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The Hidden Girl: A True Story of the Holocaust
When her mother is killed by the Gestapo, a Jewish girl named Lola is sent into hiding. At first, Lola secretly lives in the home of a Ukrainian woman. But when someone threatens to expose her to the Nazis, Lola must flee again, this time hiding with another family in a dirt hole beneath a barn.
Struggling against cold and hunger, the hidden family lives under the constant threat of discovery. Lola has lost everything - her home and her family. All she has left is one article of clothing, a dress lovingly embroidered by her mother. Will Lola ever find safety - or freedom?
Struggling against cold and hunger, the hidden family lives under the constant threat of discovery. Lola has lost everything - her home and her family. All she has left is one article of clothing, a dress lovingly embroidered by her mother. Will Lola ever find safety - or freedom?
97 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2008
84 people are currently reading
3184 people want to read
About the author
Lola Rein Kaufman
1 book16 followersLola Rein Kaufman is a Holocaust survivor and author of "The Hidden Girl: A True Story of the Holocaust." Her incredible story is featured on the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum's Web site: http://www.ushmm.org/museum/exhibit/o... . Lola lives in New York with her family.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 270 reviews
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December 9, 2021Its been forever since ive read this. But i had randomly thought of it today. I was telling my mom how much it had upset and disturbed me as a 13 year old. I think this was the first book to really open my eyes not only to the Holocaust but to just how cruel the world and people can be. I dont know what it would be like to read it now in this era or as a 27yr old. But as a 13 year old in the 2000s it was very sad, heartbreaking and upsetting...
February 1, 2023
The book I’m reading is called ‘The hidden ‘The Hidden Girl’ written by a Holocaust survivor, Lola Rein Kaufman and Lois Metzger. This is a very quick read for an adult with lasting messages. I finished in half an hour. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. The author has used incredible details to transport the reader to the hiding places where they spent time avoiding the Nazis. Many people have read about Anne Frank which is a popular read, however, so this is another perfect companion piece for students who are in grade 4+ to learn more about the dangers the Jewish people endured. It is still an excellent way to introduce young readers to one of the darkest periods of recent history. Of course it was a heartbreaking book. Lola was only 5 years old when the war starts. She grew up in Poland. She survived the Holocaust during WW2 by hiding in a hole in the ground. After the war, she comes to America where she still resides. As a result, did her family survive the Holocaust? You can decide.
August 31, 2013
A Continuous Fight to Hide from Evil
Because it was directed primarily against children, the Holocaust was unprecedented in its cruelty. This time, however, Lola's parents were the ones to be murdered by the Gestapo; as with a number of Jewish children, this little girl was rescued by members of the underground. She finds sanctuary at the home of a Ukrainian woman, putting both lives in jeopardy. Despite such heroic deeds, there were locals who threatened to expose this secret. Lola had to find another place of hiding, this time at a barn. All she has of her parents is a dress, beautifully embroidered by her loving mother. That and hope are all she has to hold onto. Young readers will learn a great deal about how children their age had to survive in the constant face of danger and hunger during the dark years of the Holocaust. As with many books of this genre. this one is part novel, part biography - the story of one child and her enduring will to live.
Because it was directed primarily against children, the Holocaust was unprecedented in its cruelty. This time, however, Lola's parents were the ones to be murdered by the Gestapo; as with a number of Jewish children, this little girl was rescued by members of the underground. She finds sanctuary at the home of a Ukrainian woman, putting both lives in jeopardy. Despite such heroic deeds, there were locals who threatened to expose this secret. Lola had to find another place of hiding, this time at a barn. All she has of her parents is a dress, beautifully embroidered by her loving mother. That and hope are all she has to hold onto. Young readers will learn a great deal about how children their age had to survive in the constant face of danger and hunger during the dark years of the Holocaust. As with many books of this genre. this one is part novel, part biography - the story of one child and her enduring will to live.
May 4, 2018
I read this for #middlegrademay. It's a heartbreaking true story. Lola is 7 years old when the war starts. She is living in Poland and her grandmother sends her off to hide. She survived the Holocaust during WW2 by hiding in a hole in the ground. During the war she lost most of her family except for two uncles. After the war she comes to America where she still resides. This is a great book for middle school children to learn more about what happened during WW2 and how some people were brave enough to help children survive during a tragic time in history.
