Diary from the Years of Occupation, 1939-44

Klukowski's journal entry for May 30, 1943, reads: ``We are still afraid of the Germans, but now the Germans are afraid of us.'' For diarist and reader alike, that observation posits the first realistic hope that the enemy ultimately will be routed. Because of his post as superintendent of a county hospital in southeastern Poland, Klukowski (1885-1959), unlike the Jews and others among his fellow Christians, was not transported to a concentration camp. Near war's end, his virtually depopulated city was already resettled by Germans. A doctor by profession, a writer, historian and book collector by avocation, Klukowski determined to record daily life under the occupation, unflinchingly noting the actions of informers, looters and collaborators, along with the small and large heroisms he witnessed. No matter how familiar the brutality of the Nazis, readers will respond anew to Klukowski's rendering of the round-ups of Jews, of the transports of gentiles to labor camps, of the reprisal killings for sabotage, of the scarcity of food, heat and medicine. The diary is unusual in its depiction of a region's population at large, gentiles as well as Jews, making this a document of historical value. Originally published in Poland in 1958, the book is translated by the author's late son and edited by his American grandchildren. Photos not seen by PW . (June)