In the final days of World War II, a courageous band of Jewish partisans makes it way from Russia to Italy, moving toward the ultimate goal of Pale...
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Nov 20, 2008
Choupette
rated it: 
What I learned from this book: the meaning of Israel.
"For the Russians, a longing for home was not an unreasonable hope, even probable: a yearning to go back, a call. For the Jews, the regret for their houses was not a hope but a despair, buried till then under more urgent and serious sorrows, but latent always. Their homes no longer existed: they had been swept away, burned by the war or by slaughter, bloodied by squads of hunters of men; tomb houses, of which it was best not t More...
"For the Russians, a longing for home was not an unreasonable hope, even probable: a yearning to go back, a call. For the Jews, the regret for their houses was not a hope but a despair, buried till then under more urgent and serious sorrows, but latent always. Their homes no longer existed: they had been swept away, burned by the war or by slaughter, bloodied by squads of hunters of men; tomb houses, of which it was best not t More...
Feb 13, 2010
Lorenzo
rated it:
"If not like this, how? And if not now, when?"
This line is said by Gedale, one of the main characters of the novel towards the end of the book, but its meaning is wider.
While reading many good and dramatic accounts from the Shoah there's a question that often comes to mind and mouth:
"Why did all these Jewish people let themselves being humiliated, robbed, prisoned and killed by Nazis and anti-semites without trying to resist?"
After all, most of t More...
This line is said by Gedale, one of the main characters of the novel towards the end of the book, but its meaning is wider.
While reading many good and dramatic accounts from the Shoah there's a question that often comes to mind and mouth:
"Why did all these Jewish people let themselves being humiliated, robbed, prisoned and killed by Nazis and anti-semites without trying to resist?"
After all, most of t More...
Nov 15, 2010
Rafael
rated it: 
Una novela ejemplar sobre los partizanos, judios o rusos o polacos. todos aquellos que lucharon contra los nazis. Quiza por su procedencia judaica Levi se interioriza mas en los judios partizanos.
Todas sus visicitudes de una maldita guerra a la que fueron aventados. La masacre millones de personas, que sufrieron por la locura de Hitler.
Sin dudas es una novela que cuestiona con muchisimas preguntas al lector y toca profundamente la Identidad Judia. No me gusto la parte final donde se mu More...
Todas sus visicitudes de una maldita guerra a la que fueron aventados. La masacre millones de personas, que sufrieron por la locura de Hitler.
Sin dudas es una novela que cuestiona con muchisimas preguntas al lector y toca profundamente la Identidad Judia. No me gusto la parte final donde se mu More...
Jun 12, 2007
Sophie
rated it: 
Primo Levi is such an amazing writer. He has the ability to say so very much with so little in a way that is still intensely satisfying. While I didn't enjoy this book as much as Survival in Auschwitz, it was still an immensely satisfying read. However, if you have never read any Primo Levi, I would recommend starting with his nonfiction. Any of it.
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Dec 22, 2009
Leila
rated it:
Hmm. I really wanted to like this book more than I did. It recounts a fascinating story of the life of Russian and Polish Jewish partisans during the Second World War. These are men and women who found themselves behind the front lines in a sort of no man's land and did their part to fight the Nazi's by use of trickery and sabotage. Ultimately the crew in Levi's book was trekking towards Palistine. Really interesting premise, but I didn't find there to be much in the way of character development
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Jan 27, 2012
Aubrey
rated it:
This in many ways was a breath of fresh air in Holocaust literature; reflective of the horrors yet focusing more on WWII itself and all the other things that were happening to the Jews outside of the camps. It was nice learning about the partisans and the underground survivors, and how Italy drew all the Jews from everywhere in preparation for a new life. In a way, it was a period that I already knew a lot about from previous literature, but delivered in a different way, focusing on a different
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Jun 09, 2008
Not the sort of book I would usually choose - I feel very ignorant about the background (Russian, Polish and Jewish partisans trying to survive in the 2nd World War) but it's very readable because the main character is so human and believable.
