MAKSIM ZIEMTSOV is in a privileged position at the Soviet Union in 1980´ s. Son of a high ranking Red Army officer, Hero of the Soviet Union he holds the position of Assistant Curator of Moscow´ s prestigious Ostankino Museum. Yet, he is chaffing at the bit .Depended on the chain of command of the Communist system, he is subject to the whim of every link. Series of apparatchiks from his immediate superior to the Secretary of the Communist Party control his life.A chance meeting with a Swiss diplomat and a subsequent trip to his country open his eyes to a different world. After inhaling the breath of freedom he steals, smuggles, illegally crosses borders and winds up in Canada.The other characters in the book, his Jewish mother, his sister in law a concert pianist, her husband Yefim and a touring American dentist exert some influence on him but ultimately it is his own drive for a better life which determines his decisions.A murder and rape attempt are also part of spellbinding story.

Emilla Rubinstein is the only child of a wealthy entrepreneur in pre-war Poland. She leads a carefree, privileged life, and while vacationing in Truskawiec meets the handsome, young Czartoryski, presumably of noble birth. They fall in love. Czartoryski charms his way into the Rubinstein family, claiming his own family lost all wealth.. The Rubinsteins object to their relationship due to the difference in religion. Nonetheless, they help him financially for the sake of their pampered daughter. The hot romance is soon interrupted by the outbreak of W.W. II. Emilia is caught into the web of Holocaust and is forced to mature very quickly. She becomes separated from her parents and every day is a struggle for survival. She assumes an Aryan name of Jadwiga (Jadzia) Slowikowska and joins the Underground. She exhibits great heroism. At the same time, Czartoryski's greed and anti-Semitism brings out his opportunistic nature. Jadzia (Emilia) learns to her dismay, that her former lover is responsible for the death of her parents. Czartoryski denounces her to the Gestapo. Sent to Treblinka she manages to escape from the train. Wounded, she is being taken care of by a 14 year old peasant girl, whom she later adopts. She rejoins the partisans and eventually joins the Polish-Soviet Army where she ultimately rises to a high ranking position. In Jadzia's survival, increases her determination to free her country and bring the guilty to justice. In the Army she meets Capt. Lucjan Lisowski , who proves to be her true love. Together they hunt down Czartoryski, who claims to be the victim. His criminal activities are exposed and appropriate punishment is meted out. Jadzia and Lisowski get married and having overcome many hurdles , escape the Communist Poland via Czechoslovakia and Germany. Lisowski a Catholic is very sympathetic to the plight of Jews and is willing to emigrate to Israel, however they wind up in Australia and become very successful.

"This collection of sixty-nine short stories and one poem combines works providing glimpses into life during the Holocaust, W.W. II and post-war period. UNCLE BERL tells the story of author’s maternal uncle and how he and his family survived the Holocaust. The final story in the collection “Quid pro Quo” gives us a look into the life of Berl’s son, a colonel in the Israeli Defense Forces and military attaché to Argentina. This collection of wry and humorous stories will strike a chord of recognition in the reader, as the tales focus on what is universal in human experience. George Oscar Lee with his uncanny wit and understanding of human nature, will certainly make you laugh, and sometimes cry, as he cover life under good and sometimes not-so-good conditions."

Comprises 278 entries on more than 500 survivors of World War II genocide. This title contains a historical introduction, chronology, resource guide, lists of entries, photos, and comprehensive index.