10 Friday, January 21, 1984
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Volume Chronicles Jewish Life in European Towns
By DAVID FRIEDMAN
(Copyright 1984, JTA, Inc.)
WASHINGTON — The
Nazis, in murdering six mil-
lion Jews during World War
CALL H.M.H.F.
LOWEST FARES
EVERYWHERE
557-4422
II, also destroyed the vigor-
ous Jewish presence that
had existed in Eastern
Europe for 1,000 years. The
hundreds of Jewish com-
munities in small towns and
large cities where Jewish
culture in all its forms had
thrived were wiped out.
But the people who came
from those communities,
both Holocaust survivors
and those who were lucky
DAYTONA BEACH
—
2 HOURS MORE OF SUNSHINE DAILY
\G.LA CI
TT5 2 0
SCHECHTER'S
„:,
'KOSHER HOTEL
1 HOUR FROM
DISNEY WORLD
EPCOT CENTER
KOSHER HOTEL
QVGLATT
MAR. 18 to APRIL 15
from
daily
from
:
Per Person Per
Day — Double
$54 Occupancy, Plus
Tax and Tips
Weekend Rates SNghtly Higher
person
c .
INCLUDING MEALS
• OCEAN FRONT ROOM
• BREAKFAST & LIMIER
CALL FREE to MIAMI BEACH
800 - 327-8165
• 3 MEALS ON SABBATH
Entire Oceanfront Stock
37th to 36th Sts MIAMI BEACH
Phone 13051531 0061
SAM SCINCNTER Ortnet Mgmf
in
TOLL FREE 800-874-1824
OR CALL YOUR TRAVEL AGENT
enough to have emigrated
before the war, have wanted
to preserve the memory of
not only their martyred
relatives and friends but
their hometowns.
Beginning in the Dis-
placed Persons camps in
Europe after the war and
continuing until today in Is-
rael, the United States,
Argentina and wherever
Jews now live, "landsleit"
have gotten together to pro-
duce memorial books about
the community in which
they were born. These books
serve in a way as the
tombstone that the
Holocaust victims never
had, but they also help
preserve the history and
traditions of each commu-
nity.
Since most of these
books are Yiddish or He-
brew, Jack Kugelmass
and Jonathan Boyarin,
two anthropologists con-
nected with the Max
Weinreich Center for Ad-
vanced Jewish Studies at
the YIVO Institute for
Jewish Research, have
EL AL YOU DID IT AGAIN
$699"
Round Trip Detroit-Tel Aviv
til March 3, 1984
$799
til March 24, 1984
plus U.S. Departure Tax $3
For Reservations Call:
GOLDSTEIN TRAVEL
559.2770
Lathrup Landing Plaza corner of Eleven Mile and Evergreen Road
Deluxe Kosher
Passover Tours
World
Wide
3 FRESHLY PREPARED GLATT KOSHER MEALS DAILY • 2 TRADITIONAL SEDER SERVICES • TOP NAME ENTERTAINMENT
Midwest
Acapulco
EL PRESIDENTE AMERICANA
Miami Beach
Aruba
DIPLOMAT RESORT
Hollywood-by-the-Sea
FONTAINEBLEAU HILTON
AMERICANA ARUBA
Bahamas
Miami Beach
BAHAMAS PRINCESS
Freeport
BALMORAL BEACH
Nassau
California
SHERATON PLAZA
Palm Springs
THE NEWPORTER
Newport Beach
Spain
PEZ ESPADA
Costa del Sol
Florida
BARCELONA HOTEL
INNISBROOK RESORT
Tarpon Springs
LAKE GENEVA RESORT
N.Y. Area
AMERICANA,GREAT GORGE
Vernon Valley. NJ.
HOST FARM
CORRAL RESORT
SEVILLE HOTEL
Miami Beach
SHERATON BAL HARBOUR
1301 Harbour
Hawaii
Lancaster. PA
ROYAL LAHAINA
Puerto Rico
SHERATON MAKAHA
PALMAS DEL MAR
Maui
Honolulu. Oahu
Georgia
St. Maarten
SAVANNAH SHERATON
GREAT BAY BEACH HOTEL
25 W. 43 Street, NYC 10036
(212) 575 , 8840 Outside N.Y. State Toll Free 800 , 752-8000
!
translated selections
from 70 such books in
"From a Ruined Garden:
The Memorial Books of
Polish Jewry" (Schoc-
ken).
