Diary of a witness : 1940-1943 / Raymond-Raoul Lambert ; translated from the French by Isabel Best ; edited with an introduction by Richard I. Cohen.

Raymond-Raoul Lambert's Diary has been among the most important untranslated records of the experience of French Jews in the Holocaust. Lambert, a leader of the Union of French Jews (UGIF), was, in the words of the historian Michael Marrus, "arguably the most important Jewish official in contact with the Vichy government and the Germans." Lambert's Diary survived the war and was published in France in 1985. It reveals Lambert's efforts to save the Jews in France, particularly the children.

Author Notes

Raymond-Raoul Lambert, a French army officer in World War II, headed the UGIF under the German occupation. Richard Cohen, an historian at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, is the author of The Burden of Conscience: French Jewish Leadership During the Holocaust . He lives in Jerusalem.

Reviews (1)

Booklist Review

The wartime diary of Lambert, a prominent figure in French Jewry during World War II, was published in Paris in 1985. The diary covers three years of the war, ending on the day before Lambert's arrest on August 21, 1943, and his deportation to Drancy, a French transit camp. The diary had been retained by Lambert's cousin, Maurice Brener, who in 1977 allowed Cohen to photocopy it. Brener was close to Lambert during the war and possessed four letters Lambert sent him from Drancy. The diary offers a close look at the dilemmas Lambert faced and how he responded. Lambert and his four children were deported from Drancy to Auschwitz on December 7, 1943, and were gassed three days later, but according to Cohen, Lambert never gave up his craving for the arts and literature nor his sense of duality as a Frenchman and a Jew. An indispensable book for readers who seek a deeper, richer understanding of the Jews of France and the Holocaust.--Cohen, George Copyright 2007 Booklist

Available:*

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

Summary

Author Notes

Reviews (1)

Booklist Review