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Taking Risks: A Jewish Youth in the Soviet Partisans and His Unlikely Life in California
Taking Jewish Youth in the Soviet Partisans and His Unlikely Life in California The night the SS rounded up the Jews of his ghetto, 18-year-old Yosel Epelbaum crawled on his hands and knees to a nearby forest soon to be engulfed by winter. There he joined a band of pro-Soviet partisans who resisted the Nazis and saved hundreds of civilians. After the war, he smuggled contraband from one end of Europe to the other. Then, without money or a formal education and knowing no English, he immigrated to San Francisco. Within a decade, Yosef—now known as Joe Pell—was on his way to becoming one of Northern California’s leading real estate developers.
228 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
March 3, 2020
An unvarnished account of a young Jewish man's muscular fight to survive the Holocaust and take up arms to resist the Nazis following the betrayal of his family by a neighbor. The history of the partisan fighters is part of the Holocaust story which is complex, not easily digested, not (yet) widely known and one that certainly deserves more attention.
The second half of the book shows how the skills learned as a young trader and butcher's son, served the author in establishing himself in his new country (USA). His experience with a broad array of partisans allowed him to create partnerships across cultures, forging successful business relationships in the wider California community as it developed in the 1950s-80s.
While it is hard to imagine what it took for Joseph Pell to revisit so much loss and pain, it is clear that this story is told with an eye to the future, with a warning that tells how easily an apparently stable world can disintegrate into a stew of multiple hatreds.
Yet perhaps the most compelling part of the book are the ending photos of the American family growing and expanding across generations. After experiencing the loss of an entire world, one can sense the deep pride, joy and hope for the future that this family brings to Joseph Pell.
The second half of the book shows how the skills learned as a young trader and butcher's son, served the author in establishing himself in his new country (USA). His experience with a broad array of partisans allowed him to create partnerships across cultures, forging successful business relationships in the wider California community as it developed in the 1950s-80s.
While it is hard to imagine what it took for Joseph Pell to revisit so much loss and pain, it is clear that this story is told with an eye to the future, with a warning that tells how easily an apparently stable world can disintegrate into a stew of multiple hatreds.
Yet perhaps the most compelling part of the book are the ending photos of the American family growing and expanding across generations. After experiencing the loss of an entire world, one can sense the deep pride, joy and hope for the future that this family brings to Joseph Pell.
April 19, 2012
An inspiring story!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews