Fragments of a Forgotten People

Henry Fast
Robert D. Reed Publishers (2007)
ISBN 9781931741866
Reviewed by AJ Cooper for Reader Views (7/07)


Henry Fast’s memoir depicts the life he led in Poland in the early 1940s and the rush for safety from the war. His father had passed away and had left him and his mother enough for them to have a house and some small luxuries in the home in Poland. Henry loved to read and play with his friends with no worries in the world. Occasionally his mother would take them on trips to visit relatives throughout Poland.

There was word of war and attacks started to occur in Poland. A military officer had stopped by on his travels to other parts of Poland and suggested that Henry and his mother should not remain but go to stay with relatives in other parts of Poland. Rena, Henry’s mother decided what do with their valuables they could not carry and decided they would catch the train. On the way to the train station they discovered that it had stopped running and they would have to try to find some other way to leave their tow. With good fortune they were able to ride with a man who was going to the town of Henry’s uncle, Roman. Roman and his wife Dora are not happy to see Rena and Henry and try to get them to leave the way that they had arrived. The man and his cart had completely left the area. Roman had to report to military duty but finally agreed that Rena and Henry could walk behind the cart that his family would be traveling on.

Dora and her traveling companions did not treat Rena and Henry very well and eventually abandoned them on a roadside without their possessions. Rena and Henry struggled to travel on to the next large city and encountered many strange and frightening sights. They finally arrive in a large city in Poland, Lwow, at her brother’s house. He was not happy to see Rena yet allowed her to stay with Henry until something else could be arranged. Rena and Henry eventually were arrested and shipped of to a camp. The travel to the camp was terrible and was in open weather and little or no facilities for any ones use. They had been shipped to Siberia to be held for an unknown period of time. All that they owned they had to be able to carry themselves. Needless to say they did not have a lot.

Rena tried to provide as best as she could for Henry. Their food rations were never enough and there bathrooms were non-existent. Hundreds of people had been shipped to Siberia from all walks of life. Many did not survive the ordeal while others thrived on the misery.

Make comment on weblog