Skip to main content

The Light of Days A Book Review

 


The Light of Days

By:

  Judy Batalion

Reviewed by

  Geoffrey W. Sutton

The Light of Days is a harrowing and tortuous journey through Poland under the body and soul crushing acts of vicious Nazi aggression experienced by courageous Jewish women who creatively energized Jewish resistance with presence, weapons, and nourishment. Some were destroyed. Some survived.

My interest in World War II stems from the stories my parents told of surviving the Nazi blitz of London. Since then, I have read various accounts of the bloody global war. And my wife and I have visited World War II and Holocaust Museums around the world as we learned about the Holocaust. The Light of Days stands out from the rest because it is about the role of women in the Jewish resistance-- a subject about which I had little knowledge.

I found the book difficult to read for more than one reason. Despite previous reading about the horror of the Nazi doctors and the brutality of the Nazi invaders, I was still stunned by the incredible pain and humiliation inflicted upon the Jews in these stories. Of lesser importance yet still a factor, is the difficulty in keeping track of people with unfamiliar names operating in unfamiliar territory. For readers unfamiliar with Polish, I suggest keeping a bookmark near the front of the work where the characters are briefly described and you can track the Polish cities on a small map.

After working through some of the early background stories and appreciating the work of different resistance groups, the story moves toward the powerful Warsaw uprising followed by other victories, imprisonments with brutal tortures, and bold escapes. We are invited to mourn the loss of those brave women who did not survive and glimpse the struggles of those who endured the war  but struggled to survive survival.

I recommend this work to anyone interested in the Holocaust, World War II, and the role of women in resisting the Nazis.

 

Reference

Batalion,J. (2020). The light of days: The untold story of women resistance fighters in Hitler’s ghettos. New York: HarperCollins. 


Available on   AMAZON.

 

Related Book Reviews

 

The Choice: Embrace the Possible  (Holocaust Survivor)

Inheritance A Legacy of Hatred and the Journey to Change It

The Sunflower On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness


Please check out my website   www.suttong.com

   and see my books on   AMAZON       or  GOOGLE STORE

Also, consider connecting with me on    FACEBOOK   Geoff W. Sutton    

   TWITTER  @Geoff.W.Sutton    

You can read many published articles at no charge:

  Academia   Geoff W Sutton     ResearchGate   Geoffrey W Sutton 

 

Links to my World War II posts – places and museums

 

 

 

 

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Great Sex Rescue – Challenging Harmful Evangelical Messages

  The Great Sex Rescue – Challenging Harmful Evangelical Messages   By Sheila Wray Gregoire, Rebecca Gregoire Lindenbach, & Joanna Sawatsky   Reviewed by   Geoffrey W. Sutton Review Summary The Great Sex Rescue is an evangelical Christian approach that challenges messages in several other Christian sex books, which do not focus on the sexual pleasure of women. In addition, the three writers challenge messages that emphasize dutiful wives meeting their husband’s sex needs regardless of how she feels or what aspects of a sexual experience would bring her more wholistic pleasure. T he authors offer a more woman-friendly interpretation of  biblical texts that have been interpreted in unfriendly ways. More troubling are Christian sexual activity messages that may encourage men to simply use their wives for their pleasure or even abuse them. After explaining their concerns, the authors offer suggestions for better sex including addressing medical p...
Post a Comment
Read more

Rape as Power: Revisiting Susan Brownmiller’s Against Our Will in Historical and Cultural Context

    Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape       by Susan Brownmiller   Reviewed by   Geoffrey W. Sutton Abstract  Susan Brownmiller’s Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape (2013), originally published in 1975, reframed rape as a political act of power and control rather than an isolated crime of passion. Drawing on history, law, warfare, slavery, racial politics, prisons, and cultural and victim narratives, Brownmiller argued that rape functions as a conscious tool of domination. This review summarizes her central arguments, highlights the book’s historical and cultural significance, and provides a historical framework against which we can measure progress or the lack thereof (Sutton, 2025, October 1). Keywords: rape, feminism, sexual violence, power, gender, survivor advocacy   CITE THIS REVIEW Sutton, G. W. (2025, October 1). Rape as Power: Revisiting Susan Brownmiller’s Against Our Will in Historical and Cultural Context....
Post a Comment
Read more

Reconsidering Missionary Childhoods: A Critical Engagement with Fletcher’s The Missionary Kids

  The Missionary Kids   By Holly Berkley Fletcher Reviewed By   Geoffrey W. Sutton The Missionary Kids Abstract In The Missionary Kids: Unmasking the Myths of White Evangelicalism (2025), Holly Berkley Fletcher combines memoir, oral history, and historical analysis to examine the lived realities of missionary children (MKs). Drawing on her upbringing in Kenya and interviews with other MKs, Fletcher challenges romanticized portrayals of missionary life by exposing the cultural dislocation, spiritual neglect, and emotional burdens often carried by children in missionary families. The book is structured around four parts: the myth of parents as martyrs, the imposed nature of missionary “calling,” the spiritual neglect of MKs in boarding schools, and the collective testimony of resilience and loss. Fletcher’s dual perspective as both historian and former CIA analyst enriches her critique of evangelical institutions and their impact on children. This work contributes to schola...
Post a Comment
Read more