Moving story of a wealthy Jewish family in Lvov, who has their wealth taken away, is forced into a shrinking ghetto, and then has to hide in the sewer for more than a year to escape death at the hands of the Nazis, with the help of a Polish sewer worker, repenting for a misspent youth. ( )

I can't remember why I picked up this book. Something tells me it was someone on fark.com who recommended it, but that seems strange considering it's a serious book on a serious topic.

I'm always amazed by the stories of Holocaust survivors. Every one of them seems so fantastical as to not be believed, yet there the people are, living among us, who suffered greatly at the hands of others.

This book was different from the others that I'd read as the protagonist was in a hideout in a sewer rather than actually in a concentration camp. Most of the books available are about the camps in Germany, but this one tells of a different story beneath the streets in Lvov, Poland (which turned into Lviv, Ukraine after the war).

Reading their story makes me believe I can survive anything. ( )

Excellent book! It gave a really vivid picture of what life was like for Jews forced into ghettos and in hiding. ( )

The Girl in the Green Sweater by Krystyna Chiger was one of the best Holocaust survivor stories that I have read, and I've read hundreds. Is is the story of the Chiger family who is forced to live in the sewers below Lvov for 18 months. This ranks right up there with Wiesel's Night. 272 pages 5 stars ( )

This is the true story of Krystyna Chiger and her family. They were a Jewish family, living an idyllic life in Lvov, Poland, until the Nazis took over. By 1943, all the Jews in Lvov had exiled, killed, or forced into ghettos, where they faced extermination. The Chiger family were part of a daring group of Polish Jews who sought refuge underground within the city's sewer system. This story is Krystana's account of those 14 months spent underground.

It also tells the story of Leopold Socha, the groups unlikely savior. He was a Catholic, a former thief, and a sewer worker. He and two coworkers risked their lives to help Chiger's group survive, bringing them food and supplies.

This is very moving memoir; a story of sadness, cruelty, and desperation, but also one of survival, friendship, hope and redemption. Even after reading this story, I still can't imagine having to live underground in a sewer. It would be hard for the obvious reasons, such as the smell, the rats, and danger of being swept away in a flood, but I am also claustrophobic. I cannot imagine having to live in such a small, enclosed space for a even a short period of time, but what if that were your only choice if you were facing certain death?

The green sweater in the title is a sweater made for Krystyna by her grandmother. Her grandmother was killed before they went into hiding. It was one of her most precious possessions, and one of the very things that she was able to take with her into hiding. It is now on display at the US Holocaust Museum, as a symbol of what Krystyna, and millions of Jewish children, had to endure at that time.
You can see a short video of it here, along with a brief interview with Krystyna Chiger.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=adwU_M1rdTA ( )