Escape To The Tatras: A Boy, A War and A Life Interrupted

by Oscar Sladek, Corinne Joy Brown (Editor)

Imagine trying to stay alive during the terrifying years of deprivation, deportation and imprisonment of Jews to Nazi labor and extermination camps during World War II. If this weren’t challenge enough for the Štaub family; mother Irene, father Frici and their young son Oskar, all citizens of Prešov located in eastern Slovakia, consider the odds of survival after fleeing into the forbidding Tatra mountains in the winter of 1944, a very last resort, in order to hide from the brutal, paramilitary Slovakian forces and their Nazi German operatives. Robbed of their home, their assets and their very identity, together this family beat the odds and young Osi found the courage and resiliency to cope with physical and emotional challenges far beyond his years. A coming-of-age story set against the collapse of Slovakia and the conquest of the Allied Forces over Germany, learn how one child’s remarkable journey to safety and adolescence encompasses the essence of Jewish life before the war and the overwhelming tragedy of a genocide whose effects are still being felt around the world. Written with the precision of unfailing memory and the pain of personal experience, Oscar (Osi) Sladek tells an unforgettable story of resilience and personal triumph.

"... a masterpiece of love and survival ." - James Carroll - National Book Award Winner, An American Requiem

" ... a gripping page turner ... as dramatic an account of the Holocaust era as a reader is likely to find." - Chris Leppek, Intermountain Jewish News

Genres: Jewish

312 pages, Paperback

Published July 29, 2022

Reviews

[M Jacoby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having known the Sladeks in Denver years ago, made Osi's story even more interesting. It's a story that needs to be told over and over. The fact that a child was put in those circumstances and survived is unbelievable. But, in today's environment could it happen again? It's an interesting and well written book with relevance to not only Jews, relatives of Holocaust survivors, but minorities everywhere in our world.

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book that keeps you turning the pages. It was really interesting to see life in Slovakia for Jewish people through this lens, and the story as a whole was fascinating. The lessons described were also meaningful, and I finished this book in a day because it really did keep my attention and I didn’t want to put it down. With the great emphasis on compassion, empathy, understanding, and making sure that events like this never happen again, not turning a blind eye, etc , I do wish that this book called for compassion towards the Palestinian people as well — especially since the book ends with with the family finally arriving in Israel and has comments afterward about moving again to Venezuela and the US — but I guess I understand that after living through such traumatic events, it might be hard to believe that your own people could be capable of committing similar acts in the future too. Regardless, this was a great read for what it was, and was definitely worth the time.

[Meredith Lipman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing story of resilience

I was looking for a travel book about the Tatras and found this beautiful story of love and resilience amidst the horrors of the Holocaust. I highly recommend reading this book.

[Mora · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sobering story from a Holocaust Jewish survivor who lives in Colorado.