Pick of the Day: Never Forget to Lie | DVD

Never Forget to Lie (Frontline Series). DVD. 60 min. Prod. by WGBH Educational Foundation. Dist. by PBS Dist. 2013. ISBN 978-1-60883-914-8. $24.99.
Gr 10 Up–Documentary filmmaker Marian Marzynski revisits his Polish roots to tell the story of Holocaust survivors through the eyes of those who were children during World War II. Marian grew up as a Jewish boy inWarsawand for a time was in theWarsawghetto. Due to the bravery of his mother, he was saved by a Christian family friend and lived in a church orphanage until the war ended. Hiding from the Nazi’s, he survived the war as an alter boy in a Catholic monastery. InWarsaw, Marzynski interviews other survivors, including a woman who grew up in the ghetto and others who lost entire families during the Holocaust. The oldest was 11 at the time and the youngest around age 3, but all have vivid memories of the horrors they faced and the necessity to lie in order to survive. Through the interviews, pictures, and footage shot aroundPoland, a clear picture of the atrocities committed on the Jewish people is made accessible to viewers. This classroom friendly film brings to light this period in history and is a way to assure that viewers will “never forget.” As the World War II generation grows older and passes away, films like this will remind students studying world and European history of the past in ways that are tangible and moving.–Sarah Flood, Breckinridge County Public Library, Hardinsburg, KY