Picked this up at the second hand shop. I want to read it, but it is available for trade as well.

Registered as part of the BC Convention/Anniversary Challenge 2004

From the Publisher
A Scrap of Time is a haunting collection of stories about life in Poland during World War II. These shattering stories describe the lives of ordinary people as they are compelled to do the unimaginable: a couple who must decide what to do with their five-year-old daughter as the Gestapo come to march them out of town; a wife whose safety depends on her acquiescence in her husband's love affair; a girl who must pay a grim price for an Aryan identity card.

I started reading this, with the idea to release it on Holocaust Remembrance Day. Barely into it, I realized the book should be shared and am offering it up in a ring. As soon as I finish it, it will begin the journey.





deenbat
Lauraloo29
savannahblue
tish2002
cheli-garza
Antof9
yourotherleft
Lpree
jessibud
and back to me, bookczuk

If there are other latecomers, I will try to fit them in.

Heading out today to deenbat on the start of the ring. Safe traveling, little book.

The picture is the Holocaust Memorial in Krakow

received this book today from bookczuk as part of a ring. will read & journal it as soon as possible, and then send it on!

I was surprised at how hard this was for me to read. I pride myself on how much Holocaust material I can "stand" to read, emotionally, but have little experience with Holocaust fiction.
The organization of this book is interesting; it is little vignettes, scraps of time, about different people in different places, some first person, some third, but arranged chronologically from the initial actions against the Jews to the war crimes trials of Nazis.
These short pieces are beautifully written/translated, but I was glad each one was over, so that I could take a breath again. I could not, of course, read the Polish original, but the translation seems very sensitive and the language is lyrical and well chosen. I think the hardest one to read was "The Key Game."
I will send this on to Lauraloo29 on either 5/14 or 5/15.
Thank you, bookczuk, for sharing this.

This was one of 3 bookring books that arrived today. I will read them all as quickly as possible. :)

May 27th update - This was a quick read for me. I didn't like some of the stories. I did like how they were a different perspective than of the "traditional" Holocaust stories we hear. I'm sending this on to savannahblue on May 31st.

rec'd in the mail today. will read and send it on its way - thanks for sharing, bookczuk!

a quick, sorrowful read. there were times i wanted to stop, it's so difficult to know that these were real people - but i had a strong feeling about finishing the book, the importance of remembering, a tiny, tiny way to honor all of those murdered and damaged.

ready to send on to the next reader. thank you, bookczuk.

Released on Thursday, June 17, 2004 at postal release to fellow bookcrosser in Portland, Oregon USA.

sending by post to tish2002, next in the bookring.

I just received this today. Thanks!

This collection of stories was very sad. It brought me to tears many times. I'm very glad I had the opportunity to read it though. I will probably be thinking about these stories years from now. Thank you for sharing this bookczuk.

I received this book in the mail 4-5 days ago as part of a bookring. It's amazing- so twisted and sad. The story that made me think the most was "A Spring Morning". I'll try to avoid any spoilers, but why was there only one shot fired? It makes me think that maybe the guard who fired the shot was trying to be compassionate and not cruel. Think about it.

PMing Antof9 for address & will then mail on.

This book arrived today -- seemed much faster than standard media mail! Who is the beautiful woman on the cover? She looks like a prettier Meryl Streep. It's just the most gorgeous, thought-provoking picture.

Now that I have a Polish sister-in-law, I'm tempted to try to find this in the original language. I'm very interested in reading this. Thanks for creating this ring, bookczuk :)

P.S. love your homemade labels! Now I want to check TheBloody's profile.

Wow -- this book was very heavy. Of course, I expected that, but oh! this was hard to read. Maybe because it covered so many scenarios? Each of them painful. I read the first half or so in one sitting and then took a break to read another book. Came back and finished it, and then thought a lot about my review. It's hard to just write a short "review" of the book, isn't it? As savannahblue said, these were real people. I agree with Deenbat -- it was good to take a breath between each chapter.

I think we must read things like this, no matter how difficult or upsetting. As Agafia says in "Behind the Hedge", "We have to know about it. And look at it. And remember."

I asked my Polish sis-in-law if she'd heard of this book before. She hadn't. But when she saw the name of the title in Polish, she said the name hadn't been changed at all -- in Polish, that's exactly what it means -- A Scrap of Time.

bookczuk -- thank you for realizing we should all read this and making it into a ring. I really appreciate you sharing it.

I'll get this in the mail in the next two days to yourotherleft.

Mailed to yourotherleft today, and released these 4 as part of the August Summer Blooms Release Challenge:

For the Roses
Mayflower Madam
No Other Chance (by Avery Thorne!)
His Mouth Will Taste of Wormwood :)

This was one of several books that arrived while I was on vacation. I'll read it and pass it on as soon as I can. Thanks!

This was a very thought-provoking book. The stories painted a sad picture of peoples' experience during the Holocaust, but they also left you to draw your own conclusions up to a point. I'm taking a history class right now that has included a lot of the "nuts and bolts" info about WWII and the Holocaust, so I was glad to have this book to really supplement that stuff with a more subjective view of what was going on at the time. Thanks for sharing, bookczuk, and please accept my apologies for holding it up so long!

It's in the mail to Lpree today.

This arrived in today's mail. I'm currently reading other bookrings, but this will be next on my TBR list. Please check my profile to see where I am in my reading list as well as an expected finish date for this book.

I will try to update this journal entry once I start the book. I'm looking forward to reading this!