March 19, 2024
Small book . Easy to read but profound in its story of a little girl in the war
June 1, 2017
3 1/2 stars in a good way considering how it's a REALLY short book and easy read, I'm a sucker for WWII stories whether it be adult or children book versions (like this one) of these Holocaust survivors, I love them and read what each one went through. Lola went through a TON for her age and one thing I did like was she showed you how to say certain letters sound in Polish for example she said the CZ makes a "CH" sound and the o in Kraków sound like "u" and the W sounds like a "v". SO Kraków is you figured out "KRAK-UV" so pretty neat to actually know that. And I do love that infamous phrase: you learn something new everyday (especially when you read books! ;))
So I did enjoy this book and did break my heart and makes me so glad I didn't have to live during those times and also have privileges in a country when there's those in others countries who don't have those freedom privileges like we do. So a good read for any age and would recommend this story. :)
So I did enjoy this book and did break my heart and makes me so glad I didn't have to live during those times and also have privileges in a country when there's those in others countries who don't have those freedom privileges like we do. So a good read for any age and would recommend this story. :)
January 4, 2016
Found this at a book sale for only P50. This book is about 5-year-old Lola Rein Kaufman and how she survived the Holocaust by hiding continuously in different houses and other cramped spaces for many, many years. I vaguely remember reading about her before; or rather, about a girl who survived the Holocaust and had one single possession left that she managed to keep all those years--- a dress given by her mother. At first, I wish the book was longer but then I thought Lola Rein was only 5 years old when all of it happened, and so I understood why the book I picked had only a hundred pages--so just the right exact amount of pages. Still very worth reading.
December 24, 2017
Just finished reading this last night. I'm looking forward to sharing with my middle school students. This is just the right length for my intervention students. The author has used incredible details to transport the reader to the hiding places where they spent time avoiding the Nazis. Many of my students will have read a selection about Anne Frank so this is the perfect companion piece for them to learn more about the dangers the Jewish people endured.
May 18, 2025
Written as a young people’s book, this 97 page book still has the power to shock even when the details of the atrocities are not described in too much detail. The most shocking was the cruel way the German Nazi, Kurt Kollner, executed her mother and three other Jewish women out of spite for another Gestapo killing people in “ his territory”
This precious little girl is left with just her beloved grandmother or Babcia who is determined to save Lola.Then follows two years of living in underground cellars, a cramped, cold and terrifying existence. And even when the war is over, Lola still faces more cruelty, finding out her aunt will not help her. Thankfully she does finally get to the safety of the USA & beautiful Uncle George who becomes like a grandfather to her three children.
This would be a good book for a 12 year old plus young person to gain some understanding of the horrors faced by Jewish people in WW2 Poland.
This precious little girl is left with just her beloved grandmother or Babcia who is determined to save Lola.Then follows two years of living in underground cellars, a cramped, cold and terrifying existence. And even when the war is over, Lola still faces more cruelty, finding out her aunt will not help her. Thankfully she does finally get to the safety of the USA & beautiful Uncle George who becomes like a grandfather to her three children.
This would be a good book for a 12 year old plus young person to gain some understanding of the horrors faced by Jewish people in WW2 Poland.
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February 21, 2024I read this book in WIN class and it was cool to see her experience and how she advanced her life afterward. This book was sad but good.
March 29, 2024
It seems that every WWII memoir reveals new details I never knew before. Age appropriate read for older elementary kids. And of course New City, NY is mentioned - can’t escape Rockland!
January 1, 2024
Spoiler Alert: Others have written great reviews summarizing the book. It was very moving and sad even though it has a happy ending. The saddest part to me was that when she was in the hole for nine months, she knew the adults in there with her wished she wasn’t there. “Even though we are all Jewish and in great danger, they don’t like having me here. It means they have to share what little food they are given, what little space they have.” I can’t imagine not only fearing for your life but knowing that the people you are with wish you could be thrown out to your death rather than having to share a space with you.
