Introduction
The book explains the scheme behind Jews’ emigration from Russia. Beckerman argues that Russian Jews played a big role in initiating the collapse of the Soviet Union. Beckerman attributes the rise in civil rights awareness throughout the world to the work of American and Russian civil rights groups that ensured the emigration of Russian Jews. In essence, he believes that the breakthrough in brokering a deal for the emigration of the Russian Jews played a big part in defining the role of human rights lobby groups in the world. Therefore, Beckerman believes that these actions were unprecedented given the timing and the environment, which favored the Cold War between America and Russia. Beckerman provides the narrative with great insight into the intentions and actions of the very individuals that started the movement. The story contains many intriguing moments that keeps the reader captivated. In general, this is an epic example of a narrative that shows an unwavering fight for freedom (Beckerman, 2010, p. 423).
The Author’s Viewpoint and Purpose
Beckerman’s purpose in the book is to narrate the fight for freedom of Russian Jews from the perspective of individuals that formed the movement. The author makes clear his purpose in the book when he presents an eventful post-war Jewish history by examining it in full. Also, the author tries to give a detailed account of post-war Jewish history. Interestingly, the author focuses mainly on Jewish survivors in the United States and Russia. He tries to compare, contrast, and relate experiences of Jewish communities in both countries. The author also believes that Stalin wanted to commit spiritual genocide on Jews living in Russia. However, this did not materialize because the American Jewish lobby group, through the American and European governments, managed to negotiate their safe passage to Israel (Beckerman, 2010, p.13).
Main Issues
Beckerman points out that the struggle for freedom by the Russian Jews did not only fill the missing piece in Jewish history and the Cold War but also helped shape the implementation of human rights policies in the world. Beckerman describes how the American lobby group and the underground Russian Jews spread the news of their plight. They formed a human rights movement that succeeded in enabling the Jews to emigrate from Russia. The author raises numerous issues about Jewish history before and after the Holocaust. One of the issues relates to the fact that Russia persecuted the Jewish community that lived in the country during the Cold War. Also, he claims that Russia refused to let Jews live with freedom or leave the country. Beckerman also speaks about the physical and psychological challenges that Jews faced in both America and Russia. He goes on to raise an issue with the American lobby group, which he believes has lost its vision. The author points out the effort of a few activists who managed to bring back the Jewish face, which had been lost due to persecution in Russia (Beckerman, 2010 p. 15).
Evidence
Throughout the book, the author utilized a variety of sources to support his story. He notes every detail of the story with supporting evidence from both primary and secondary sources. Also, the author conducted interviews with the survivors from Russia to ascertain their side of the story. Furthermore, the author gives details of memoirs he utilized that belonged to combatants and envoys. It is worth noting that the amount of time and resources the author committed to researching the narrative was huge. Even though he was also a survivor, this did not stop him from looking for other survivors to explain their side of the story. Moreover, the author explains that his twin brother was in Russia and he was longing to reunite with him. The author uses varied examples of real-life stories from survivors to back his arguments. Moreover, he points out that success was achieved when it was impossible even to imagine (Beckerman, 2010, p. 325).
The author’s evidence is quite convincing, given that most of the sources were first hand. Moreover, historical research from archives also supports the author’s arguments. The author’s evidence was collected from different parts of the world as mentioned in the book, yet the story is the same. This shows that the author was thorough in his research. It should also be noted that the author supports each story that he has used in the narrative with evidence from primary sources as well as interviews. It is also worth noting that Beckerman was a survivor of the Holocaust. This has also shaped his narrative to ensure the depth of information provided to support his story (Beckerman, 2010, p. 112).
Relation of the Book to Others
Beckerman’s narrative is quite absorbing. Throughout the book, he keeps readers engaged in the events in the book. This quality makes the book quite fascinating because it absorbs the reader. The author’s narrative can be considered one of the best in the sphere because of the extensive nature in which the author has researched events in the book (Rosenbaum, 2010, para. 7). In this regard, it is clear that the book is unique compared to other books that relate to it. It goes deeper than books written on the same topic. Moreover, it provides more information that may otherwise be missing in other books. For instance, the amount of primary sources utilized in the book is quite huge.
Type of Readers
The book is appealing to a wide range of readers. For instance, it appeals to human rights activists, many of whom are professionals in law. The book also appeals to literature students or teachers. Also, the book appeals to historians who would wish to confirm the facts by verifying with records in the archives. Interestingly, nonprofessionals who want to understand the history and survival of Jews can also read the book. Essentially, the book appeals to a wide variety of readers. Besides, readers from different social and economic status can read the book for their varied needs.
The Author
The author is an expert in not only writing books but also in conducting credible research. As a professional journalist, the author is well-placed to utilize the necessary expertise in researching and writing an interesting book of this kind. When evaluating the book, it should be important to consider the background of the writer. Also, it is worth investigating the author’s expertise and if it has influenced the quality of the book. In this case, it can be noted that the author utilized his expertise in facilitating the development of the book. Moreover, it can be observed that the author was fully involved from the beginning to the end, based on the number of resources and time he committed to writing this book.
His personal experience comes in handy in giving the reader the background of information. Therefore, the author was successful in carrying out the main purpose of the book. As mentioned above, Beckerman’s main purpose was to give an account of Russian Jews’ struggle for freedom from the perspective of those who started the movement (Rosenbaum, 2010). In essence, the author gave a clear indication of the problems and specific solutions to the problem. This problem was solved successfully when Russian Jews were given visas to leave the country. Jews were finally free to conduct their activities not only in Jerusalem but also in Berlin. Moreover, the author provides a variety of evidence from different sources to support his arguments. Interestingly, his expertise as a journalist enabled him to reach credible primary sources from the right individuals who are relevant to the story (Beckerman, 2010, p. 112).
Conclusion
Beckerman’s book is an epic example of a well-researched narrative that engages the reader right from the beginning to the end. As a journalist, Beckerman manages to support his narrative with credible evidence. Moreover, he gives it an outlook that challenges readers. For instance, his view that the human rights movement contributed to the fall of the Soviet Union is a challenging issue for historians and journalists. It also acts as an insight to be explored further. In essence, Beckerman was able to bring out the best from his narrative.
Reference List
Beckerman, G. (2010). When they come for us, we’ll be gone. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Rosenbaum, T. (2010). Book review: When they come for us, we’ll be gone. Los Angeles Times. Web.