WE DARED TO LIVE: A TALE OF COURAGE AND SURVIVAL, BASED ON THE MEMOIR OF ABRASHE SZABRINSKI / compiled and edited by Joe Sabrin with Chris Moore; translated from the Yiddish by Yeshaya Metal.
The book includes forewords by Abraham H. Foxman (National Director of the Anti-Defamation League) and Claudia Moscovici (writer); an Editor’s Note; My Dad’s attache case (by Joe Sabrin - son of Abrashe); acknowledgements (by Joe Sabrin); an introduction by Abrashe Szabrinski; 10 chapters; an appendix (which includes an interview given by Abrashe Szabrinski to Yad Vashem, November 1971); Notes and a map (of partisan groups and Nazi strongholds in southern Poland, 1942-1945).
Abrashe Szabrinski’s memoir encompasses his experiences during the World War II years (1939-1944), especially his time with the partisans in Poland and Lithuania. It documents Nazi atrocities and also documents the courage and heroism of thousands of Jews and their sympathizers.
Abrashe passed away on September 23, 2011, and his son, Joe Sabrin, discovered his attache case in his office which contained a memoir written in Yiddish. Mr. Sabrin had the memoir translated and discovered a story of war, betrayal, courage and survival. Very few of these partisan fighters survived and ‘Razel’ (Abrashe Szabrinski’s code name) was one of them.
Claudia Moscovici’s foreword sets the historical stage for this memoir. I referred to it often while reading. The notes from editor, Chris Moore, were also helpful in that ‘boxed-in’ notes were placed alongside the text. Abrashe says in his introduction, “If Warsaw is the symbol of Jewish destruction and Jewish heroism, Vilna is the symbol of Jewish revenge taken against the murderers.” The chapters include incidents involving his father, Mayer; the slaughter of the Baranovich ghetto; various work camps; destruction of Vilna; many photos; escape from Vilna Ghetto via the sewers and meeting Russian partisan groups in the Rudnicki Forest; life as a partisan; fellow partisans; uniting with the Red Army; the liberation of Vilna and various partisan activities and raids.
I was drawn to several things - the geography, for one. Since I am not too familiar with pre or post war Poland, Lithuania, Belarus and Russia, I spent a lot of time pouring over maps and atlases of the area. (I learned a lot!) The photographs were intriguing. My favorite was Abrashe’s Olivetti-made Yiddish typewriter. The notes on the Vilna ‘police’ were harsh but accurate. The notes about the FPO - Tareynegte Partizaner Organizatsye (United Partisan Organization) founded in Vilna on January 21, 1942 were very interesting. “It was the first Jewish resistance group to be formed during the Holocaust and the first to comprehend the Nazi plans for extermination.” Another interesting note was that the partisan base in the Rudnicki Forest was built around an old hunting lodge established by the Polish Royal Family.
This memoir is very personal and very emotional, courageous and heart-breaking. It documents inconceivable acts of deprivation, brutality and violence and equally momentous acts of courage and self-sacrifice.
There is no doubt that this memoir adds significantly to the body of Holocaust literature and includes massive chunks of Polish, Lithuanian, Byelorussian and Russian period history. The emotional and cultural history cannot be measured. ( )

This is the story of Polish-born Abrashe Szabrinski’s life on the run with the partisans in WWII Poland and Lithuania. If you liked the movie Defiance, you will probably like this book. Abrashe escaped one of the ghettos of Vilna on the day of liquidation (very reminiscent of the Warsaw ghetto liquidation) and fled into the forest. He remained in the forests until the war was over.

Abrashe describes the slaughter of Vilna’s Jews by the Nazis. Many of the people described in the book were heroes; some were unfortunately cowards. But such is life. They had to make alliances at times with groups they did not particularly trust, such as the Soviet partisans that roamed the forests.

When Abrashe passed away in 2001 his son Joe came across his father’s memoirs. Since it was all written in Yiddish he had to get it translated. Thus was revealed the remarkable story of his father’s life, a story of survival and courage. Life from day to day was uncertain; death could come at any moment. Surprisingly, the most dangerous of their missions was to wander out to gather food. Emotions are often raw and nothing is held back.

Chris Moore did an excellent job of pulling together Abrashe’s four separate and distinct manuscripts ( )