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428th out of 1,804 books
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Babi Yar: A Document in the Form of a Novel; New, Complete, Uncensored Version
Babi Yar: A Document in the Form of a Novel is an internationally acclaimed documentary novel by Anatoly Kuznetsov about the Babi Yar massacre. The two-day murder of 33,771 Jewish civilians on September 29-30, 1941 in the Kiev ravine was one of the largest single mass killings of the Holocaust.
The novel begins as follows: "Everything in this book is true. When I recounted...more
The novel begins as follows: "Everything in this book is true. When I recounted...more
Paperback, 478 pages
Published
January 1st 1970
by Farrar, Straus and Giroux
(first published 1967)
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Отличная историческая книга, описывающая все ужасы войны, глазами обыкновенного 12-ти летнего мальчика и его семье, оставшихся в оккупированном Киеве в течении двух лет. Описано много документальных фактов, которые в советское время в лучшем случае умалчивались, а то и совсем переписывались и переворачивались с ног на голову. Очень подробно описаны настроения жителей Киева перед войной как к наступающим немцам так и к отступающим советским властям, описано отношения немцев к разным национальност...more
I've never liked nonfiction books. I always liked reading about things that could only happen in a dream or in my imagination. That might be why I love this book so much; it sounds like something that happened in a nightmare.
I chose to read this book for some insight on my research project on Babi Yar. I didn't have time to read the whole thing so I read thoroughly the first half and then skimmed the second half in one day. I have never abused a reading of a book like "Babi Yar" before. Even as...more
I chose to read this book for some insight on my research project on Babi Yar. I didn't have time to read the whole thing so I read thoroughly the first half and then skimmed the second half in one day. I have never abused a reading of a book like "Babi Yar" before. Even as...more
"No monument stands over Babi Yar/a drop sheer as a crude gravestone, I am afraid." These lines were written by the great Russian poet Yevgeny Yevteshenko in 1961, 40 years after the Nazis -- over a period of two days in September 29-30, 1941 -- murdered 30,000 Jews in Kiev. They were ordered to report to a street corner with their IDs and warm clothing after the German Army occupied the city. They were then taken to Babi Yar, and systematically shot and shoved, dead or alive, into a huge ravine...more
Wow, this book is insane. Very well written. I am surprised it hasn't been reprinted since the 1970s. It's about the Nazi invasion into Kiev and their 2 year takeover of the city. Babi Yar was a ravine near the city where 70,000 Jews were murdered and 100s of thousands other people as well. The Nazis tried to cover it up by burning everything then the Soviet Union tried to cover it up by building a dam over it. The author is a 12 year old boy when the Nazis invade. The writing is very thorough a...more
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I first read Babi Yar as a teenager, maybe for school? I always hate to say that I "enjoyed" a book about something as horrific as the Holocaust, but I did enjoy reading the book back then. I recently got a box of books about the Holocaust & have been slowly going through them, separating the ones I wanted to read or reread from the rest. I decided to reread Babi Yar. It's a very honest & blunt look at the horror of the event. I don't remember it being so slow-going when I read it the fi...more
I read this book as research as it is the one of the only pieces of evidence that aktion 1005's sondercommandos attempted to erase the mass graves at babi yar. the sections of the book that cover that topic are as hard a thing to read as you could find. There are two small sections of the book that specifically deal with these mass killings- the first is the re-telling of the only known survivor of the mass executions, and no summary can do it justice. The second section deals with aktion 1005 a...more
May 31, 2010
Chris Herdt
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
People with very strong stomachs
If I could change one thing about this book, I would wish it to be fiction.
I read D. M. Thomas's The White Hotel in college, in which an execution is described based on the true tale of Babi Yar. When I saw a tattered paperback of Babi Yar at a secondhand shop, I picked it up and it sat on my shelf for years.
It tells the story of the Nazi occupation of Kiev from the point of view of the author, who does his best to recapture his 12-year-old innocence (hiding with his cat in the bomb shelter, the...more
I read D. M. Thomas's The White Hotel in college, in which an execution is described based on the true tale of Babi Yar. When I saw a tattered paperback of Babi Yar at a secondhand shop, I picked it up and it sat on my shelf for years.
It tells the story of the Nazi occupation of Kiev from the point of view of the author, who does his best to recapture his 12-year-old innocence (hiding with his cat in the bomb shelter, the...more
Feb 12, 2010
Hava
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
anyone interested in WWII and Russia
Recommended to Hava by:
Kim Skeen (my English teacher)
The introduction to this book called it a Russian version of "The Diary of Anne Frank." I disagree. This is not a diary, and it doesn't even try to present itself in diary form. It does primarily recount the point of view of the author (Kuznetsov) but there are quite a few inserted chapters, where he recounts stories told to him by other survivors. He also puts in information from leaflets, pamphlets, newspapers, and other print sources like that.
