New dawn

This emotionally riveting book traces the travails of three young Polish Jewish women attempting to resurrect their lives in the bitter aftermath of World War II. After years in a concentration camp, they must first fend off the lusty Russian soldiers who free them. Then comes the arduous trek home. Other people live in their houses now, and the village is hostile. Where will they go? How will they survive? Is anyone they knew and loved still alive? Traveling far, often passing as non-Jews, they learn to cope and endure. Finally, their search for freedom bears fruit in the promise of a Jewish homeland. But pioneering Israel means new hardships: housing shortages, scant medicine, food rationing, political conflict. And enemies everywhere, from harsh British rulers to warrior Arab neighbors. New Dawn is a book of many miracles. As history, it thrillingly recounts how Jews from vastly different cultures joined forces to fight for Israel. As Holocaust literature, it is significant. A half-century after the fact, time is running out for survivors, and the need for testimony is pressing. This book makes a major contribution to that growing genre.