Wartime Experiences in Lithuania

Wartime Experiences in Lithuania is the story of a survivor who experienced the mental anguish of seeing relatives and friends murdered by those who had been neighbours and acquaintances. By September 1941 Rivka Lozansky Bogomolnaya had witnessed the mass murder of men, women and children of her hometown of Butrimonys in Lithuania, along with others who had been marched there. The last remaining Jews were gathered in the ghetto awaiting their fate - for many death was a welcome end. Rivka was determined to escape, and pulling along her mother on what was to be the last walk for many, she made her daring getaway. For the next three years, with her mother, sister, and brother-in-law, she survived by moving from place to place, begging scraps of food, living in constant fear that they would be found and that those who had helped them would be punished. Wartime Experiences in Lithuania is a translation from pre-war Yiddish, and this is reflected in the writing style. The methodology of the book is a personal one, written according to Rivka's memories and recollections. Her main viewpoint is that is is never too late to tell others what happened in Lithuania - she has spent over 50 years doing so and continues to this day.