Renia’s Diary

Too beautiful for words. Renia's diary is a emotional roller-coaster that needs more than a harness. Buckle into the tragic tale of life. Powerful, moving, mesmerizing. What a brutally brilliant read.

The innocence of a young woman growing up in an era of hate and evil told through her touching poetry as her world ultimately falls apart leading to her murder by the Nazis. Renia's diary, her hope and love of life is compelling reading.

This book is understandably a disturbing story. Whilst reading about the true story of a young girl's first love and her anxieties the reader knows, from history, what is coming and dreads the writer's realisation and ultimate fate. This is a powerful story and is completed by Renia's sister who has her own dramatic life to relate. Thank you to the publishers and all involved as these stories must be told "lest we forget".

We weren't meant to read this. Renia's Diary was her friend, the repository of her hopes, dreams, thoughts, opinions. She was a Jewish teenager who, unfortunately, lived in Poland in the Second World War. But, despite that, a lot of the book has little reference to the war, and any impact it is having on her life. She sees people being deported to Siberia, and comments on their suffering, little knowing what we now know. Then, they have to start wearing armbands which she knows will make her seem inferior to others, even if, to herself and her diary, she is the same. But still her life, as a teenager, continues. She spends more time confiding, to her diary, about her boyfriend, and typical teenage ups and downs, than discussing the wider situation. We must remember she is a teenage girl who takes every day as it comes; unlike us who can see the bigger picture, with hindsight. It is heartbreaking that someone so alive and with such hopes didn't survive. But, through, his actions, her boyfriend ensured its survival.
Recommended.

Raw, incredible and so dreadfully sad. One never forgets of course, but to be reminded so powerfully makes one think all over again about this crime against a whole race of people and the echos of it in todays politics

An honest and frank insight into a terrible time in history. The poetry is beautiful. Really made me think. Absolutely a must read.

Renia Spiegel’s diary has allowed a life that was cruelly cut short, to have a future and longevity that Renia herself so hoped to have. The introduction paints a picture of a young girl filled with hope for the future, a future that was denied, but at least now her story lives on.

In contrast to this sentiment, we dive into the first diary entry, where Renia’s wishes that her thoughts and concerns are never to be revealed, are laid bare. This juxtaposition in itself is quite beautiful.

A lot of the diary, especially the earlier years read like the ramblings of a teenager girl (which is what you would expect) and is interspersed with poetry, some of which is actually pretty amazing. On that note, I am really impressed with the translation of this diary, perhaps some of the intent is lost, but all in all it is pretty incredible that even subtle poetry can be translated into something of equal relevance.

The innocence of Renia’s view is really eye opening. Without the benefit of hindsight meant that some of her opinions seem to trivialize what was actually happening, or at least starting to happen. But that view in itself helps us remember that these were ordinary people, trying to live ordinary lives, whilst the machine of war simply eroded their lives bit by bit.

Renia was at the age where moments, glances, touches, slights, all mean so much (don’t we all miss that age), but yet she was trapped in a time of war, a time where freedom comprised of daydreaming and hoping.

Renia clearly battled with what live was throwing at her. And the effects of the lack of her Mothers presence were very apparent. Despite this and despite the persecutions and oppressions, she could still see the beauty in the season, in love, in family, in friends. To be able to still show empathy towards the German soldiers epitomizes how Renia viewed the world. She was proud of who she was and dreamt of equality and democracy. At the same time believing fully that there would be an end to this nightmare and that they would be able to hold their heads high and live the rest of their lives in happiness and love.

We get to experience Renia’s personal growth through her writing, which is painful in itself, knowing that her life, her dreams, her everything is going to simply cease to exist in a future page-turn.

It was a privilege to read Renia’s Diary. This was an emotional and heartbreaking read. It is so sad that Renia died so young and I am glad that her story has been published.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

This book is entirely different to any other that I’ve read relating to the Jewish people in WW2. It’s a diary kept by Renia Spiegel, a teenager who does normal teenage things such as go to school, see her friends etc. One line in the book spoke a lot to me. “I go to parties now, enjoy picnics, like a normal sixteen year old girl would” But because she was Jewish, two years later she was living in the ghetto and shortly after that her boyfriend writes the last entry in her diary.

