I wasn't 100% sure what I was getting into with this one, but when I saw that a friend and fellow Social Studies teacher had crossed this one off his to read list, I knew I needed to get my hands on it. With a title that provocative, who wouldn't be curious?
People Love Dead Jews by Dara Horn is a non-fiction piece, written by a Jewish woman, about the complex relationship between Jewish people and the people who take interest (both negatively and positively) in their existence. I've spent a lot of time thinking about how to write a review on this book. I took 13 pictures from pages as I was reading, some because they had such interesting information and facts that I needed to keep it for later, and others because I thought that Horn's description and way of writing was just so unique. The review that follows is definitely a rambling diatribe of my thoughts on the book. I could probably write a short essay on this, and I feel like I'd love to discuss this book with my Antisemitism and the Holocaust History professor from 3rd year of University... I feel like she and Horn would get along great... anyway, read on and hopefully you will find this somewhat coherent!
I really connected with the opening passage of Chapter 3 (p. 48) where Horn discusses the idea of "there are no words", a common phrase spoken after a tragic event. Horn was discussing a Pittsburgh synagogue shooting in 2018. When politicians and other public figures want to shift the blame off of themselves and act as if nothing is being done because there can't possibly be anything we can do, we often nod along thinking, "you're absolutely right, there really are no words to describe this tragedy". Horn won't let that idea fly though, as she called them out by saying that there are words for the massacre of Jews, there are books, movies, headlines and so much more chronicling this exact type of event, and she is absolutely right, we have a excruciatingly long history of brutally killing Jews and yet we keep allowing it to happen.
My favourite thing about this book is the author's voice throughout. She explains things without any sugar coating and is really straight up about it. Early on in the story she describes an interaction with some other young adults at a quiz contest where they don't understand how she could be Jewish because she doesn't look or act the way they expect her to. This stereotype of Jews looking a certain way dates back centuries, just google "Jewish stereotypes in art" and you can find art from many historical periods showing people with dark hairy features, large hooked noses and some other insulting attributes such as seeming part creature or animal or looking greedy. Horn continues describing the interaction by recounting how her quiz-bowl peer said "I thought Hitler said you all were dark" to which Horn responded with "Hitler was full of shit"(Introduction, p. xiii). Since when was Hitler ever a creditable source of factual information? Never. Sure, he was a master at propaganda, but that doesn't make him creditable. The fact that Jewish people are expected to look and act a certain way only to be questioned for not being Jewish enough sure is ironic considering Jews were killed for hiding their Jewishness if they tried to pass as Christian.
One thing that really stuck with me was Horn's discussion on how contemporary literature and media about the Holocaust is so positive with happy endings, love stories and white saviour storylines. In reality, there were no positive moments in Auschwitz, love stories usually ended in death - either one or both members of the couple, and yes there were members of a variety of different resistance organizations, but more people played dumb and tried not to pay attention to the awful concentration camps and ghettos down the road. Citing a statistic from Yad Vashem, Horn explains that actually, less than 0.001 percent of the European population were recognized for their efforts in rescuing Jewish people from the Holocaust (p. 81). So the stories that are becoming so wildly popular right now are misleading readers and setting a precedent for a WWII/Holocaust Historical Fiction in the 21st century. But perhaps there are questions we should be asking ourselves, like: What does these messages tell readers about what a bestselling Holocaust story should contain? And most importantly, how do Jewish people feel about these versions of the story being replicated over and over again?
In Grade 3 this week we are talking about rights and responsibilities and I think that is an important idea here too. Is it our responsibility to learn about the Holocaust so that we can prevent the types of racism, genocide and mass destruction that could repeat themselves if we are not careful? Yes, of course it is our responsibility to do this. But it is also our responsibility to fight for one another. By spreading a message that there were so many love stories and resistance fighters trying to save the Jews, we are telling readers that it's ok if this happens again because we will just hope someone else stands up and tries to stop it from happening. But who? Who is going to stop it from happening? Instead we need to arm readers with the knowledge that freedom comes with responsibility to stand up for one another and actively fight for what is right.
Excerpt from: People Love Dead Jews, Dara Horn (2021) page 107
I'm not saying that we need to quit reading Kate Quinn books, but I do think we need to mix it up a little. I can't find the particular quote I am looking for in the book and it is driving me a little crazy, but Horn challenges readers to consider how many books they have read about the Holocaust, how many concentration camps they can name etc. but then also challenges them to name a contemporary Jewish writer. I'm not going to stop reading Historical Fictions, though I did take a little break a while back from WWII novels and I'm starting to wonder if maybe this is what I was getting sick of (all of this romance and thrilling resistance adventures). But I do think that I will actively look for more books like this one, that take a critical lens to the consumption of Holocaust media and the Jewish stereotypes that still run rampant today.
I 100% recommend this book. Everyone should read it. Horn is very educated and knowledgeable, says it like it is and is a little bit hilarious. Now I'm not saying this book is a comedy, but I think that her writing style is fantastic, she proved to me that non-fiction books can definitely be entertaining - even non-fiction books about murdering Jewish people (who knew?!) Go out and get this book and learn some things, and then maybe throw me a comment and let me know what you picked up out of this book! Having interesting debates and conversations with myself is great and all, but I'd love to keep this conversation going with a real human one day!