Questions I Am Asked About the Holocaust

‘There are no stupid questions, nor any forbidden ones, but there are some questions that have no answer.’ Hédi Fried was nineteen when the Nazis snatched her family from their home in Eastern Europe and transported them to Auschwitz, where her parents were murdered and she and her sister were forced into hard labour until the end of the war. Now ninety-eight, she has spent her life educating young people about the Holocaust and answering their questions about one of the darkest periods in human history. Questions like, ‘How was it to live in the camps?’, ‘Did you dream at night?’, ‘Why did Hitler hate the Jews?’, and ‘Can you forgive?’. With sensitivity and complete candour, Fried answers these questions and more in this deeply human book that urges us never to forget and never to repeat.

About the Author :
Hédi Fried (1924–2022) was an author and psychologist. She was deeply committed to working for democratic values and against racism. She was born in the town of Sighet, in Romania, was transported to Auschwitz in 1944, and worked in several labour camps, eventually ending up in Bergen-Belsen. After liberation, she moved to Sweden with her sister. Her bestselling autobiography, Fragments of a Life: the road to Auschwitz, was published in English and Swedish in the 1990s. Alice E. Olsson is a literary translator, writer, and editor working across Swedish and English. She has served as the Cultural Affairs Adviser at the Embassy of Sweden in London and is the recipient of a fellowship as well as multiple grants from the Swedish Arts Council. She has been shortlisted for the 2020 Peirene Stevns Translation Prize and the 2023 Bernard Shaw Prize.

Review :
‘It is the telling detail that gives her testimony its particular power … This little book, with its reminder “there are no stupid questions, nor any forbidden ones, but there are some … that have no answer”, is a moving record of one woman’s experience.’ ‘This slim but powerful volume comprises answers to the questions she is most frequently asked … Fried answers with candour and thoughtfulness in a book that should be required reading for all young people.’ ‘Reminds us all why we need to heed the lessons of the past.’ ‘Hédi Fried is a remarkable woman and her writing offers important insights into truly terrible events and the slow, insidious way in which hatred can be fostered. Questions I Am Asked About the Holocaust is an easy to read account of things that are almost too horrible to comprehend. The essays represent an individual’s reflections on matters that touch the whole of humanity and, as Fried hopes, the lessons she has to teach about the past should serve as a warning for the future.’ FIVE STARS ‘Anyone who can remember that time, anyone who can remember someone who could remember, or anyone who feels the instinctive urge to be one with the humanity of memory, and the memory of humanity, cannot but be moved deeply and quite actively by Fried’s book.’ ‘Timeless lessons taught with simple eloquence.’ ‘While many authors have produced great works about the Holocaust, this sort of first-person narrative is the best source of true information. Every library should add this book to its collection. Social studies teachers would find this a highly valuable source for discussions on the Holocaust (Fried herself even provides a list of discussion questions in the text). I highly recommend the purchase of this book.’ ‘Candid and unflinching, deeply personal and sensitive, this is the perfect book for anyone, young or old, wanting to learn more about the Holocaust and why we must never forget – especially as the last surviving witnesses are lost to us.’ ‘Now 94, Fried’s largeness of spirit emanates from every considered response to even the most confronting questions asked of her. One senses that her replies are not only educative but therapeutic, especially for young people grappling with their own questions about the meaning of life. While most of her experiences of this period are inescapably dark, there were moments of light that assumed enormous significance.’ ‘This is terrific in that I was utterly engrossed in not only what questions are asked of Hedi but the astute and depthful way she answers them. I began to read the other evening and went all the way to the end before putting this book down. It’s also potent in the ways our author touches on current issues with how we treat ‘others’ as to how we become divided and in worst case hurtful to those unlike ourselves. a big thumbs up and NOT just for the younger generation!’ ‘Through questions she has been asked most, Questions I Am Asked About The Holocaust is a stoically raw and deeply human account of the author’s experiences throughout the Holocaust and surviving Auschwitz. An important, wise, and extremely powerful book.’ ‘While Questions I Am Asked About the Holocaust is very easy to read, the questions it raises are very hard to answer. Fried, in simple, straightforward prose, answers questions that children have asked her about her experiences. A must-have for parents, but be prepared to answer some hard questions yourself.’ ‘It’s the straightforwardness of the book  – and the fact that Fried is so candid in her answers – that makes this book so important.’ ‘[S]ince these questions come from children, they quickly reach a level of intimacy that most adults would be afraid to venture into ... Questions I Am Asked About the Holocaust is a collection of Hédi's gentle, honest answers to these questions over the years. With sensitivity and complete candour, Fried answers these questions and more in this deeply human book that urges us never to forget and never to repeat.’ ‘Honest and insightful.’ ‘Ques­tions I Am Asked About the Holo­caust defies genre … a deeply per­son­al account of her past, told in sim­ple, straight­for­ward lan­guage that most pre­teens can under­stand … Since the book is intend­ed for younger read­ers, Fried is free to be didac­tic. Every­thing is a les­son … Ques­tions I Am Asked About the Holo­caust is an invalu­able means of intro­duc­ing stu­dents to the com­plex­i­ties of the Holo­caust. And it will do for Fried what she seeks to do for her par­ents: to keep her mem­o­ry and name alive.’ ‘An essential addition for those learning about the Holocaust, refugees, and the complexities of WWII.’