Although the shadow of
the Holocaust hangs over
this book, most of it is
enjoyable reading. In sec-
tions called "Our Towns,"
"Townspeople," "Lifeways,"
"Events," and "Legends and
Folklore," the editors -
translators provide a good
glimpse of the lifestyle of
Polish Jewry from the be-
ginning of the 20th Century
until the 1939 German in-
vasion of Poland.
The authors of the memo-
rial book wrote about the
town personages, both those
that were important and
those who were just local
characters. There are also
many interesting vignettes
on how Jewish religious
holidays were celebrated,
the economic life of Jews
and particularly the dis-
crimination they suffered in
Poland, and their cultural
life. Various local disputes
as well as the closeness of
the communities are de-
scribed.
Many of the stereotypes
American Jews have about
the shtetl will be shattered
by this book. One interest-
ing selection is from the
"Sefer Mir" which tells how
American Orthodox Jews
sent their sons to the
yeshivas of Poland and
Lithuania to study. In Mir,
which had the largest con-
tingent of Americans, 48,
there was one major dis-
pute. Some of the Ameri-
cans wanted to play football
before class, a sight that had
never been seen by either
the Jews or non-Jews there,
and were forced to stop.
The- final two sections
of the book deal with the
Holocaust and the return
of some of the survivors
to their former homes.
There is M. Rapoport's
account of his return to
the town of Bilgoray, the
day before Rosh
Hashana 1944.
"I was born in Bilgoray
and lived there until the
war, and now, walking
around in broad daylight I
barely recognized the city.
Lubelski Street, where the
synagogue had been lo-
cated, the great study
house, the little study
house, the bath house, the
slaughterhouse, the Zik-
hron Yankev Cheder, the
old graveyard, the old rab-
bi's house, the new house of
the Belzer Rebbe's son of
blessed memory, the meet-
ing houses of Trisker and
Rudniker Hasidim — ev-
erything was a void, and in
midday there was no living
soul to be seen.
Zachary Baker, librarian
of the Yiddish department
of the Montreal Jewish Pub-
lic Library, compiled a
bibliography of East Euro-
pean memorial books which
takes up the last 52 pages of
Fables take off from the
severity of instruction, and
enforce at the same time
that they conceal it.
— Addison
JUNKETS! JUNKETS!
the book. It is hoped that
there will be more collec-
tions of translations from
these books.
FOR QUALIFIED PLAYERS
VEGAS, TAHOE, AL CITY, ETC.
RYKE TRAVEL
356-8400
IS MIAMI BEACH'S NUMBER I LUXURY KOSHER HOTEL
PASSOVER '84
• Olympic Heated Pool
• Private All Weather Tennis Courts
• Gourmet Glatt Kosher Cuisine
• Complete Entertainment Program
• Special Long Stay Rates on Request
MARCH SPECIAL
MAR 6 TO APR 15
DON'T GAMBLE
CHOOSE THE BEST
8 nights & 9 days
$599 „,.. ;„.„..„„
INCLUDING 3 MEALS DAILY
$225 ----
ArIglficwal
INCLUDING MEALS
iv:PIODIe
Sedurim & Services Conducted by
Cantors Jacob Erblich & Robert Llegh
Detroit Phone: 355-1945
1-800-327-8169
.
ml
F
Call TOLL FREE
GOING ON VACATION?
START AT YOUR FRONT DOOR
I and avoid all the driving and airport has- I
I sle.
-
I
I We can arrange to pick you up on your i I
I return.
1
I
1
I
I
1
1
1
1
I
1
ENJOY THE ROYAL EXPERIENCE
1 I ROYAL CAB . 1 .
1 I 559-1972
559-1974 I 1
Special rates with this ad
1
1
=OMNI
=I
MIMB OM INN MB 1111 NIB RIO
MB
■
* CARO
THE Teenage Travel Camp
the kids AND
parents rave about.
Summer Camping for 13 —17 years old
• Experienced leadership • Superior supervision
Southern California • Western Canada •
Northern California •
For further information call
Iris &Jimmy Fuller (313) 626-1424 •
GEORGE AUERBACH'S TEEN CARAVAN
55 Doncaster Ave., Suite 201, Thornhill, Ontario
L3T 1L7.
1111