An equally sad part occurs after the town is liberated by the Russians. Lola and the others who had been in hiding with her stay in an empty building where Jews were gathering. After a few days, when the woman, Rose, who had been in the hole with Lola (age 9) can’t find anyone to take care of Lola, she basically throws Lola out. Rose sees a huge march of people headed east for Russia and tells Lola she has to go with them. “She puts her hands on my shoulders. She walks me to the door. She pushes me out the door and closes the door behind me. Rose has thrown me out. Now I am even more alone. In the midst of people. I think, ‘my cousins are better off than I am.’ My cousins, of course, are dead.”
Another sad part that will stick with me is earlier in the war when Lola is hiding in a wall with her mother and grandmother during one of the “actions,” when the Germans are rounding up huge numbers of Jews. After some other people in the apartment are found by the Germans, “one of them points to the spot where we are standing behind the wall. ‘There are Jews hiding in there, too,’ he says.”…I can’t believe what I’m hearing. It’s bad enough that the Ukrainians, our neighbors for years and years, have turned on us. But a Jew turning on other Jews? It doesn’t make sense. It’s as if the sky is suddenly below our feet and the ground is over our heads. It’s wrong. It’s backward.” Fortunately the police don’t find them.
These sad incidents will stick with me. I need to read some of the works of Samuel Oliner now. He was a Holocaust survivor who concentrated on the altruistic acts of people during World War II.
An equally sad part occurs after the town is liberated by the Russians. Lola and the others who had been in hiding with her stay in an empty building where Jews were gathering. After a few days, when the woman, Rose, who had been in the hole with Lola (age 9) can’t find anyone to take care of Lola, she basically throws Lola out. Rose sees a huge march of people headed east for Russia and tells Lola she has to go with them. “She puts her hands on my shoulders. She walks me to the door. She pushes me out the door and closes the door behind me. Rose has thrown me out. Now I am even more alone. In the midst of people. I think, ‘my cousins are better off than I am.’ My cousins, of course, are dead.”
Another sad part that will stick with me is earlier in the war when Lola is hiding in a wall with her mother and grandmother during one of the “actions,” when the Germans are rounding up huge numbers of Jews. After some other people in the apartment are found by the Germans, “one of them points to the spot where we are standing behind the wall. ‘There are Jews hiding in there, too,’ he says.”…I can’t believe what I’m hearing. It’s bad enough that the Ukrainians, our neighbors for years and years, have turned on us. But a Jew turning on other Jews? It doesn’t make sense. It’s as if the sky is suddenly below our feet and the ground is over our heads. It’s wrong. It’s backward.” Fortunately the police don’t find them.
These sad incidents will stick with me. I need to read some of the works of Samuel Oliner now. He was a Holocaust survivor who concentrated on the altruistic acts of people during World War II.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 27, 2012
The Hidden Girl is an autobiography written by a Lola Rein Kaufman, a Jewish Holocaust survivor who had to hide from the Nazis in a small hole dug in a barn for nine months. The relatively interesting story of hiding and running is believable and nicely constructed, moving with relative ease from one event to another. The war-time setting of Poland was described by the author very well; it sounded authentic and real. Themes such as family and love emerged, as well as courage and bravery. Lola Kaufman doesn't do a great job describing characters, and I never really felt any connection to them, but the engaging writing and tone of the story made up for it. The first person views of Lola Kaufman provided a crystal clear window into the horrific prospect of being a hidden Jew during the Holocaust. Lola is a cultural insider who experienced everything she wrote about, and chose to write the book after she was asked to speak by the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C. She describes the "cloak" that was over her personality, preventing her from speaking, and how it was finally lifted. Lola now talks about her experiences nationwide; she wants everyone to know about her experiences.
March 1, 2018
This is a very quick read.....I finished it in 30 minutes. Being it is published by Scholastic, I assume it is written for grade school age. None the less, it is a very good book. This is the true story of Lola, a child of Jewish heritage, who is kept hidden and sent several places to live to avoid persecution. Most 0f her family is murdered. Her true freedom is when she gets on the boat and comes to live with her uncle in America. Despite her survival, the memories continue to haunt her today..
July 22, 2018
I read this today in one sitting. And I cried heavy tears. The holocaust took so much from this little girl, just 5 years old when WW2 began. And yet she survived and found a way to experience happiness again.
