Yanek's literal journey.

Yanek and his family live in Krakow, Poland. But in just a blink of an eye, their city was invaded by the Germans begging of World War II. For now, Yanek and his family remain in Krakco. for a little while they stay in their little flat with several other families. Anti-Semitic rules have been put in place that persecute Jewish people taking away any Jewish rights they had. overtime walls are built up around the Krakow ghetto to contain the remaining Jews who have not been taken for resettlement or deportation yet. One by one many Jews were relocated to other Jewish ghettos and work camps. concentration camps or will killed on site.

Yanek's life changes in a blink of an eye. Yanek's life changed because he got taken to a consutration camp. Yankee's parents are taken to an extermination camp and he and his uncle Moshie are the only men left in their family. In the book, Yanek is concerned about the camp he thinks he will get killed. But he wanted to do anything to survive.

After being through multiple concentration camps Yanek is taken to a death camp in Birkenau Poland. To get there they were all stuffed into a train cart, they were so tight together it was hard to breathe, Yanek was lucky enough to be next to an air vent. While they were on their way there the man next to Yanek died on his shoulder. When they had their first stop at a train station kids were throwing snowballs at them being mean.

Yaneks figurative journey

At the Birkenau Yanek goes through a mental brake through.

He has to wait in a cattle car for half a day when he gets there. After that, the Nazies unload the cattle car that Yanek was in, and then they take them to a shower room, Yanek thought it was a gas chamber. The Nazies finally made him go crazy so he got close to where the gas came out and said "Go ahead turn the gas on kill me already" The Gas did not come out it was water, and as soon as the water hit him it was like a baptism he felt like he was rebirthed. Yanek said," I was still alive."

During Yaneks time in Birkenau, Yanek, and all the other prisoners were deported, prisoners were taken on a death march. On the death march, they were only given a half piece of bread. More people died on the death march than the Germans killing the Jews. While Yanek was on the death march it was in the middle of winter, Yaneks had shoes but a lot of people did not so Yanek described their feet as ice blocks.

Yanek was walking to his next concentration camp. When Yanek was walking, he saw a boy about his age struggling to walk. Yanek started to help the boy walk. Since Yanek helped him, he was hungry because he used a lot of his energy to carry the boy. All Yanek wanted to eat was his loaf of bread but while Yanek carrying the boy the bread fell out of his pants, and now since he lost his bread he went days without food. It was good that Yanek helped the boy stay alive, But it was not good because he lost the only food that he had.

In a cartel car, Yanek and all the other Jews were deported, transported to bergen Bellson. When Yanek first got there they were going to get put to work but when the commander saw the shape they were in and he said "These people are in no shape to work they will get a week's worth of rest and a week's worth of good food". As they were promised they got their week's worth of rest. As soon as that week was over they were put back to work. Yanek wanted to stay there because they were treated somewhat well. Yanek also wanted to leave there because there was a kapo named Moonface, he randomly picked Yanek and started to beat him.

In this chapter, Yanek got away from Moon Face. Moon's face was a perpetrator in Germany. Yanek and all the other Jews were deported to Buchenwald, When the Jews were working, If they only carried a little rock they would be shot. If they carried a big rock but they fell they would get fired. This camp was different because there was one side with Jews and the other side with the Nazies family, The Nazies family was treated well and the Jews were treated badly.

In this chapter, Yaneks gets wiped 20 times for losing a button on his shirt, The Nazie was antisemitism toward the Jews. While Yanek was on a train going to Gross Rosen There were a lot of dead people around him so he said he had seen so many dead people he could almost not care anymore. While Yanek and the other Jews were hiking, Yanek saw a jew with a toe sack full of bread, the jew with the toe sack full of bred was Moon's face but Yanek did not care so on their last stop of the night Yanek sat by a moon face, Yanek asked for a piece of bread from moon face, moon face grabbed his knife and then pressed it against his throat. Yanek stared him in the eye and then after a while moon-faced stopped because Yanek was not scared, now moon face has respect for Yanek because he was not scared of him like everybody else. In the end, Moon Face gave Yanek some bread.

While Yanek and all the other prisoners were in the Dachau concentration camp Yanek and all the other prisoners were liberated. Before they were freed they were all sleeping one night and all of a sudden they heard gunshots and bombs nearby all night they were getting closer and closer and then when they got up during the morning they looked outside and there were no Germans. They went outside and saw no one so they started to cheer. then they saw the Allies (Americans) and the Allies took the Yanek and the Jews to their camp but they were treated a lot better there.