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Dec 23, 2008
Stephanie
rated it:
I thought this was an absolutely fascinating book. I got bogged down a bit with some of the geography as that's never been my strong suit. But for me this book shone a light on a side of the Holocaust and WWII that I never really knew existed or gave much thought to - the partisan groups, acting not with the military but of their own accord and towards the same end. The book is about a hodge-podge group of displaced persons (mostly Russian Jews, but there is a lot of variety among the group's ma
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Dec 15, 2011
Anne
rated it:
I am not one for Holocaust books, since I am Jewish and was subject to Holocaust guilt ad nauseum growing up. However, I went to Israel last summer, and wanted to read a Holocaust book that was about survival, not about desperation and depression and loss. While this book has those three things in spades, the book is ultimately about surviving, by one's own wits, with one's own skills, for better or worse, no matter where the future may lead. And I liked and appreciated that.
It's More...
It's More...
Nov 17, 2011
Sam
rated it:
Based on an number of true events and stories that Levi has uncovered and been told, this book tells of the struggle for survival for a number of Russian, Polish and Jewish partisans trapped behind the German lines in World War II. It shows the difficulties they had to face, the decisions they were forced to make and the bonds they formed with each other as they travelled west in an effort to get to the apparant safety of Israel and Palestine (which is bitterly ironic given recent events in the
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Oct 23, 2010
Steve
rated it:
A matchless and heart-rending portrait of the fight to overcome unimaginary hardships by a group of the disposessed, forced to rely on the basest survival instincts on the edge of humanity by the horror and devastation caused by the Nazi onslaught of the Second World War. This band of Jewish, Polish, and Russian partisans are peopled by unforgettable characters, such as Mendel, the watchmaker, who has survived the decimation of the Red Army, and whose wife, neighbours, and community have been er
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Aug 27, 2011
Kevin
rated it:
"If I'm not for myself, who will be for me?
If not this way, how? And if not now, when?"
This is an amazing book, detailing the experiences and journey of a group of Jewish Partisans fighting behind the German Lines on the Russian Front. The book, written by Primo Levi, a Jewish concentration camp survivor, despite being a fictional work, is based around historical fact and that there were small groups or bands of Jewish Partisans who did disrupt the Nazis behind their More...
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Feb 04, 2009
Nanosynergy
rated it:
I discovered this book on the reading list 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. This historical fiction, published first in Italian in 1982 (Se non ora, quando?), draws on the life experiences of the author, an Auschwitz-survivor, conversations he had with others like his main character Mendel, and written first-hand accounts. Levi does an excellent job of creating believable characters and recreating these less-discussed events of World War II.
The story is told through the eyes More...
The story is told through the eyes More...
Apr 22, 2009
Melissa
rated it:
I was looking forward to this book because I am an avid consumer of Holocaust information. (why evil?)
The writer in the introduction pointed out that there are good books written by holocaust survivors that are good to read simply because of the subject and survivor.
However, survivors aren't necessarily writers, and the fact that THIS book is written by a "Writer" with a capital W, sets it apart from other books in that genre.
I agree with th More...
The writer in the introduction pointed out that there are good books written by holocaust survivors that are good to read simply because of the subject and survivor.
However, survivors aren't necessarily writers, and the fact that THIS book is written by a "Writer" with a capital W, sets it apart from other books in that genre.
I agree with th More...
Jun 20, 2008
Shane
rated it:
Though the language is, at times, hard to follow, the characters are memorable and relatable. This is obviously Primo Levi's first novel. You can really get a sense of his "soon to emerge" voice as a writer and story teller, though he definetly does not develop his characters as memorably as in The Drowned and the Saved. This particular text does explore the multifaceted existance of Jews and Jewishness, as well as the quandry of the two. A memorable point in the tale is when Pavel (
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Feb 15, 2009
Emily
rated it:
This book was another pick from the "1001 Books" list. It was an excellent book. It is based on a true story, however none of the characters were real people.
It told the story of the journey of a band of Jewish partisans from Russia to Italy during the end of WWII. Parts of this book were difficult to read- the Holocaust was a horrifying time in history. However, this book was not a heavy, long read. It was very easy to get into and easy to start really caring about the ch More...