She shares a birthdate with my Oma, though 13 years younger and writes with the same European style. Like Oma, she fell asleep in snow and was rescued by others from freezing to death. This story connected with my heart and my heritage.
She shares a birthdate with my Oma, though 13 years younger and writes with the same European style. Like Oma, she fell asleep in snow and was rescued by others from freezing to death. This story connected with my heart and my heritage.
July 29, 2011
This is a short Scholastic book with not a lot of detail, but a powerful message. The author lost her parents in the holocaust during WWII and her grandmother sent her to a farm to be hidden. I wish the author had written more of her feelings and more description, but it is a book worth reading nonetheless. We must never forget that a wicked man set forth to destroy a whole people!
February 26, 2020
What a sad childhood for Lola.... It’s amazing that a child so young could exhibit such courage and bravery at a time when being safe was so uncertain and feeling loved was a wish.
To the author... Thank you for sharing your story. I hope God has blessed you, your family, and your friends with much love and happiness.
To the author... Thank you for sharing your story. I hope God has blessed you, your family, and your friends with much love and happiness.
April 20, 2013
A very quick read. The story was, of course, sad but it moved so quickly that it seems like it skipped a lot of the story and made it difficult for the reader to really connect with the teller's story and her world as it changed.
February 5, 2024
Thankful to see the recommendation on a friend’s Goodreads account. I read it with the 4th and 2nd grade daughters. Such a powerful story and a great introduction for them about the Holocoust. Highly recommend.
May 20, 2023
Rating: 3.5
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March 16, 2023When your daughter begs you to read a book because she loved it so much, you read the book! 💜 Great intro to the Holocaust for those able to handle the heavy content.
May 13, 2025
I read this when I was a child and started to get into World War Two; the first thing I learned was the holocaust, and this was one (after the boy in the stripped pajama) of the books I got to know further about it in the perspectives of the victims.
The story is well written since the start to the end; being subjected to persecution , death and starvation to such a young age.. I cannot image how hard it might be to recover from all of that. She escaped alone with nothing but her dress, a remainder of her family, specifically her mother. Living on a hole underground with other people tightly abreast with none to talk to you because you forcefully needed to be silent either they’d caught you , those who hid you and those beside you, it must be hell.
She didn’t even recover even when she moved and grew up, she stayed silent like back in the hole, showing how these events can impact children even when they grew up; they’ll become recessive, but forever they’ll be there, ready to explode at anything similar that might trigger their subconscious onto reminding it that they might be there again. Im glad she lived a happy life afterwards in the America’s, marrying someone and having children.
I had no idea this was written by the author, i though she had just asked a survivor about their story and wrote it with their permission, but no! It was her; shes truly a great writer, brave for showing the world what she lived through.
I recommend this book if you’re recently getting onto World War Two events and are looking for something less heavy —but still impactful— to read. A truly impacting story that shows one of the points of views of a victim of one of the most horrid events done by humanity.
The story is well written since the start to the end; being subjected to persecution , death and starvation to such a young age.. I cannot image how hard it might be to recover from all of that. She escaped alone with nothing but her dress, a remainder of her family, specifically her mother. Living on a hole underground with other people tightly abreast with none to talk to you because you forcefully needed to be silent either they’d caught you , those who hid you and those beside you, it must be hell.
She didn’t even recover even when she moved and grew up, she stayed silent like back in the hole, showing how these events can impact children even when they grew up; they’ll become recessive, but forever they’ll be there, ready to explode at anything similar that might trigger their subconscious onto reminding it that they might be there again. Im glad she lived a happy life afterwards in the America’s, marrying someone and having children.
I had no idea this was written by the author, i though she had just asked a survivor about their story and wrote it with their permission, but no! It was her; shes truly a great writer, brave for showing the world what she lived through.
I recommend this book if you’re recently getting onto World War Two events and are looking for something less heavy —but still impactful— to read. A truly impacting story that shows one of the points of views of a victim of one of the most horrid events done by humanity.
