Yanek and his family live in Krakow, Poland. But in just a blink of an eye, their city was invaded by the Germans beginning WWII. For now, Yanek and his family remain in Krakow. For a little while they stay in their flat with several other families. Anti-Semitic rules have been put in place that persecute Jewish people, taking away any rights they had. Over time, walls are built up around the 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, work camps, concentration camps or were killed on-site.

Yanek's Figurative Journey

With the stress of no food and constant hiding, Yanek is living in fear of being caught by the Nazis. His emotional state is one of constant terror and panic at what awaits him at every turn. The unknown aspects of the war leave a feeling of being unsettled. Yanek's early life as a 10-year-old boy before the war was very normal. He attended school, played with friends, and went to the synagogue with his family. He loves his Mom and Dad and look up to them but as the war continues Yanek begins to doubt his fathers constant hopefulness and positivity and wonders who is really right- his father or Uncle Moshe. "I still worried he was wrong, but fresh bread made me forget all my troubles. For a little while, at least." (pg.25) Doubting your parents for the first time is a struggle for Yanek especially in war-torn Poland.

From losing his whole family to getting deported and having to do everything by himself, Yanek is drowning in his emotions. He is in constant distress, from suffering panic attacks to questioning if he should just give up. Without his parents who does he have to direct him? He is angry about why this is happening. He is frustrated. But he is also mourning, he feels lost like nothing is real. But his determination to follow his dad's words pushes him and instills courage in him every day. "But we have only one purpose now: survive. Survive at all costs, Yanek. We cannot let these monsters tear us from the pages of the world." Yanek knows now that he as one cannot stop whats happening to him and his Uncle Moshe assures him of that when they see each other at the labor camp.

Yanek and 50 other prisoners are assigned a new job. They are packed into a truck and are taken away. When they arrive there is a bell tower. They are taken onto an elevator down to see what their job will be. Then all the prisoners realize it is a salt mine. It's pitch black so they have helmets with lights on top of them. The Kapos show them what they have to do and give them a tour around. Yanek sees something he hasn't seen in years. Beauty. Statues, a mini lake, a cathedral, and more. "After so many months and years of dirty streets and peeling pain, of gray uniforms and spartan barracks, it was astounding that there could still be beauty in the world." This gives Yanek hope because even through all darkness there will be light. The prisoners didn't get food that night because it was too late when they finally made it back up. Then the next morning they got to work.

After a short time at the salt mine, Yanek is transferred. At this job Yanek is furious. The Nazis are just playing games with the prisoners. They make them move rocks to one side of the camp just to take them back. "My arms shook as I picked up the same stone that I had just carried across the compound, but not from weariness this time. From fury." Yanek is ticked off. He thinks it's unfair and that the Nazis are just taking advantage of them. He's plotting on doing something to get back at the Nazis but right when he was going to share an idea with the rest of the prisoners one was shot. Right in the head for hitting a Nazi. Six others were taken away and hung for nothing. Fear had taken over Yanek. If he did anything to get back at the Nazis who wouldn't just be responsible for the murder of himself, but other innocent people would die. Yanek accepts that survival is the only option. Not fighting back, not running, the only way to live was to be no one, care for no one, just stay alive for as long as you can.

Yanek and other prisoners are marched out of that camp to cattle cars at gunpoint. They are packed in so tightly that people struggle to breathe and the sick people can stand by just leaning on someone right next to them. One man was screaming because he couldn't breathe from a panic attack and a nazi troupe shot the guy from outside the car. Yanek was lucky and was standing right by a window so he could get air easier. On the trip that was over 2 days, many died from lack of air, starvation, dehydration, and other things. The prisoner that was right next to Yanek died and was still standing the whole time because of how packed it was. During their trip, another train with cattle cars passed on the track by Yanek. The people in the other car yelled over to Yanek and asked what the location was on their train and then they told Yanek where his train was going. Birkenau. Murmurs went around the train. People have heard rumors about this camp. It's not like others, it's a death camp.

Figurative Journey

When Yanek gets to Birkenau he is at his lowest. "'Go on!' I yelled at the showerhead. 'Go on, do it! I dare you!' I laughed again. 'What are you waiting for?' I cried. 'Kill me! I give up! You win!'" (pg.129) At this point, his brain can't comprehend everything that's happening. He was stranded inside a gas chamber at a camp where genocide took place. But right when he almost lost himself water starts pouring out. Freezing water, so cold Yanek screamed. Yanek is hysterical and sobbing, but not of bad thoughts. He was going to live! After Yanek's tragic breakdown, he has a new outlook on his life. "I am alive." He reminds this to himself of this every day and starts doing things so he can remember he is still human. He takes "showers" which is really just Yanek cleaning himself off with water, he brushes his teeth with his finger, and he waits at the back of the ration line so he can get the potatoes that sunk to the bottom of the soup.

