Michael Lipiner

Magyar, Stars & Stripes: a Journey from Hungary Through the Holocaust and to New York Michael Lipiner

Magyar, Stars & Stripes strikingly recounts a Hungarian Jewish family's history of love, affection, persecution, and injustice. It tells about their close kinship and heart-wrenching experiences in labor and concentration camps. The book chronicles Alexander Taub's life-from a playful childhood to a young adulthood shattered within a labor camp in Schachendorf, Austria. Every day is a new battle to survive amid countless bodies. He makes a daring escape and finds compassion in people who offer food and clothing. Rebuilding the ashes of his family, Taub takes us on an extraordinary journey to Manhattan, where he and surviving family members eventually become successful entrepreneurs. He uses street smarts and intuition to make his fortune but still remains an enigmatic figure building a brick wall to contend with the great losses in his life. While giving historical accounts and sufficient background information of these different periods, the author often transcribes verbatim his grandfather's broken English to illustrate the man's unique style and humorous outlook on life. This incredibly witty and courageous story of perseverance will greatly appeal to the reader's emotions.