February 26, 2025
The hidden Girl
By:Lola Kaufman
This story is about a polish girl who is only 3 years old when the Holocaust starts. At first it is just guards in her town and shooting but then they build a ghetto around her town and she does not get out of her house anymore. Then one day they heard that the Nazis were going to take all of the Jews in that town and take them to camps so she and her mother and grandma hid in between two walls. They heard screaming and crying and in the end they survived. Until one day, her mom was out on the street and got shot by a guard for no reason. So now Lola, who had just turned 4, had to live with her grandma. One day her grandma decided to make Lola go into hiding with a Ukrainian woman. When Lola got there she had to stay in a secret room for a long time. One night after getting threatened of being uncovered she went to a new place. She had to hide in a barn in a hole with 3 other people. She would get food once a day and did not change her clothes once. After getting a bad case of lice and cutting her hair she had to go with a whole bunch of other Jews on the road to a new place. On the road she went with this guy to his house. She lived there until the war ended and she got into college and moved out. This goes with the theme, because she had to survive the holocaust. I rate this book a 4 because I did not like the Nazis. I would recommend this book to someone that likes survival books.
By:Lola Kaufman
This story is about a polish girl who is only 3 years old when the Holocaust starts. At first it is just guards in her town and shooting but then they build a ghetto around her town and she does not get out of her house anymore. Then one day they heard that the Nazis were going to take all of the Jews in that town and take them to camps so she and her mother and grandma hid in between two walls. They heard screaming and crying and in the end they survived. Until one day, her mom was out on the street and got shot by a guard for no reason. So now Lola, who had just turned 4, had to live with her grandma. One day her grandma decided to make Lola go into hiding with a Ukrainian woman. When Lola got there she had to stay in a secret room for a long time. One night after getting threatened of being uncovered she went to a new place. She had to hide in a barn in a hole with 3 other people. She would get food once a day and did not change her clothes once. After getting a bad case of lice and cutting her hair she had to go with a whole bunch of other Jews on the road to a new place. On the road she went with this guy to his house. She lived there until the war ended and she got into college and moved out. This goes with the theme, because she had to survive the holocaust. I rate this book a 4 because I did not like the Nazis. I would recommend this book to someone that likes survival books.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 24, 2020
I didn't realize this was a middle grade children's book when I bought it, but I read it anyway. The adorable picture on the front cover is an actual picture of the author, when she was a child.
It is about her experience as a Jewish child during the Holocaust. She lost her entire family and had to depend on strangers to help her when she was too young to help herself. Eventually she found relatives who took her in and after WWII was over she met and married her husband at the age of 18.
My youngest child is 12, and he hasn't learned anything about WWII or the holocaust in school, and he is in 7th grade now. This isn't a book I really want him to read, right now it would seem like some made up story to him, and I don't know enough about it to tell him what happened so long ago.
Overall, I'm glad I read it - even though it broke my heart just as much as The Diary of Ann Frank. I was so glad that this author had a much happier ending!
It is about her experience as a Jewish child during the Holocaust. She lost her entire family and had to depend on strangers to help her when she was too young to help herself. Eventually she found relatives who took her in and after WWII was over she met and married her husband at the age of 18.
My youngest child is 12, and he hasn't learned anything about WWII or the holocaust in school, and he is in 7th grade now. This isn't a book I really want him to read, right now it would seem like some made up story to him, and I don't know enough about it to tell him what happened so long ago.
Overall, I'm glad I read it - even though it broke my heart just as much as The Diary of Ann Frank. I was so glad that this author had a much happier ending!
July 30, 2023
This is a children's book -the true horrors of the Nazi regeime and WW II are never explicitly shown - Lola's time in hiding is filled with the loneliness and shows the fear and uncertainty she faced, but is mostly a testament to the strong will to survive that her people had, in the face of terror, evil and death. These are lessons no 9 year old should HAVE to learn, or learn FROM, but sadly, we seem to be on that same path again in 2023 - letting politics take the place of humanity. The brave men and women, children, senior citizens who stood against the Nazis, and saved Jewish people from death are truly the heros of this story - Lola shares her truth at last, with the dress her Mama made for her with love in every stitch - defying the attempt to silence her forever. We must continue to speak out, to stop the darkness that spreads like a cancer in our society, even today.
