As a five-year-old during the Second World War, Alex Kurzem had watched from a tree as the entire Jewish population of his village, including his family, were murdered by a German-led execution squad. He scavenged in the forests of Russia for several months before falling into the hands of a Latvian police brigade that later became an SS company. After one soldier discovered this young boy was actually Jewish, Alex was made to promise never to reveal his true identity - to forget his old life, his family, and even his name. The young boy became the company's mascot and part of the Nazi propaganda machine responsible for killing his own people. After fifty years of holding onto this childhood secret, Alex had an overwhelming need to share the remarkable truth about his past (from the publisher).An amazing story of survival considering his age when he was taken in by the Latvian army. He only had two words from his old life that he could remember - Panok and Koidanov - but he did not know what they meant. The way that these two words opened the door to his past before the war is unbelievable, considering the setbacks along the way - the 'warnings' from some of the Latvian community, and the belief by some experts that he was making the whole thing up.
Rating - I give this 4.5/5
GREAT!! Get this from the library
Reviewed by Michelle @ admin
