Upon the Head of the Goat: A Childhood in Hungary 1939-1944

by Aranka Siegal

Book Overview

The classic true story of one child's experiences during the holocaust. Nine-year-old Piri describes the bewilderment of being a Jewish child during the 1939-1944 German occupation of her hometown... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0374380597
• ISBN13: 9780374380595
• Release Date: December 1981
• Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux
• Length: 213 Pages
• Weight: 0.86 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.9" x 8.6"
• Age Range: 10 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 9

Customer Reviews

Started my love for all things Hungarian

This was the first book I read about the Shoah in Hungary, and it was so fascinating that it got me interested in all things Hungarian. It's different from many books about the Shoah in that the majority of it takes place before the Nazi invasion of Hungary on 19 March 1944, when the remaining members of the Davidowitz family are shipped off to a ghetto. Though life is growing increasingly hard for them because of the anti-Jewish regulations and the strain of living during a war in general, and Piri had to stay in the Ukraine with her grandmother and older sister Rozsi longer than she expected to because of a border war, the Davidowitzes still have a pretty normal and decent life before they have to leave for the ghetto. During this time the family also does their part to help other Jewish families and people in need, even with hiding them in safe houses or helping to smuggle them across borders, and Iboya, the next-youngest of Mrs. Davidowitz's children by her first marriage, is very involved in Zionism. And even in the ghetto, Piri's family and her best friend Judi's little family live the best they can, trying to keep their spirits up and to be happy. Piri and Judi both have their first romances in the ghetto, in fact. It's not one of those books that starts out happily and then quickly moves to the ghetto and then the camps. In fact, the book ends as they're leaving the ghetto in the cattlecar, and only a short postscript tells us what happened after that. The book is also interesting because not all of Piri's siblings are at home, unlike many other Shoah books where all of the family are in the same house. Because her mother didn't want her grandmother to be lonely after she was widowed, she began farming out her five daughters to stay with her to keep her company, but Lilli, the oldest, wasn't her companion very long because she got married at only 16 years old and soon had a baby. Now Rozsi is living with the grandmother, and loves farm life very much, while the other older sister, Etu, is away at university in Budapest. Even after Lilli and her young daugher Manci move back in, there are still only Piri and her sister Iboya left at home along with their halfsiblings Sandor and Joli, and when Lilli's husband Lajos is arrested and Lilli insists on joining him along with Manci, there are still only the youngest four still at home. It makes it interesting because the family are in all different places instead of all suffering the same fates or suffering all together. The only complaint I have about the book is one I acquired in hindsight; it would have been helpful to have told the reader something about the pronunciation of the Hungarian names and that some of the names used, like Ica and Manci, are nicknames and not full given names.

Outstanding --detailed and compassionate

A young Jewish girl -- nine when we first meet her and nearly fourteen when the book ends -- experiences the beginning of World War II with her parents in Hungary (and her grandmother in the Ukraine). Eventually, she, her family, and all the Jews of their small town, are forced to leave their homes and await a train that will take them to Auschwitz. This is a terribly sad coming of age story that is accessible to children older than ten. It doesn't explain the Holocaust, but it goes further than most books in allowing readers to 'experience' the fear, confusion, and especially the courage felt and displayed by the characters. Indeed, the author, who based the story of her own experiences, does an outstanding job drawing all the characters, including a number of the non-Jewish townspeople and one particular non-Jewish Hungarian soldier. It is especially interesting to learn so much about small-town life in the Hungarian-Ukrainian border region. It is sad, but not at all morose. It is inspirational -- because so many characters, young and old, display courage and fortitude in the face of increasing misfortune. And it is filled with compassion -- you almost feel sorry for the non-Jews who turn their backs on their Jewish neighbors. In one scene, the young narrator, who can only take a few items with her into the ghetto, gives her record player and records to her non-Jewish friend, to hold for her until she returns, even though they have not spoken to each other since the Jewish children were excluded from the town's schools. You can feel the hope of the narrator that someday she might return, get back her records, and they can play together again. And you can feel the shame the non-Jewish friend feels -- wanting to still be friends, but feeling constrained by the societal pressure to ostracize the Jews. At one point the author recalls her Grandmother's words that Jews and non-Jews 'are all the children of God.' But she is looking at a German guard preparing to force them on to the train to Auschwitz. And she wonders if this cold, grey man -- who is ignoring all the suffering around him -- is also a child of God. Clearly, the author does not draw any of the Nazi characters compassionately. On the other hand, their actions and their treatment of others evoke our pity, more than our hatred -- for they, the Nazis, had clearly forgotten that all people are 'the children of God.' This book is filled with the 'humanity' and 'humankindness' exhibited by the Jews who are subjected to oppression, hatred and derision, but who respond by helping each other and those who are less fortunate. The author expresses very little hatred towards the oppressor. But I was left with a terrible sadness, knowing that the German and Hungarian oppressors chose to act inhumanely -- they did it to themselves -- they denied their 'humanity.' There is no way that I could forgive such horrible people, but this book is the first book that made me pity them. I look forward to reading

Great Inspirational Story

Upon The head of a Goat Written By aranka Siegal is an stroy about a young girlgrowing up in Hungary during world war ll. It is hard enough for her to grow up unable to see her family, but she has more troubles because she is Jewish. Piri, a nine year old girl, has been visiting her grandmother in Komjaty for a year and she in finally able to return home. When she returns home there have been many changes. Her family has a hard life. They were sent to a Ghetto later to be sent to Auschwitz. An terrible concentration camp. What will happen to Piri and her family when they arrive in Auschwitz? I recommend this book because you really get the feel of how hard this young girl had it growing up.

An excellent book!!

I read this book for a book report and that was one of the very few books that I really enjoyed giving the book report to the teacher. I actually couldn't wait until English class so I could read this book, or when ever I had time. It is a book you just can't put down!!!

An incredibly interesting tale of a life full of grief!

UPON THE HEAD OF THE GOAT shines a light upon a society not often discussed in today's world. The story is told carefully, and with a unique beauty. The threads of truth are woven carefully in this beautiful garment. I highly reccomend it!