April 5, 2024
This book about the holocaust is a little less than 100 pages, written for adolescents. It tells the story of a young child who had to stay hidden for about 9 months from the Nazis in a hole in a barn with 3 others. Many other horrors occur which stay with the woman even after she survives the war. The account is moving and a good initial education into this time period and situation involving the Nazi regime, World War II, and its aftermath. I would quibble a bit with the way the book is written, as if a first-person account by a child but interrupting with facts which the child would not know at the time. This interruption somewhat detracts from the child's voice. It might have been better if written from the viewpoint of the now grown woman and have her occasionally go back into her time during the war, mixing in the necessary facts. In other words, go in and out of time.
May 22, 2024
Such a remarkable story about Lola. I can’t even tell you how this book ended up on my shelf, but I am so glad it did. The story begins when Lola is only four years old and soldiers have arrived. Her life is forever altered. The strength and courage this little girl had is beyond amazing. She lived during some of the most horrible moments in time and faced them head-on. I admire Lola Rein Kaufman for sharing her story with the world. I also appreciate that the way the story is written, it is very easy to understand. For example, Polish names are broken down so the reader knows how to pronounce them correctly. I learned new things while reading this book. Is it marketed for young readers? Yes, but do not let that deter you. This is a story for everyone to “hear”.
TW for- Name calling, Gunshots, People being shot, Man is beat up, Death, Murder, Going into hiding, Begging for food
TW for- Name calling, Gunshots, People being shot, Man is beat up, Death, Murder, Going into hiding, Begging for food
February 11, 2025
The hidden girl by Lola Rein Kaufman is a story about A little girl surviving the holocaust by hiding
or walking on the dangerous streets by herself as a child but she gets help eventually from her grandmother and friends of her grandmother. The hidden girl connects to the theme of biography or autobiography
because Lola Kaufman is the girl in the book and worth a story about what she did in the Holocaust. I rate this story 4 stars because it was a an amazing story and I really liked it. The only thing that grossed me out was when she got lice and the eggs fell in her dress and she would try and grab the eggs and pop them. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes true stories or books about the holocaust. the book may be short but it was very good for such a short book.
or walking on the dangerous streets by herself as a child but she gets help eventually from her grandmother and friends of her grandmother. The hidden girl connects to the theme of biography or autobiography
because Lola Kaufman is the girl in the book and worth a story about what she did in the Holocaust. I rate this story 4 stars because it was a an amazing story and I really liked it. The only thing that grossed me out was when she got lice and the eggs fell in her dress and she would try and grab the eggs and pop them. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes true stories or books about the holocaust. the book may be short but it was very good for such a short book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 2, 2019
This is a haunting story about a little Jewish girl, Lola, who was hidden in an underground hole for nine months during WWII. It is a shorter novel, but it is hard hitting. It doesn’t smooth over the harsh realities of the events of her story - as they unfold, they are presented in a matter of fact way, often jarring. I appreciated the clear way that the timeline of the politics and events of the day are explained throughout the story. In addition, in the end of the book, it is interesting to hear Lola’s journey towards finally being able to share abut her tragic story. Although there is so much sadness and loss in the story, the bravery of those who helped Lola and many others is inspiring.
January 31, 2018
2 stars for "it was ok."
70% of the book was composed of dates and long town names I instantly forget after reading about. However, the story part was touching and sad. There was a bit of awkward sentence structure and unneeded exclamation points which I found took away from the flow a little, drawing me out of Lola's story, although I suppose for a younger reader it would be more appealing.
There's no "mature content" but the subject matter is not light; there is a lot of death, starvation, isolation and darkness, which is sad and not the most pleasant read, but I think this would be the kind of book for a child who is interested in learning about the history of WW2.
70% of the book was composed of dates and long town names I instantly forget after reading about. However, the story part was touching and sad. There was a bit of awkward sentence structure and unneeded exclamation points which I found took away from the flow a little, drawing me out of Lola's story, although I suppose for a younger reader it would be more appealing.
There's no "mature content" but the subject matter is not light; there is a lot of death, starvation, isolation and darkness, which is sad and not the most pleasant read, but I think this would be the kind of book for a child who is interested in learning about the history of WW2.
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