Saving Elli by Doug Gold

This extraordinary true story opens with Abraham Szanowksi purchasing a ring for his wife, Gita, only to be captured by the Nazis on the way home. It was the beginning of a nightmare where he was eventually transported to the Mauthausen concentration camp, leaving his wife and children in occupied Amsterdam to fend for themselves. However, his family found help from a young couple willing to risk their own lives to assist them.

In the darkest days of WWII, Dutch resistance couple Frits and Jo Hakkens hid Elli, a young Jewish girl, in their Amsterdam home for two years. By this time, her father had already perished in the concentration camp, but they had helped her mother escape to safety.

In addition to hiding Elli, Frits was sabotaging parts for planes at the Luftwaffe plant and forging fake identification papers at night. Jo aided Jewish fugitives and smuggled underground newspapers, often putting herself in extreme danger. Frits and Jo refused to stand by and watch their Jewish friends – or even strangers – being persecuted, despite the grave risks this entailed.

In this story of sacrifice and bravery, author Doug Gold vividly brings to life this moving and heart-stopping true story. It will move you to tears, but it’s also a story of hope and resilience. Frits and Jo immigrated to New Zealand after the war with their three children, but they never stopped searching for Elli, the young girl they had hidden for two years before making the heartbreaking decision to entrust her to others when the Germans were getting too close to discovering her. The postscript to Elli’s story is very moving and will amaze.

Reviewer: Karen McMillan

Allen & Unwin