughly researching our family history. The author's maternal grandmother is our maternal grandmother's sister (go figure out the relationship!!) I haven't met or corresponded with Mr. Laskin. The author's family came from the same area of what is now Byelorussia as my mother's family.That said, one doesn't have to be of Eastern European Jewish origin to appreciate this book. The story of Mr. Laskin's family involves the tumultuous history of East Europe and the effect of mass immigration to the U. S. The World Wars, the Russian Revolution, the U.S. Labor Movement in the early 20th century, the Holocaust, the founding of Israel--it's all there in his family's history. The history is made more human with the impact these events had on the author's family. It is a story filled with successes and pathos. I'm sorry I never met my Great Aunt Gladys--and you will be, too.

this is a riviting and powerful recollection of a family who took 3 very diferent paths...i totally enjoyed the sections on the family life and character developement of these amazing people...i did, however, speed read through the brutal and tortuous treatment of those in concentration camps during the war. i have read so many books about the holocoust....the subject is beyond disturbing ...and although we must never forget the atrocoties suffered by our fellow humans....this book went too far.. iwould still recommend it as an historican novel

On the very first page I was given a seat at the family's kitchen table. From there I saw first-hand how Hitler took quiet, peaceful, promising lives and twisted them into robots marching to starvation, torture and death. David Laskin's "you are there" style immerses you in history, giving you time and space to dwell on the emotions that must run rampant within each person as the story unfolds. You begin to live it, day by day, with the people who worked hard to provide for their loved ones, hurt no one, but still became victims of a regime of terror. Unquestionably there is a very strong moral here. I highly recommend The Family to anyone interested in "real life".

What a wonderful historical novel. One does not need to be Jewish to appreciate the historical avenue of the Cohen Family. A heart braking story of what stems from hate and ignorance of human kind. It is also a testament of the strength in every human being to survive and even grow in terrifying situations. Destiny obviously has a role in each of our lives.

I ordered it for a friend. I already knew what the book was about.

Wonderful, wonderful bookVery quick delivery.Very happy.

This is fantastic book,so well written.