Reviews & Praise for Tatae’s Promise

“A well-written book grabs your attention from the start and never lets go. Such is the case with Tatae’s Promise. Sherry Maysonave and Moises Goldman weave the stories of four main characters, each a separate piece of cloth, into a warm, beautiful quilt that seemed unthinkable to construct. Each story comes to life from the combination of the recorded oral history of the main character, Hinda Mondlak, and the engaging writing style of the authors. The challenge you will have, as I did as I read it, is putting the book down. I just had to know what was going to happen next!

As a student of the Holocaust and one who interviewed Holocaust survivors for Steven Spielberg’s Survivors of the Shoah History Foundation, I thought I had heard it all. Now, I know I was wrong. This is not your ordinary Holocaust story. Do yourself a favor. Find out for yourself.”

Mike O’Krent
Founder and CEO, LifeStories Alive, LLC
Holocaust Survivors Interviewer for Steven Spielberg’s Survivors of the Shoah History Foundation

“This moving and suspenseful book tells the story of Hinda Mondlak, who escaped from Auschwitz with her sister. Based on hours of her taped testimony, it describes in rich detail every phase of the persecutions she endured—Nazi occupation, the village ghetto, the death journey to Auschwitz, beatings, illness, starvation, escape, and then a harrowing flight from Russian troops. Saved occasionally through the unexpected kindness of others and always by her own courage, Hinda is vividly alive in this reweaving of her memories. A memorable story of resilience and enduring love.”

Betty Sue Flowers, PhD
Professor Emeritus UT-Austin, former Director, Johnson Presidential Library
Editor, Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth

“Hinda Mondlak’s story is nothing short of extraordinary.

To survive the selections in Auschwitz, followed by more than two years of brutal incarceration in this infamous factory of death, and then to be one of the very few brave souls to successfully escape the heavily guarded compound, is a testament to the truly remarkable spirt of Hinda Mondlak.

Inspired by her father’s promise and last words to her just before his execution – You Will Live; You Will Tell – this riveting adaptation urgently demands only one thing from us – We Must Listen!

In doing so, we engage in a sacred duty and pay tribute to the millions of martyred souls whose lives were so tragically cut short during Nazi Germany’s long and dark Kingdom of Night.”

Eli Rubenstein, Religious Leader, Congregation Habonim Toronto
National Director, March of the Living Canada; Director, International March of the Living
Appointed to the “Order of Canada” by The Governor General of Canada

“In this great book, Tatae’s Promise, Hinda Mondlak has three goals that she must accomplish, at all costs, and she does it with tremendous determination and resilience. This book should be read by anyone who wants to grasp the unfathomable suffering that Hitler and his followers intentionally caused; but most importantly, it should be read by the people who, in spite of massive evidence, still have the audacity to deny that the Holocaust occurred.”

Dr. Arturo Constantiner Sourasky
Board of Governors, Tel Aviv University and Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center

“During all my life, I was exposed to the Holocaust horrors on ongoing descriptions and testimonials. Every year, Israel honors Holocaust Memorial Day with a shutdown. The media tunes up to listen to testimonies of survivors. Every year each testimony is carefully selected and transmitted. I expose myself to them year after year. BUT NOTHING compares to Hinda’s testimony in this book.”

Victor Yagoda
Deputy Director General, United Israel Appeal of Canada, Israel Office, Retired

“Tatae’s Promise is a tribute that penetrates our heart deeply. Let us learn this story and teach it to our own children.”

Neil F. Blumofe, Senior Rabbi, Congregation Agudas Achim, Austin, Texas

 

“Tatae’s Promise grips your soul from page one… as my recent visit to Rwanda’s genocide museum makes poignantly clear, it’s relevance today is more than historical.”

John E. Shephard, Jr.
Retired Senior Executive, Northrop Grumman and ITT-Exelis, U.S. Army Gulf War Veteran 

“This powerful, page-turning book is the story about man’s capacity for evil and the triumph of the human spirit to endure and survive. Based on the true lives of the author’s parents and their journeys through the ghettos of Poland and the Nazi concentration camps of Auschwitz and Buchenwald, Tatae’s Promise is their gripping story of faith, family and tenacity which guides them through the inhumanity of the camps, their daring escape, and their paths to freedom.”

Wheeler Chapman
President, Chapman Financial Group

“The exploration of one’s roots offers the opportunity to not only identify relatives, but to understand the context in which they lived. We are gratified to see researchers such as Dr. Moises Goldman recording their family stories [Tatae’s Promise] that can be accessible for future generations, and which can serve as a template for other Jewish genealogists to follow.”

Jack Kliger, President & CEO, and Mr. Avraham Groll, Vice President of JewishGen, Museum of Jewish Heritage—A Living Memorial to the Holocaust

“Against the backdrop of the horrors of the Holocaust, this beautifully written narrative paints vivid images of the characters and the unimaginable lives they lived under the terror of the Nazi regime. Both heartbreaking and uplifting, Hinda Mondlak, the protagonist, must overcome the loss of her parents and navigate saving herself and her younger sister through the death throes of starvation, disease and mass murder.

The book [Tatae’s Promise] is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the power of love – and the will to live to heal even the deepest wounds. Hinda’s charismatic and relatable figure will resonate with readers from all backgrounds as she relentlessly struggles to preserve her faith and fulfill her father’s promise: You will live; You will tell.”

Philip Klein, DMD
Chairman and President of the Board, Viva Learning, LLC

“A masterpiece. The detailed information captured about the characters, especially Hinda, makes her, the other characters, and events very Real & Believable.  We can never learn too much about the impact on the millions of lives systematically Murdered during the Holocaust.”

Wade Monroe, Retired Committee Member, Austin Jewish Foundation, Shalon Austin; Retired CFO, Trilogy Software

“A page turner, this book would not let me go. I could not put it down. I’ve read many Holocaust survival stories, and none can rival Tatae’s Promise. It is engaging and beautifully written, even amidst the horror. At times, I was aghast and heartbroken, but, in the end, I felt incredibly inspired.”

Carla Meaux, Retired Insurance Executive 

“This historical fiction story [Tatae’s Promise] is told in such a manner, that the reader just can’t put the book down. I spent many evenings reading until 2 a.m. … Truly a remarkable read. A 10 on a scale of 1-10!”

Lois Reiswig
President Maui Arts League, Retired IBM Executive