Q&A with Jeannette Katzir of Broken Birds discussion

FOR THE POLTZERS, THE urge to marry was not re¬stricted to only the women in the family. Steven had met a strong-willed woman named Brenda. He wanted to have his siblings meet her so we could tell him what we thought of her.
After our first meeting with Brenda, we didn’t think too much of her. She spent most of our first evening with her recounting all the negative aspects about our Steven.
“Steven isn’t affectionate enough…Steven isn’t ambitious enough…Steven doesn’t really appreciate the better things in life, like I do.” The evening dragged on and on. We tried to defend our younger brother, and explained that the Poltzers didn’t equate price with quality. We had been taught to save money and always look for the bargains in life
“I’m not a Poltzer and that’s not the way I plan on liv¬ing,” she stated in a condescending tone. Condescending is exactly how she acted from that moment on. She was arro¬gant, self-centered, and had a nasty mean streak.
Brenda’s behavior prompted Shlomo to give her the nick¬name of “Mrs. Drysale,” because she appeared to look down on the Poltzers, just as the rich banker’s wife had in the television series The Beverly Hillbillies. The show had been a Poltzer family favorite.
“Steven, Brenda’s not right for you,” we warned him. “She’ll crack your balls with her bare teeth.”

I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed reading Broken Birds. It was a difficult subject to read about, knowing that all of it is true, but it was well worth the read!

Amber :)

Thank you Amber. They say truth is stranger than fiction and in my case it was the truth.

I am curious . . . Was it on your return to Europe with your father that you learned of most of the details for your memoir, or did your mother share her experiences with you? I know you mentioned that she always tried to downplay the events of the Holocaust for her own reasons.

My mother's portion was written in advance of my trip back to Uzhgorod with my father. Mom would sometimes forget herself and reveal places and dates and I was quick to jot them down. She would repeat many of her stories over and over again, but it wasn't until the end of her life that she actually gave me names.

Also, I couldn't help but relate to your disgust with visiting Dachau. Being 3/4 German I wanted to see firsthand the atrocities committed by my people generations ago, but there was NOTHING that looked like the horrors the Jews had experienced at the hands of the Nazi's! It's true--it resembled a beautiful up kept park with only the photographs in the museum portion giving you any indication of what it was truly like for the people who suffered there. I was absolutely floored that they had the nerve to construct a McDonald's directly across the street from the concentration camp. It truly sickened me.

That was a horrible moment for me, but I can't even imagine what my father must have felt. When he heard the docent doing her schtik, it sickened him. I personally really believe that if they are going to make a mockery of the death camp, they should tear it down and erect a statue.

I completely agree with you! Visiting there is like a slap in the face!

One of these days, if I can stomach it, I'd like to go to Poland and Auschwitz. But that's way down on my bucket list.

I can completely understand your feelings about that.

Jeannette,
You know I loved this book,it is awesome.
My questions:
What did your brother Shlomo and Nina think of the writing of the book?
Have they read the book yet?
Did the book help them also?
You speak of Gol (your husband) how many years total have you been married?

I know you are in the process of writing about your father, how soon will the book about him, be ready to go onto the market?
Has he recovered from his cancer? And will he read this book that is being written?

I know you did not want him to read the first book.

Jane

Shlomo and Nina are very supportive of me and the book. Shlomo, in fact, wrote the poem about the tree. Shlomo is very proud of his portrayal and I was glad to give him his due. As for the others, no they don't know about the book, but I'm sure they will find out and I will hear all about it.
Gol and I have been married 37 years.
My next book is not about my father, but about my mother's time as a partisan fighter. I have heard so much feedback that that is what everyone would like to read about. The next book is based on her history, but is a fictional account. It will only deal with her life up to getting on the ship. She will meet the handsome young Nathan, but she will be too young to do anything about it. I hope you'll like that book too.
Thank you for asking about my Dad. He finished his chemo and 6weeks of radiation and now we are hoping for a nice 5 year remission.
If and when my dad learns of this book, I will instruct to only read the first 100 pages.
Thanks for all the questions. I love answering them.
Jeannette

Amber wrote: "I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed reading Broken Birds. It was a difficult subject to read about, knowing that all of it is true, but it was well worth the read!

Amber :)"

I"m thrilled you liked Broken Birds, but was wondering if you'd like to read my next book: Footprints in the Forest. It's a historical fiction about the Holocaust also. Have I wet your appetite? If so, drop me an email and I'll send you out an ecopy. Thanks Jeannette (Thefootprintsintheforest@gmail.com)