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A Jewish Childhood in the Occupied Netherlands
‘I was on the street and I was free – but what now?’
This is the story of Lex Lesgever: a young Jewish boy who found himself alone on the streets of wartime Amsterdam, the only survivor of his large family. He was just 11 when the Germans invaded in May 1940, and less than a year later he had already been confronted with the horrific consequences of war when his eldest brother, Wolf, was arrested during a raid. This marked the beginning of a devastating time for both the Netherlands and for the young boy who had to survive it alone.
From a cosy family home in Amsterdam’s Jewish quarter, to sleeping rough, escaping Nazi raids and interrogations, and being taken in by members of the Dutch Resistance, Lex’s memoir pulls no punches. Witness the growth of a naïve, frightened young boy into a smart, resilient and yet sensitive survivor. Painting a picture of the unfolding events in Amsterdam during Anne Frank’s time in hiding, Nobody Lives Here is vivid and often horrific, but ultimately it is a poignant snapshot of humanity in its darkest moments.
'This spellbinding book will take you on the streets of 1940s Amsterdam as a Jewish boy twists and turns to remain alive. Each page immerses the reader in the sights, sounds and experiences confronting Lex everywhere he looks. A captivating account of one boy’s survival through his wit, courage and nine lives.'
Baroness Gillian Merron,
'A vivid and moving account that offers a deeply personal reflection on the Holocaust in the Netherlands. Readers will be captivated … truly inspiring.'
Olivia Marks-Woldman, Holocaust Memorial Day Trust,
‘A compelling and devastating account that offers a profoundly personal and disarmingly honest insight into the human reality of the Holocaust. It deserves to be read widely, and repeatedly.’
James Bulgin, Head of Public History, Imperial War Museum,
‘Conveys vividly and sensitively the reality of the war years . . . Evocative and memorable.’
Gaby Glassman, psychotherapist specialising in transgenerational Holocaust trauma,
'Almost an unbearably stressful read, but so extremely worth it.'
Family Tree magazine,
18th October, 2023 in Biography & Memoir, Military
This memoir is a gripping and unusual account of a survivor of the Shoah in Holland. With impressively clear recall of his childhood and early teens – he was 11 at the outbreak of the war – Lex Lesgever writes of his years on the run and in hiding in Amsterdam and beyond. It is u…
13th January, 2016 in Biography & Memoir, Women in History
The Diary of Anne Frank is one of the most famous – and bestselling – books of all time. Yet the girl who wrote it remains an enigma. The real Anne Frank has been hidden again, lost, behind the phenomenon of her posthumously published Diary. In the book I have just completed I ar…
15th December, 2015 in Biography & Memoir, Military
In the summer of 1942 the SS has its first death camps up and running. It’s time to empty the German ghettos in Poland of every Jew who cannot be used as a work slave. In the Schiff family, William has his job, Dorothy is a licensed pharmacist, and Bronek is a healthy young male…