The story is beautifully written. Renia’s words and poems are truly beautiful and moving and as she gets older they become more sophisticated. The words from her sister Ariana at the end of the book had me in tears. As did the words Zygmunt wrote in 1989.

Anyone who is expecting this to read as a full on horror about the atrocities of the holocaust, it isn’t. The first part of the diary is a young girl living the happiest life she can in war. She has the usual teenage insecurities and worries which she writes about freely but it’s the beautiful poems that tell her story.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in return for an honest and unbiased opinion. And thank you to Alexandra Bellak who was determined to fetch her Aunts story to light.

What a privilege to be allowed to read this young Jewish girl’s diary. What a totally frightening time it must have been and yet she found a way to get through. Particularly with the help of her young but true love. I was totally touched by this story and saddened at the loss of life at such a young age but while she lived, her resilience and faith that she would one day see her mother again, was amazing. Separated from both her sister and her mother, she coped with life in war torn Poland and being forced to live in a ghetto. Such a moving story. Thank you for sharing Renia’s diary.

I'm giving this five stars because it's such an important book - it carries the voices of thousands of youngsters who were murdered and deserve to be heard. It speaks for all the Renia's who didn't make it, who would have had the same hopes and fears as they fell in love and coped with their teenaged friends. An ordinary girl, an excellent poet, taken barbarically and too soon. The diary itself was rambling and difficult to read in places, but it wasn't meant to be read by all and sundry - I found reading it just filled me with sadness at what was to come. I'm very grateful to Zigmunt and Elizabeth for the notes at the end, which gave the tragic story some closure.

If you’re interested in World War 2 history, everyday lives of that period and how lives were affected, add this to your reading list. Particularly touching is that this wasn’t meant for publishing and its author didn’t survive. I appreciate the digital copy from Netgalley and publisher in exchange for an honest review.

A very hard hitting, heart breaking read that needs to be heard. Many many other people suffered at the hands of the nazis yet sadly not many survived and yet any documents that can be salvaged and made into a book is a must.
Thank you to both NetGalley and publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest unbiased review

Such an important book. Showcasing the horrors of such a brutal part of history, whilst still showing how love and hope can blossom. A frightening read at times, but so important. I defy anyone not to be moved.

Renia's Diary begins in January 1939, and the last entry was made on the twenty-second of July 1942. There have been many memoirs covering this time period, but this being a diary account, gives us an insight into how life was for a young woman, first living under Soviet rule, and then under Nazi occupation, without the benefit of hindsight. Renia is a prolific poet and the diary includes all of her musings on life and love. What is touching is that despite the incredibly difficult times she was living in, her main diary entries focus on the everyday minutiae and her interactions with friends. She also documents her first love that filled her with equal amounts of joy and insecurity. Renia was only a teenager when she began writing her diary and she was incredibly articulate - 'I want to live until I can hold my head up high, when I'm an equal, free person in a free, democratic country'. As events become darker, we can feel Renia's hopes fading for an end to war. Her diary is her only outlet, the only place she feels free to express herself fully - 'I have to write to silence the pain, to open the wounds and let worries seep out. Such a terrible, grim time. We don't know what tomorrow will bring.' Sadly this entry was written on the twenty-second of July 1942, and eight days later, Renia's life was tragically cut short, when the Nazi's discovered her hiding place, and shot her. The diary had been given to her boyfriend Zygu who kept it safe and passed it on to her sister after tracing her many years later. This historical account is touching, harrowing at times, but a valuable and precious document.

A beautiful, emotional and heart/soul destroying read. Raw and honest every step of the way, a must read for absolutely everyone and I truly believe books like this should be compulsory, especially today and the current situation. A beautiful book, thoroughly recommended

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

I thoroughly enjoyed this beautifully written book. Having studied in depth the build up to and events of the 2WW. I found the content accurate and incredibly moving. Would highly recommend this book and feel it would be a valuable addition to any school library and curriculum. Important that our young people gain insight into such a shocking and brutal time.

