Yanek and his family live in Krakow Poland. but in a blink of an eye his city was invaded by the Germans beginning World War II. For a little while they stay in their flat with several other families. Anti-Semitic rules have been put out in place that persecute Jewish people taken away any rights they had. Over time walls were built around the ghetto to contain the remaining Jews who have not been taken for resettlement or deportation yet. One bye one many Jew were relocated to other death camps.

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 constant terror and panic at what awaits him at every turn. The unknown aspects of the war leaves a felling of unsettled. Yanek's early life as a 10 year old.

Yanek's journey in the Plaszow camp mentally is at a all time low. He lost almost his whole family and is still going through the pain. He is at a camp that he can die at any moment but is trying to survive.

Yanek gets taken to the new camp but some of the other prisoners think they are going to get killed there. Yanek arrives at the Wieliczka Salt mine and get assigned to his bunk. The next day the natiz show them the salt mine miles underground. Yanek finds all sorts of sculptures and art made out of salt and he says its like a dream world.

Yanek gets to the new camp and it terrible. The Natiz make the Jew work just to work by making them carry rocks around the camp over and over again. Then one of the nights a couple of prisoners tried to break out. The Natiz looked for them and found them and killed them. Then out of rage the Natiz killed A Innocent Jew.

Yanek was marched at gunpoint onto a cattle car to get transported to the new consecration camp. Yanek was lucky to stand next to a vent during the drive to the new camp and they were there for 3 days straight. During the trip the prisoners were squished so tightly that they inmates couldn't move there arms up and some people even died because of the lack of food and air. When they arrived to the new camp they didn't get out immediately, they had to stay In the cattle car for half a day.

Yanek's Fugitive Journey

Yanek goes though a very tough time when the Germans march the prisoners into the showers and it was the worst place Yanek has been. He is now at his lowest and he wishes for death until the showers spray water instead of gas. "all of us granted a last minute reprieve by the Nazis. I was alive"

Yanek and the Jews are in the Aushwitz Death Camp when all of a sudden the Natiz told them they were being moved. The Jews believed that the Germans where pulling back when they saw Allies planes. They prisoners where on a death march to the new camp, on this march is was the middle of winter and some prisoners didn't have shoes and the Natiz only gave them half a loaf of bread for the whole trip. Most Jews died from starvation and the cold.

Yanek is very surprised and heart warmed by the Natiz allowing the prisoners to rest for a week to recover there strength. This boost his confidence until he meets Moonface. Moonface was the nickname he was given by the prisoners, He beat the prisoners and made them run for entertainment.

The Germans in Buchenwald were terrible to the prisoners. The Germans had a zoo full of animals for the families of guards and the guards themselves could see. The prisoners were treated worse then the animals were treated by given less food and treated more like animals then the animals.

Yanek and the rest of the prisoners are loaded onto a train and sent to the new camp. Yanek almost gives up when he says that he has be surrounded by death for so long that he almost doesn't care anymore. When the prisoners arrive at the new camp Yanek gets lashed 20 time for missing a badge.

The Allies where pushing the Natiz back and Yanek was one of the prisoners retreated to Dachau. At Dachau the soldiers seemed more stressed like they knew they were going to lose the war. One night the prisoners heard explosions and gun fights all night and woke up to no Natiz. The allies had made the Natiz retreat and left the prisoners to be free.

When Yanek gets liberated he doesn't know what to do with his life now. He thinks of just going back home, then he finds a old neighbor that tells him his cousin is still alive. This overwhelms Yanek with joy because he has been alone all this time with nothing but sadness.