Underground in Berlin: A Young Woman's Extraordinary Tale of Survival in the Heart of Nazi Germany

I didn't find the memoir boring at all, nor did I find it difficult to keep track of the persons mentioned in the book. It does a fairly decent job of showing the grey between the black and white of the Holocaust - the Germans who may have felt anti-Semitic but protected Jews nonetheless (the author herself claims to have been treated with sympathy, indeed, helped, by an SS officer); the stereotypes Jews had of non-Jews. It peels back the complex layers of a subject about which much has been written, touching upon points not usually touched upon. It also does a fairly good job of painting a portrait of life in wartime Berlin in a general sense.

Having said that, I agree with others that the author is not a very likeable character. While her grit, strength and determination are admirable, and the situation in which she found herself abominable, she does come off as a very arrogant person, one who, even as an elderly woman, still seems to be judging people by the quality of their furniture and whether they speak in High german or the vulgar Berlin dialect. Constant reference to the lower classes, to "grotesque furniture", bad taste, etc. This does illustrate the social class and mindset of the author, but doesn't make her likeable. But most disturbing is that this woman, who rightly decries one of the most genocidal dictatorships in history, then went on to become an evidently content member of another - the East German Communist party, satellite of the Soviet Union (which was not kind to the Jewish race either, as we know). When the Russians liberate Berlin, she is ecstatic of course, but then adds, rather calmly, that of course the Russians raped the women. She mentions this as if it's an unfortunate byproduct of liberation, but one easily accommodated: she was raped too, but he was "friendly" and, she concludes - even as the screaming downstairs of the family friend who helped her throughout the war as she is also raped - that "It wasn't so bad". Somehow that makes all of what goes before just go sour; one has to really make an effort to continue feeling empathy,

Of course, no one is perfect and sometimes the victim is not completely admirable. But if you can get past the seeming hypocrisy at the end, perhaps by digging into it (it is fascinating why the successfully rebellious survivor of a totalitarian regime would then ally herself with another one), it's enlightening.

This true account is amazing and will keep you interested and deeply moved.

This true account is amazing and will keep you interested and deeply moved.

There are plenty of truly amazing stories of people surviving the Holocaust. This isn't one of them.

Inspiring book of strength and courage!!!

Amazing view of life in Berlin during WWII. Much courage and tenacity by a young Jewish woman who was determined to survive.

I mistakenly order this title twice. There is not any option to make a return!

This book is an important and fascinating account of what Jewish people in hiding had to endure in Germany during wartime, if they wanted to survive. There are striking similarities to The Nazi Officer's Wife, another account of a young woman who tore off the yellow star and melted into the crowd. Both of these books describe the hunger, the fear, the homelessness, and the poverty that they encountered, as well as the boredom since they had nothing to do all day and nowhere to go, being unable to earn money. I respect the author of Underground in Berlin, and feel that this account and others like it should always be preserved and read by future generations.

However, the personality of the author rang through in her voice, and it wasn't a personality that I liked very much. She has something bitchy to say about everyone she meets, whether she's laughing at their size, or their "fat legs" - at least three people in the book are guilty of having fat legs, including her mother - or she is judging people who are friendly to her as simple, low-class, and all manner of other criticisms. She has something bad to say about everyone she meets, including people who help her a lot, and I found this negativity very depressing as the book wore on. I found the author of The Nazi Officer's Wife to be ten times warmer and more humane, and she also suffered a lot more than Jalowicz. There is something very immature in the way that Jalowicz bitchily picks apart everyone in the book, and her tone is also very cold and displays no empathy for anyone she meets. The detail about her defecating on the doormats of people and leaving her soiled newspaper there, if the occupant had a name that "sounded Nazi", is particularly unedifying. She doesn't explain how a Nazi-sounding name differs from non-Nazi-sounding names.

No one should have to suffer being driven into hiding to stay alive, but frankly the author of this book was clearly no angel herself and I'm glad she wasn't my contemporary. I'm sure she'd have picked me apart at the seams, like she does everyone else! I strongly feel that there is no excuse for such a nasty and superior attitude, especially at the remove of half a century, and especially towards those who helped save her life. She was beautiful, and it's clear that those looks went to her head. It's interesting how the experience of suffering and relying on others to save her life didn't humble her at all. She sounds vain, conceited, cold, and unkind.

In common with other readers, I found it impossible to keep track of who was who, and what relation they were to her, so I had to give up on that. There were quite a few instances in the book where the writing just didn't make sense and appeared to contradict itself.

I've noticed numerous new personal history publications recently on the Holocaust. I sense that some survivors feel the pressure of time to finally tell their stories and enhance the historical record of the Holocaust. I agree it's important, but as a literary work, this chronology seems tedious with many details but less revealing of the emotional turmoil and inner struggles of dealing with the horrendously brutal years covered in the book. Mrs. Simon's recounting sometimes feels mechanical. It's amazing she could recall all these details. During the first half, there is less emotional/personal reactions as she recites multiple moves. I wanted more personal/emotional reactions, but the second half of the book is much better in this regard. An important book for the historical record of the Holocaust.

Incredible! She told it like it was- good, bad and revolting.