Review: The Bielski Brothers. The True Story of Three Men Who Defied the Nazis, Saved 1,200 Jews and Built a Village in the Forest by Peter Duffy

This is a non-fiction account detailing how three brothers built an entire Jewish community under the noses of the Nazi invaders in the Belorussian area during World War II. 

I had never heard of this story before, and I doubt many people have, even though this group of Jewish people was one of the largest to be saved during the war. The story itself is fascinating. We follow the Bielski family, as they endure a number of discriminatory acts from diverse governments and the civilian population in their area, even before the arrival of the Nazis. When the Nazis come the family first try to tough it out, but after the death of the parents and the many mass killings three of the brothers decide to make a run for the forest to try and bring their family through the war in hiding. At first it is only extended family, and the small group manages to hide somewhat easily in the massive woods, but soon hundreds of escapees from the ghettos in surrounding cities join the group. Hiding becomes ever more difficult and the brothers have to navigate not only the woods, but also the politics and hostilities of the different partisan groups in the area. 

This was an amazing story. I assumed that the number of people saved would somehow be a collective number from throughout the years, as I figured it would be impossible to hide 1,200 people at once from the Nazis, even if the forest was ever so big. But no, the group actually numbered about 1,200 when the war ended, and by far most of them had been living in an actual village in the forest. Of course there was camouflage, but there were workshops, a jail and a town square - an actual village. And considering that the group became fairly large pretty early on in the war, the fact that the brothers managed to hide so many people for years in the forest in just astounding. 

As I said I didn’t know anything about this story when I first started this book, but Duffy goes through it all in detail and it is fascinating. I was only ever a bit confused with locations, but that is mainly the fault of my poor geographical skills. 

I gave this book 4 stars out of 5.