It’s the first time I’ve read anything of that period written from a Russian’s point of view who ended up in the camps along with others who had been captured. The book describes how Vrba, when detailed to sift through the belongings of new prisoners, came to realize that those prisoners would never need those belongings because they had been executed immediately upon reaching Auschwitz. Fifteen years ago, Macaire sold his shares in the bank to Sinior Tarnogol, a mysterious wealthy man with ominous intentions. but continues to ignore what he's just written and insists for the rest of the book that Vrba is the first Jew to escape from Auschwitz alive to warn the Jews and the world about Auschwitz. The award-winning journalist Jonathan Freedland reads from his powerful and moving new book about a heroic and courageous young Jewish man who escaped Auschwitz to reveal the truth about the Holocaust.

br>A masterpiece of page-turning history: an escape story that is also a fearless exploration of some of the most profound questions that face humanity. Pogozhev recounts his years as an internee in Auschwitz- Birkenau, what he says is beyond imaginable.According to psychologist Ruth Linn, Pestek may have helped Lederer in an attempt to distance himself from Nazi crimes because his home in Bukovina had been recently occupied by the advancing Red Army. Other factors helped too: fitness, intelligence, adaptability, usefulness about the camp, sturdy footwear.

The brilliant young escape artist Walter Rosenbaum (later changed to Rudolf Vrba), risked his life to tell the world about the devastating horrors- nightmares - that were happening in Auschwitz. They live on the other side of a wire fence from all the cadaverous Jewish slaves, none of whom can understand what’s going on. Cierer later shared his contacts with Lederer in the hope that his escape would be successful, and the two men planned together how to break news of Auschwitz to the outside world—a plan they concealed from Pestek until after the escape.

In November 1939 and again in November 1940, Lederer was arrested by the Gestapo for alleged resistance activity. He misrepresents bombing Auschwitz as easy, citing the bombing of Buna as support, but doesn't have any idea of what kind of bomber planes the Allies had or how they operate or anything about strategic costs or logistics of bombing or the actual effectiveness. Nevertheless, Vrba’s story shows that a few people with relentless will to do the right thing—and the requisite craziness to carry out the mission—can actually change the direction of a world herd. SS guard Stefan Baretzki, who knew Pestek well, testified that Pestek had been arrested at Birkenau. He repeats all over the book that Vrba is the first, then he says he's the first Jew to escape "alive" (because there were those who escaped but didn't survive), which is again wrong, very wrong.