Exit Berlin

In her debut work of history, Bonelli uses a trove of letters to investigate the flight of Jews from Nazi Germany.Very few German Jews were able to escape to America during the 1930s. The reasons for this included their own initial denial about the severity of their situation, indifference from the assimilated German-Jewish American community, and, above all, the United States government's highly restrictive immigration policy. One of the lucky few to get out was Luzie Hatch (originally "Hecht"), a young professional woman from Berlin who was able to make the journey in 1938 with the support of her successful, American-born cousin, Arnold. She settled in New York City, and soon began a lifelong career with the American Jewish Committee. During the fraught years between 1938 and 1941, she maintained an active correspondence with a wide network of relatives and friends. Her immediate family fled to the open port of Shanghai, while much of her extended family immigrated to Palestine. Still others fled as far afield as England, Canada and throughout South America, but some never escaped, and perished in the Holocaust. Luzie not only carefully saved all their incoming correspondence, but also saved copies of her outgoing letters. This archive forms the backbone of Bonelli's book, and in addition to providing selections of Luzie's English-language letters, and translations (by Natascha Bodemann) of her German ones, she provides commentary that contextualizes them in the broader social and political situations of the time. There are a few moments where Bonelli over-editorializes, as when she speculates on Luzie's state of mind, but she generally delivers detailed, well-researched and illuminating information. The book provides a rigorous look at the complexities, obstacles, frustrations and tragedies of the German-Jewish refugee situation in the '30s, but just as importantly, it offers a personal, empathetic connection to people who might otherwise just be statistics in history books. For this reason, it has as much to teach readers about today's world, which is filled with war and displacement, as it does about the world of the 1930s.An intimate, engaging examination of the plight of German Jewish refugees. COPYRIGHT(1) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

June 1, 2014

Bonelli (director, Archives of the American Jewish Committee) has gathered and edited a collection of the letters to and from scattered members of Luzie Hatch's Jewish family in the years leading up to the Holocaust. Significantly, the missives address the often insurmountable obstacles faced by people trying to emigrate and explore the complexities of emotion and circumstance from the perspective of both rescuer (the American-born Hatch side of the family) and potential victim (the many relatives scattered across Europe and abroad seeking asylum in the United States). Bonelli has annotated the letters and added context through oral history interviews with living relatives and friends of the family. She also adds personal context via her professional affiliation with Luzie, who fled Berlin in 1938 to resettle in New York, and who worked with the American Jewish Committee throughout her career. The material is reminiscent of Every Day Lasts A Year: A Jewish Family's Correspondence from Poland, edited by Christopher Browing, but Bonelli's presentation stands out as it delivers both sides of the family's correspondence. VERDICT The translated and edited letters in the volume are easy to read, and Bonelli's annotations add new information about the experience of would-be immigrants to the United States. Professional and lay historians alike will find value in this work.--Felicia J. Williamson, Sam Houston State Univ. Lib., Huntsville, TX

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