It told the story of the journey of a band of Jewish partisans from Russia to Italy during the end of WWII. Parts of this book were difficult to read- the Holocaust was a horrifying time in history. However, this book was not a heavy, long read. It was very easy to get into and easy to start really caring about the ch More...
Nov 27, 2008
Nikki
rated it:
Thi book really challenged me. It was not an easy read, especially as I was trying to keep up with the geography and history elements of the war. However the story is about the main character's journey throughout the war from his destroyed home town to Italy. It was a fascinating book - it bought my attention to a whole range of people in wartime who I have never thought about before. I liked the ending of the book as it seemed quite symbolic. I would never have chosen this book myself but I am
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Sep 03, 2009
Ron
rated it:
If Not Now, When offers a realistic fictional account of Jewish partisans operating in eastern Europe during World War Two. The author, Primo Levi, was a death camp survivor who actually met and interviewed the real people on whose lives the book is based.
That said, Levi also wrote a compelling story which engages the reader's heart as well as mind. Think, Doctor Zhivago meets All Quiet on the Western Front quality, though that over simplifies Levi's accomplishment.
As Wor More...
That said, Levi also wrote a compelling story which engages the reader's heart as well as mind. Think, Doctor Zhivago meets All Quiet on the Western Front quality, though that over simplifies Levi's accomplishment.
As Wor More...
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Nov 28, 2008
Let's face it, you have to be in the right mood to read this book and the holiday season is not it. I am putting this book on the back burner to try to read in say, February when I am stuck in the house because of the bitter cold. I did not get far but far enough to know that this is not a holiday read for me.
Aug 17, 2009
Ian
rated it:
Rarely did I devote myself so much to a book like this. Maybe it's the theme, the characters or the plain, pure narrative that constantly haunts me - I just know sooner or later, I'm gonna re-read this great book as I'm gonna have a rendezvous with a dear old friend.
Jan 04, 2011
Charles Greer
rated it:
I recently watched Defiance -- that's the setting, but not the flavor, of this engaging and brutal account of a group of Jewish partisans who fight, freeze, starve, survive, thrive behind German lines in the Ukraine and Belorussia.
Oct 04, 2010
Hayden
rated it:
The story of what went on in the Russian (then Polish, German, and finally Italian) backcountry during WWII, from the perspective of a group of Jewish partisans who are fighting the Nazis on their own.
Aug 17, 2009
David
rated it: 
Gave up on it, maybe 2/3 of the way in. Suffers as many soldier stories do from an episodic structure that doesn't seem to take the narrative anywhere interesting.
Jul 12, 2010
Jasmine
rated it: 
Okay so I'm about page 160 or so and I have been attempting to force myself to finish this book for more than 2 weeks and have utterly failed. I was bored from the word go. I can't even move it to my Partially read shelf because I don't believe I will ever read the rest of it. I mean I bought a book today so I would not have to read it. But to stop grumbling and talk about the book...
It sounds much more interesting than it is. There are some cool historical facts that you could get f More...
It sounds much more interesting than it is. There are some cool historical facts that you could get f More...
Nov 28, 2008
Julie at All Ears
rated it:
Well written story about a group of Jews who band together to continue fighting the war as an outlaw group of partisans as they make their way towards Italy. Interesting that much of the content was so devasatating, yet told in such a dispassionate way. Still had a large impact.
Nov 19, 2008
This is the book for the 1001 booklist discussion for Dec 15th to Jan 15th, so I oughta get cracking on the reading!
Jul 31, 2009
Becky
rated it:
I love everything by Primo Levi, and this description of survivors trying to get home after the war is no exception.
Feb 22, 2009
Rich
rated it:
A masterful book. Levi utilizes the events of the time as a backdrop rather than a focus.
Dec 29, 2011
Nathaniel
rated it:
An easy to read story about Jewish partisans fighting the Germans as they make their way to Israel.
Feb 06, 2012
My choice from the 1001-VBB that soffitta1 organised. Look forward to read it.
