• About
  • Jewish Community Directory
  • Subscription Information
  • Contact Us
American Jewish World
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • All
    • Africa
    • Asia
    • Australia & New Zealand
    • Europe
    • Israel/Mideast
    • Latin America
    • Minnesota
    • US & Canada
    From Jerusalem with love and compassion

    From Jerusalem with love and compassion

    Jewish groups fight for abortion rights in Minnesota

    Jewish groups fight for abortion rights in Minnesota

    ‘Honoring Our Graduates’ in May 2022

    Once again: Honoring Our Graduates

  • Arts
    • All
    • Blue Box
    • Books & Literature
    • Music
    • Televison & Film
    • Theater & Performing Arts
    • Visual Arts
    Poems wanted

    Poems wanted

    Tamara Nadel marries Jewish and Hindu dance traditions

    Tamara Nadel marries Jewish and Hindu dance traditions

    Searching for a bridge to the past

    Searching for a bridge to the past

  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Health & Wellness
    • Home & Garden
    • Travel & Culture
    ‘Honoring Our Graduates’ in May 2022

    Once again: Honoring Our Graduates

    ‘Honoring Our Graduates’ in May 2022

    ‘Honoring Our Graduates’ in May 2022

    Hey, Kids: The 2021 AJW Hanuka Cover Contest is accepting entries!

    Hey, Kids: The 2021 AJW Hanuka Cover Contest is accepting entries!

  • Editorial
  • Opinion
  • AJW Digital Archives
  • News
    • All
    • Africa
    • Asia
    • Australia & New Zealand
    • Europe
    • Israel/Mideast
    • Latin America
    • Minnesota
    • US & Canada
    From Jerusalem with love and compassion

    From Jerusalem with love and compassion

    Jewish groups fight for abortion rights in Minnesota

    Jewish groups fight for abortion rights in Minnesota

    ‘Honoring Our Graduates’ in May 2022

    Once again: Honoring Our Graduates

  • Arts
    • All
    • Blue Box
    • Books & Literature
    • Music
    • Televison & Film
    • Theater & Performing Arts
    • Visual Arts
    Poems wanted

    Poems wanted

    Tamara Nadel marries Jewish and Hindu dance traditions

    Tamara Nadel marries Jewish and Hindu dance traditions

    Searching for a bridge to the past

    Searching for a bridge to the past

  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Health & Wellness
    • Home & Garden
    • Travel & Culture
    ‘Honoring Our Graduates’ in May 2022

    Once again: Honoring Our Graduates

    ‘Honoring Our Graduates’ in May 2022

    ‘Honoring Our Graduates’ in May 2022

    Hey, Kids: The 2021 AJW Hanuka Cover Contest is accepting entries!

    Hey, Kids: The 2021 AJW Hanuka Cover Contest is accepting entries!

  • Editorial
  • Opinion
  • AJW Digital Archives
No Result
View All Result
Morning News
No Result
View All Result
Home Arts

Shoah survivor pens new memoir

American Jewish World by American Jewish World
May 23, 2020
in Arts, News
0
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Minneapolis resident Mary Neuman will read from her new book on June 15 at Temple Israel

By ERIN ELLIOTT BRYAN / Community News Editor

Tell your children about it,

READ ALSO

From Jerusalem with love and compassion

Jewish groups fight for abortion rights in Minnesota

And let your children tell theirs,

And their children to the next generation!

Joel 1:3

Minneapolis resident Mary Neuman has authored her memoir as Maryla Neuman, a “combination name: Maryla to recall the name my parents gave me and Neuman to echo the family name of my children.”

Neuman’s new book, Pockets in My Soul, chronicles her incredible life that began in Lwów, Poland. Her happy childhood was followed by Russian occupation, life in the Lwów (Lemberg) ghetto, time spent hiding on a farm, and internment in two prisons and two concentration camps, Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz.

As a Holocaust survivor, she made her way to the United States and raised three children, only to endure the loss of two of her children — one to murder and one to cancer — and one of her teenaged grandchildren to a car accident.