This was a great book - it's depressing, but not...more
This was a great book - it's depressing, but not...more
This book is brilliant -- by far a top-tier Holocaust book and World War II book in general. The author was a boy of twelve when the Nazi occupation of Kiev began, and began recording his experiences then; these jottings were part of the basis for this book, which is both a memoir and a documentary nonfiction.
Although the story centers around the September 1941 mass murder of some 33,000 Jews at Babi Yar, a ravine outside Kiev, that's not all this story is. Kuznetsov's writing encompasses far mo...more
Although the story centers around the September 1941 mass murder of some 33,000 Jews at Babi Yar, a ravine outside Kiev, that's not all this story is. Kuznetsov's writing encompasses far mo...more
3 likes · like · see review
Babi Yar: A Document in the Form of a Novel is an internationally acclaimed documentary novel by Anatoly Kuznetsov about the Babi Yar massacre. The two-day murder of 33,771 Jewish civilians on September 29-30, 1941 in the Kiev ravine was one of the largest single mass killings of the Holocaust.
The novel begins as follows: "Everything in this book is true. When I recounted episodes of this story to different people, they all said I had to write the book. The word ‘document’ in the subtitle of thi...more
The novel begins as follows: "Everything in this book is true. When I recounted episodes of this story to different people, they all said I had to write the book. The word ‘document’ in the subtitle of thi...more
Found this while snooping around in my dad's closet when I was about thirteen. Could have come upon something worse, I guess. Something less appropriate for a girl of my age. I read it and returned it and my dad was none the wiser. I, on the other hand, was a changed person.
I do hate so say this is my "favorite" holocaust book but it is. amazing first hand story of the horrors of living through the holocaust. the most disturbing portion is reading through the second that were censored by the Russian government.
"Suddenly we realized we were walking on human ashes." Always a good sentence to read. The book gets very dark, very quickly. Definitely a page turner. I'd recommend it highly, just...make yourself a cup of tea or something afterwards.
Disturbingly real, about the Nazi atrocities and their collaborators complicity in the Ukraine during World War II; as seen through the eyes of a very perceptive young boy, it is a true account and banned by the Soviet government.
Oh my gosh, what a powerful book. I went right to my computer and looked everything up and was horrified. Some of these places have been plowed under, and are close to forgotten. This is really a tragedy.
I first read this in college, and it had a profound impact on me. One of the first holocaust stories I ever read.
I think this book is a must for everyone who wants to know more about that horrible period in our history.
A very interesting read, not what I expected but much better!
A picture is worth a thousand words.
One of the best books I have ever read. I have always been very interested in books dealing with the Holocaust - I think it is the demonstration of the lengths to which the human spirit can be pushed - both the very best and the very worst. Though this book has stayed with me for years and I can see the passages on the pages, I've never been able to bring myself to read it again. The warmth the author gives as he weaves his story of wonder, chance, love and darkness is haunting.
A history lesson on inhuman cruelties during WWII on many levels. It is also a plea for humanitarianism. Also a powerful accounting of life near that killing field by a very convincing observer. A powerful quote (paraphrased) from this book: "You can love politics, you can hate politics, but never, ever ignore politics." -- meaning that politics rule our world whether we like it or not, and if they are ignored, you can get Hitlers and Stalins.
So intense; especially since all the author's experiences happened right here in Kyiv, Ukraine. Streets he mentions are streets I've walked. The Nazis invaded Kyiv in the early 1940's and the author, then about eleven, shares an eye-witness account of life in Kyiv during that horrid occupation. Life for Ukrainians was better under the Soviets' Stalin than it was under Germany's Hitler. These poor people.
I read this as a teenager and it has always stayed with me.
Incredible book. A must read. The only reason I didn't give it five stars is because the voice is a little too personal, too direct - almost anti-literate, and the chapters are disjointed.
But the story told is gripping, and one of the most important stories ever told in history.
But the story told is gripping, and one of the most important stories ever told in history.
This boo was absolutely amazing. Please read it if you have any interest in the holocaust or World War II.
One of the most horrendous books I have ever read. It's heart wrenching. You must read it. Truly awesome....
Aug 15, 2008
Coalbanks
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
USSR, Russian, Holocaust studies
another view of the inhumanity (or the all-to-human behaviour?) of the human species.
the consequences of war,horrific detail,God save us from ourselves
May 18, 2013
Teckla
marked it as to-read
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| Why is it considered fiction on the book jacket? | 2 | 9 | Dec 12, 2011 02:25pm |
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“That there is in this world neither brains, nor goodness, nor good sense, but only brute force. Bloodshed. Starvation. Death. That there was not the slightest hope not even a glimmer of hope, of justice being done. It would never happen. No one would ever do it. The world was just one big Babi Yar. And there two great forces had come up against each other and were striking against each other like hammer and anvil, and the wretched people were in between, with no way out; each individual wanted only to live and not be maltreated, to have something to eat, and yet they howled and screamed and in their fear they were grabbing at each other’s throats, while I, little blob of watery jelly, was sitting in the midst of this dark world. Why? What for? Who had done it all? There was nothing, after all, to hope for! Winter. Night.”
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