
Those Who Forget
One Family's Story; A Memoir, a History, a Warning
Geraldine Schwarz(Author)
Pushkin Press
Published on 1. April 2021
Book
Paperback/Softback
320 pages
978-1-78227-537-4 (ISBN)
Description
During the war, Geraldine Schwarz's grandparents were neither heroes nor villains - they just followed the current. Afterwards they wanted to forget, to bury it all under the wreckage of the Third Reich.
But decades later, delving through the basement of their apartment building, Geraldine discovers that her grandfather Karl profited from the forced 'Aryanisation' of Jewish businesses - and so she is compelled to investigate her ancestors' past. On her mother's side, she delves into the role of her French grandfather, a policeman during the Vichy regime. How guilty were they?
Combining generations of family stories with the history of Europe's post-war reckoning, Geraldine asks: how did Germans transform their collective guilt into democratic responsibility? And, given rising populism in Europe today, how can we ensure we learn from history?
But decades later, delving through the basement of their apartment building, Geraldine discovers that her grandfather Karl profited from the forced 'Aryanisation' of Jewish businesses - and so she is compelled to investigate her ancestors' past. On her mother's side, she delves into the role of her French grandfather, a policeman during the Vichy regime. How guilty were they?
Combining generations of family stories with the history of Europe's post-war reckoning, Geraldine asks: how did Germans transform their collective guilt into democratic responsibility? And, given rising populism in Europe today, how can we ensure we learn from history?
Reviews / Votes
An utterly original memoir for our times, elegant, courageous and deeply affecting -- Philippe Sands, author of 'East West Street' I was gripped by Schwarz's book partly because she writes from a new generational perspective... I was moved by this book... she highlights the consequences of acquiescence in wrongdoing -- Max Hastings * Sunday Times * Out of all the books I read this year-and I read many, stuck at home during 2020's endless quarantine-the one that resonated perhaps the most was Those Who Forget... It made the very convincing case that, until and unless there is a full accounting for what happened with Donald Trump, 2020 is not over and never will be -- Susan Glasser * New Yorker * Incredibly moving... I could not put it down -- John Kampfner Although she has written a searing book about the past, Schwarz's work is oriented toward the present and the future... Those Who Forget is as readable as it is persuasive. Schwarz embeds her appeal to citizens and nations to do memory work in a gripping detective story centered on her own family's history... [an] invaluable warning -- Samantha Power * Washington Post * [A] riveting exploration of Germany's post-World War II reckoning with guilt and responsibility... with eloquence and passion [Schwarz] demonstrates that we can never be reminded too often to never forget * Wall Street Journal * [Schwarz] helps us understand the importance of openly facing our past, and of actively learning from it, at a time when our democracy, once again, is under threat. Those Who Forget is a powerful monument to our time, and an urgent wake-up call -- Nora Krug, author of 'Heimat: A German Family Album' It took only two generations for her family's unexceptional wartime past to recede from view. But as the author painstakingly peeled away decades of denial, it was precisely the family's ordinariness that would prove so chilling. Geraldine Schwarz's book is a brave and important contribution to our understanding of memory -- Daniel Okrent, author of 'The Guarded Gate' A powerful and unflinching look at Germany during World War II and Europe's postwar reckoning with far-right nationalism... In searing yet engaging prose, Schwarz makes her case for the need for memory work in this highly recommended read for fans of memoirs and World War II history * Library Journal (starred review) * [An] astute debut... This timely memoir also serves as a perceptive look at the current rise of far-right nationalism throughout Europe and the U.S. * Publishers Weekly *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 198 mm
Width: 132 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
260 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78227-537-4 (9781782275374)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Previous edition

Book
09/2020
Pushkin Press
€44.76
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Persons
Geraldine Schwarz is a German-French journalist, author and documentary filmmaker based in Berlin. Those Who Forget, an account of her family's complicity with fascism, is her first book. It has been translated into eight languages and won the European Book Prize 2018, the Winfried Preis and the Nord-Sud Prize.