“While I act whole and look whole, I have empty pockets in my soul,” Neuman writes in the prologue. “My friends ask where I get the strength to lead an active life. I have no answer.”

Neuman’s story was told to fellow Shoah survivor Fred Amram. Pockets in My Soul was edited by Marcy R. Frost.

Neuman will be honored during a reception following Nefesh Shabbat services 6 p.m. Friday, June 15 at Temple Israel, 2324 Emerson Ave. S., Minneapolis. Neuman is a member of Temple Israel and its Sisterhood.

Mary Neuman’s life story is chronicled in Pockets in My Soul.Mary Neuman’s life story is chronicled in Pockets in My Soul.

Among the experiences recounted in the book is Neuman’s encounter with Dr. Josef Mengele, Auschwitz’s “Angel of Death,” who caught her and several others stealing cabbage from a truck.

“I knew I was done for,” Neuman says. “I looked at his pistol. I waited for it to jump out its holster. I listened for the shot. I could smell the smoke. But no shot came… Suddenly he slapped my left cheek with his open hand. ‘That’s for stealing,’ he said. I didn’t even feel any pain. I was so frightened I couldn’t breathe.”

After the encounter, a German prostitute whispered to Neuman, “You should consider yourself lucky that such a gorgeous man touched your face.”

After liberation, Neuman spent time in a displaced persons camp and traveled throughout Europe looking for her family. Eventually, she came to the United States and settled in Minneapolis.

And while Neuman acknowledges that she has had “more than my share of darkness,” she continues to “try to find the light.”

The book includes an epilogue by Amram and a timeline of Neuman’s life.

Temple Israel’s Rabbi Marcia Zimmerman has visited with Neuman once a week for the past four years, and Zimmerman considers Neuman “a second mother.”

“The book idea was hatched during one of our lunches,” Zimmerman writes on the book’s back cover. “This book is a blessing, healing words that bear witness to Mary’s courage and endless capacity for caring and insight.”

The book is available for $14.95 at the Temple Israel Gift Store.

Related Posts

From Jerusalem with love and compassion
Books & Literature

From Jerusalem with love and compassion

June 21, 2022
Jewish groups fight for abortion rights in Minnesota
Minnesota

Jewish groups fight for abortion rights in Minnesota

June 21, 2022
Poems wanted
Books & Literature

Poems wanted

June 7, 2022
‘Honoring Our Graduates’ in May 2022
Lifestyle

Once again: Honoring Our Graduates

May 11, 2022
Tamara Nadel marries Jewish and Hindu dance traditions
Theater & Performing Arts

Tamara Nadel marries Jewish and Hindu dance traditions

May 10, 2022
Searching for a bridge to the past
Books & Literature

Searching for a bridge to the past

May 9, 2022
Next Post

Darchei Noam to break ground on new synagogue building

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

RECENT ARTICLES

From Jerusalem with love and compassion

From Jerusalem with love and compassion

June 21, 2022
Jewish groups fight for abortion rights in Minnesota

Jewish groups fight for abortion rights in Minnesota

June 21, 2022
Editorial: Elections and Trump’s big lie

Editorial: Elections and Trump’s big lie

June 24, 2022
Poems wanted

Poems wanted

June 7, 2022
‘Honoring Our Graduates’ in May 2022

Once again: Honoring Our Graduates

May 11, 2022

About

Since 1912 the AJW has served as an important news resource for the Jewish community. The Jewish World unites the main Jewish communities in St. Paul and Minneapolis, as well as those in Duluth, Rochester and smaller cities, and bridges the divides between the various Jewish religious streams.

Quick Links

  • About the AJW
  • Advertising Information
  • Submission Guidelines
  • Subscription Information
  • Jewish Community Directory

Contact Us

The American Jewish World
3249 Hennepin Ave., Suite 245
Minneapolis, MN 55408

Tel: 612.824.0030 / Fax: 612.823.0753
editor@ajwnews.com

  • Buy JNews
  • Landing Page
  • Documentation
  • Support Forum

© 2022 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
  • News
  • Food
  • Health & Wellness
  • Lifestyle
  • Opinion

© 2022 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.