This is such an important book to acknowledge, as the years roll by these first hand accounts are being lost and soon the books are all that will be left. Deep, personal and moving, a difficult memoir yet so easy to read.
It doesn’t feel right adding a rating to this as it is Renias personal memories, so I will rate the structure, and style of writing instead. Well written and engaging.

With all of the stories being published about what it was really like for the "untermenschen" and, for the most part, signally failing to do so, I approached Renia's Diary with a much less than positive attitude. Pleased to say that my attitude changed, very much for the better, once I got into her diary because this is not a story about her diary but a translation of same. The translators have done a wonderful job, especially with the pages and pages of poems that Renia wrote and I am still wondering if they did too good a job because, to me, they appear too sophisticated for a 15 year old girl!?! If only I were capable of reading them in their original form.

If anyone wishes to read something that is gentle, shocking and profoundly sad whilst being an accurate teenager's view of day to day survival with no light at the end of her tunnel, please read Renia's Diary. This book should be considered for compulsory reading by all teenagers as I feel it would give them a strong and positive link with a life and time that it is, in the 21st Century, too easy to dismiss as fiction.

About 10 years ago I wrote my MA dissertation on the Holocaust as portrayed in children's literature and after the emotional overload of this experience I have not read much on the topic since. Renia's Diary drew me in with the way that she wrote - in the immediate there and then. No thoughts of editing or rewriting at all this is the story of one young woman growing up and falling in love under the most horrific of circumstances. Even Anne Frank reworked her diary after hearing that after the war diaries would be collected and then it was substantially edited and altered by her father.

More movingly than even Renia's words are the interactions from her sister, giving context and showing how the trauma of WW2 never goes away.

The story of the Jews is the Holocaust and their treatment from the Nazis is well know even though a number of deniers seem to continue in there own ignorance here is a eye witness account of Renia through her very own Diary.

From the age of 14 till just after her 18th birthday the thoughts and life of Renia a human a young girl to a lady and yes also A Jew is separated from her Mum who lived a separate love from her Husband so with her sister she lived with her Mum's Mum and Dad as in her Grandparents. When the Germans then the Russians invaded Poland they where in the area that the Russians to whilst her Mum was in the balance held by the Germans so a reunion looked bleak and post was rare between the two halves of Poland.

Being a Jew was like being A Polish person but once the Germans decided they wanted all of Poland and Europe with it the difference from the stand off the Evil Nazi's meant that any hope of unity was gone along with education and jobs for those providers. A fear that i can not fully imagine took over and life was lived day by day. But for Renia as with I'm guessing any young Lady even more had other to be dealt with those hormones that wait for no war so will not be controlled the longing for the one your eye can not leave alone nor a single minute of everyday. This made worse because the nature of this occupation meant no school so plenty of spare time and long evenings and nights to ring or dream.
The outcome you know from the beginning and reviews is not a good one for Renia which makes the pain of teenage love the hopes and dreams heart breaking to read. The reality of the second world war does need to be kept alive not because of morbid fascination but to remind us that some things are with fighting for and many have their lives so that all can live in a free Europe., Yes it was further afield but her we have had a peace because others died others fought but were never the same their lives have been shaped for us to live. The Jews are a people with the same rights and desires that we have and the price they have paid is totally unacceptable then, now or ever and the personal accounts like this one must be read to be available to be read for the rest of time that even now in this age of so called equality those voice that rise must never be allowed to repeat what history has witnessed since the times before Moses. Yes it's been that long.

Renia was a Poet a well educated girl who was forced to leave school because of her birth family she fell in love as did her friends. Like life she was fancied by those she didn't want and unsure of the one that she couldn't stop dreaming of. I believe this is a book that needs to be read and i do recommend it for more that just that. It is well written and the end notes and epilogue may blow your mind or just hit you in a way that can live with you for a very long time and i think that's the least you should expect from this book.