I finished this book last night. Wow... very powerful stories. To say I enjoyed the book sounds far too happy of a word, so I'll just say I am really glad I read this. I think the saddest two stories for me was "A Spring Morning" and "A Dog".

Thanks to bookczuk for starting this ring! I'll PM the next person on the list and will mail it out on Monday.

UPDATE 11/30 - This was sent air mail (cheaper, actually) to jessibud today.

Received this today. I have 2 bookring books ahead of it in line but Friday is my last day of work before 2 weeks of vacation so I expect I will be able to read it and send it on its way home before the year is over! I will journal again after I'm done

I am using this opportunity as ring host to burst in and say the following:

Peace on Earth
Good Books to All

And a happy, healthy and safe 2005 to you and yours

(I'll put a picture here later, when I can think of a good one!)

Dec. 26, 2004 -

As many have mentioned before me, I found this book difficult to read, at times. I went through a period of my life back in my 20's when I read a lot of this type of Holocaust literature, mostly non-fiction, and reached a point where I could no longer bear to read another word. It's been many years but I felt ready to try this one. I also have to say, from the outset, that I am not generally a fan of short stories so I hope that didn't bias me too much.

This may sound odd, a weird observation on my part, but one of the things I noticed in the first several stories, was how, even if only in passing, the author somehow always mentioned how there were no birds to be heard. I'm not sure why, amid all the other horrors being perpetrated by humans against other humans and animals, this stood out for me, bothered me enough to stay in my mind. But it did. In a way, it was as stark as watching a movie with no soundtrack, no background music to flesh it out. Not that real life has a soundtrack but the absence of birds, to me, was like nature itself giving up hope. It was chilling and caused these already bleak stories to chill me to the bone. The first story to actually mention a bird singing was on page 117, "The Other Shore". In a book that only boasts 165 pages, total, that's a long time to wait for it...

I will admit to skipping or not finishing one or two of the stories but those which affected me the most included "A Dog", "Jean-Christophe", "The Key Game" and "A Spring Morning".


Thanks you, bookczuk, for sending this book around on a ring. It is not pleasant reading but it is so very important, especially for those whose reading and knowledge of that tragic and shameful period of history comes only from high school text books.


On a lighter note, if I may be so bold as to hijack this journal entry for a moment, I would like to draw your attention to another story that emerged out of this era, and came to be, in a way that could only be described as truth being stranger than fiction. It began in Japan, of all places and ended in Toronto (where I live) a few years ago. The story is called "Hana's Suitcase" and I will leave you with a link to my bookshelf, where the book is registered and where I have posted a further link to listen to this amazing and heartwarming story unfold. It a 3-kleenex story but your tears won't be tears of sorrow, I promise you. It is a story of hope, after all, moving forward into the 21st century...


http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/2099210



I will put this book into the mail tomorrow. Thanks again.

A SCrap of time has returned home. It is interesting to note that today, before the mail arrived, I registered The Hiding Place,, by Corrie ten Boom and thought it might make a nice release or ring for Holocaust Remembrance Day 2005. Anyone interested? I will post it in the forum as we get closer to the date, but you all are near and dear to my heart, so I want to give first dibs.

PS: There were several marvelous postcared in the book, including one from jessibud that I wish we could get for a bookplate and one from my dear ant of the mile high sky line. Wow!. Thank you!

I took this to our meet-up today and I think it went on to a new home. But it could still be in the basket in the back of my car and my memory is shot. In which case, I shall make another journal note and all can laugh at my feeble memory.

This is a great book. Somewhat disturbing. I have very much enjoyed it and will set it free shortly.

Shortly after taking this book to our meet-up, I received a PM from jessibud. She referred me to this forum thread and suggested that it might serve as an inspiration where next to send the book.

Emily-Too was kind enough to get the book back to me, and it will be heading out tomorrow, back to Canada, as a RABCK to LadyGothic.

I shall also be releasing it (tomorrow) as part of the Eccentrics challenge- in honor (honour) of all my BC friends who made this such a great ring. It was not an easy book to read, but I again thank you all for your participation.

I'm having some of the most uncanny small strokes of good luck lately and coming home to find this surprise in my mailbox today is one of them!

Thank you so much! I'm sure to crack the spine soon and devour it's knowledge.

Not only is it important to know history so it is not repeated, it's also important to understand the humanity behind the cold facts.
That's my personal fetish at times, reading biographies on the holocaust...when you think you have a rough life, you need to put things into prospective. The subject is gruelsome but it has so much strength!

Thank you so very much for your wonderful kindness :)

I wasn't sure if my mind was ready to begin this book as I settled down to bedtime reading last night. It takes a sturdy mind set and a braced heart when reading any holocaust stories.

Luckily this book is not so difficult as many others I have read. The beginning story A Scrap of Time sets the tone of the other stories in this compilation...each are heartfelt and tattering stories of how other survivors share a few brief moments of their time, all very reflective and dignified amid the horrors of the holocaust... all memory glimses of a scrap of time.

"The time was not measured in months but in a word- we no longer said "in a beautiful month of May", but "after the first action, or the second or third". We had different measure of time, we different ones, always different, always with that mark of difference that moved some of us to pride and others to humility."

A very pensive book and one I hope others read and reflect upon life today as they do so. This book holds so much strength of life! You can feel the writer's strength carried forward even in such short stories.

Thank you so very much for sharing this special book with me!

May history never be repeated.

RELEASE NOTES:

Travelling via Canada Post

Perhaps the brand on the cover is appropriate. Schocken Modern Classics. The subject matter is sure to be shocking, but something to keep in mind. I was born almost forty years after WWII ended, but I agree that everyone should know about it.