Yanek had been here for a very short amount of time before the kapos told them that Sachsenhausen needed more workers. But the prisoners knew that was not the reason they were moving. The Allies planes were near. They could hear them and they also heard bombs. They were forced to walk the whole way there in the middle of winter with barely any clothes, and most didn't have shoes, but even the ones who did have them still suffered and their feet were almost frozen. They marched for about 9 days living off of a half loaf of bread. Every night they stopped and slept on the ground. Many prisoners were shot for falling behind, many never woke up from their sleep, and some were frozen to death.

When Yanek arrives at Sachsenhausen he is almost dead. He is weak, hungry, and exhausted. But as soon as they got to the camp they were given a piece of bread and a bowl of soup. More food than Yanek has eaten in the last week probably. And the commander of the camp lets them off work for a whole week. That night many prisoners got sick including Yanek because their stomachs weren't used to having so much food. So he decided the next day to give his soup to another prisoner so his stomach wouldn't hurt. The prisoners got to wash themselves off with water and clean themselves. On the way to roll call Yanek ate the rest of his bread from last nights meal. They lined up in the freezing mud . When one man began to freeze he wiped his face with his sleeve, and was forced to do the Sachsenhausen salute which is squating with your hands out. He held for a long time but his week body gave out and he started getting tortured. He ended up killing himself on purpose walking into the electric fence

Yanek and other prisoners were transported to Bergen-Belson shortly after working at Saucsenhausen. When they arrived they were separated into two groups based on strength and ability to work. Yanek luckily got into the good side and everyone in the other group was shot because they weren't worthy enough. That night they were told that they didn't have to work for a week to regain their strength. The prisoners were relieved, they hadn't had a break since they were captured. They were also given a full bowl of soup with vegetables, potatoes, and other things with bread on the side. The prisoners were quick to eat the richest soup they'd had in years but this made them very sick because their stomachs weren't used to this much food. So the next day Yanek traded his soup for bread. After a week they got back to work and a kapo that the prisoners called Moon-face came up to Yanek and punched him because he looked at him wrong. After that day whenever Moon-face saw Yanek, he would hit him. Yanek knew to survive he had to get so he had to race around the barracks and the fastest prisoners would be transported.

Yanek and other prisoners were packed into a train to go to Gross-Rosen. There was no food or water; all they could do was stand because of how packed it was. His state of mind was on the downhill and he almost gave up. "I had been surrounded by death for so long, seen so many men die before my eyes, lived with so many dead bodies piled and stacked and strewn about like so much human firewood, that I couldn't care anymore."(pg.212) While they were on the trains they could feel the rumbles of the bombs and they even heard them. Many prisoners including Yanek just wished the bomb would drop on them so they could end their agony. But once they arrived at the camp his survival instinct was back and his mental state was much better. That night when they got there they went to bed, and when they woke up they were assigned a job. Yanek's was to build barracks. A couple days later Yanek was stopped by a kapo and poked him with his club and asked where his button was. He didn't know where it was it could have fallen off days ago, and it might not even be at this camp. The consequence was 20 lashes but the kapo who was hitting him was forced to restart by the kapo who caught Yanek because he was saying it in English instead of German. Then he couldn't remember how to say a number so he had to restart again. By the time he was finished, Yanek probably took 30 lashes and couldn't move. He was drug back to his barrack in dreadful pain.

When Yanek got to Munich they were treated well. The Allies took care of them. They were fed well and even got their own bunk with sheets, a blanket, and even a pillow. They got a washcloth, a cup, and a toothbrush. Yanek cried, he didn't know something so little had so much value. That night they had a big dinner with roast beef, mashed potatoes, gravy, and more bread then they had seen in years. They cried at the thought that this was all there was. The Americans didn't even know what to say, they would never know what it was like to be in those camps and lose your family. But Yanek was wrong. He hadn't lost everyone. A few days later he was walking the streets and saw Mrs. Immerglick. His neighbor in the Krakow Ghetto. She told him about her son Fred who survived but everyone was gone. Then she told him about his cousin Youzek. "'And you know about your cousin Youzek, of course.' My heart gave a small leap. 'No'. I was almost afraid to hope.'" (pg.253) His cousin was alive with his wife! He wasn't alone, he had a family! And the Gamzers who he was close with previously to the war were alive too!