Kalman & Leopold: Surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz, as told to Richard K. Lowy, is a haunting and profoundly moving account of resilience, friendship, and survival. Through the lens of Kalman Braun and Leopold Lowy, this book revisits the harrowing reality of Auschwitz-Birkenau, where humanity was tested in unimaginable ways. Though different in background, Kalman's and Leopold’s stories intersect in ways that highlight the strength found in human connection. The account provides a deeply personal perspective on a historical atrocity. As their chronicler, Lowy skillfully balances historical context with the individual voices, maintaining the authenticity of their stories. The foreword by Michael Berenbaum offers a broader historical framework, underscoring the importance of transitioning from living memory to historical memory as the last survivors fade.

This is one of the rawest, most personal accounts of the horrors of World War II, particularly Josef Mengele's atrocities. Richard K. Lowy’s dedication to preserving the stories of these two survivors is commendable; he has preserved history for generations to come. The book contains photographs and images that some may find disturbing; however, they highlight the reality of the sanitized versions of what many only read in history books. These visuals serve as powerful reminders of the horrendous acts committed and the indomitable spirit of the survivors. Kalman & Leopold is a testament to courage, hope, and the responsibility of future generations to remember. Lowy ensures that Kalman and Leopold’s voices are enduring historical witnesses. For anyone seeking to understand the Holocaust’s devastating impact and the remarkable strength of its survivors, this book is a must-read. It belongs in every secondary high school and university classroom in the United States, as well as in every historical society. Thank you, Mr. Lowy, for preserving the story and memories of two heroes. It was a privilege to read.

As memories of the horrific events that shaped World War II recede, it is important to revisit what occurred, establish a permanent record, and learn the lessons, however painful. Richard K. Lowy sets out to do just that by recording the first-hand experiences of his father Leopold (“Lipa”), his father’s friend Kalman, and his Aunt Miriam, all of whom survived the horrors of a Nazi death camp. Kalman and Leopold: Surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz records the horrifying details. Jews were systematically rounded up, herded into ghettos, and ultimately sent to detention centers such as Auschwitz in cattle trucks to be forced laborers or executed at the whim of the Nazi authorities. The notorious Josef Mengele (the so-called Angel of Death) was a doctor who oversaw cruel medical experiments on the inmates of Auschwitz. He had a macabre fascination with twins and dwarfs. Ironically, this indirectly saved Leopold, Miriam, Kalman, Uncle Lajos, and others who fell into those categories. As Mengele’s selected subjects of interest, they were protected to a limited extent, although near starvation and beatings remained a reality. Leopold and Kalman were chosen to be servants in the camp guard room. Their eyewitness accounts are recorded to remind readers of what remains a blight on human history. Auschwitz was liberated by Russian troops in 1945 and it was left to the survivors to piece their lives together and attempt to heal the mental and physical wounds.

Kalman and Leopold is a stark reminder that life in Auschwitz was a question of deprivation while clinging to life with little or no hope of long-term survival. Every day could be your last. There was no dignity and no chance of escape. Personal hygiene was as non-existent as privacy. For those not immediately exterminated, a sense of unreality and dread prevailed. Inmates were kept under conditions that modern society can neither imagine nor comprehend. At best, there was forced labor until your body gave in. At worst, becoming a guinea pig for some inhuman experiment. Some opted for suicide, succumbed to disease, or simply starved. Liquidation (a euphemism for genocide) was not confined to the Jews. Gypsies, Russians, and other race groups were also eliminated with callous indifference in Nazi Germany’s quest for racial purity. Richard K. Lowy provides an absorbing account of life in pre-war Europe, the rise of Germany and its ideology, and the start of anti-semitism. It is meticulously researched and despite the sobering content is a timely reminder that this should never be allowed to happen again. It is a testimony to resilience, the human spirit, and the will to survive. Closure came when Kalman and Leopold were reunited in 2002 after 56 years. The book includes maps, photographs, and a glossary. It is an extraordinary work and is highly recommended. I chose this book to review because I am all too familiar with this tragic era, having read books and watched documentaries about it. It is a timely tribute to those who lost their lives.

Kalman & Leopold by Richard K Lowy is a harrowing account of life under the Nazi occupation. Kalman grew up in a strict Orthodox Jewish family and was studying Jewish law. He was devout and naïve about the outside world. Leopold was more street-wise and also Jewish but not Orthodox. They first meet in Auschwitz–Birkenau in Poland, the largest of all the death camps. Both were twins and so earmarked for Dr. Mengele’s experimental research in pursuing his fanatical belief in eugenics. The author runs both lives in parallel, from their early years to the camp’s liberation and their reunion decades later. It also follows the life and career of Mengele, known as The Doctor of Death. While Kalman speaks German, Leopold’s first language is Hungarian, and they are chosen as cleaners in one of the guardhouses. They still have to report to the medical barracks and both endure blood tests and injections which cause excruciating pain. At no time are they told what is being pumped into their bodies. Yet, they were still required to work and exist on basic rations. They both fared a little better from stealing the leftovers from the guards’ meals. They also had some protection as Mengele twins, but they were still beaten daily and their suffering is hard for us to believe. Tales from both men decades later describe the horrific but true events, stories that survivors of the Holocaust seldom share with even their closest families.

Author Richard K Lowy takes us back in time to what his father endured in the Auschwitz–Birkenau concentration camp along with his fellow worker Kalman. Taken from verbal memories and extensive research, their stories are real, vivid, and horrific. The glossary and the footnotes are useful in keeping the explanations clear and concise in this testament of the atrocities and man’s inhumanity to man. Kalman & Leopold is an important work, adding to those accounts of the Holocaust that decry those who say that it never happened. It did, with all the horror and indescribable cruelty of that shameful period of history. The pictures add to the authenticity of a story that will touch your heart. As the experiences of both men, whose only crime was they were Jewish, call out from beyond the grave, their testament is a warning to the present generation of how the human spirit can survive and overcome evil. My heart was touched deeply by this book and I shall never forget it. Very highly recommended.

Unbelievable. Horrific. These are the words that come to mind when reading Kalman and Leopold by the Holocaust survivor’s son Richard K. Lowy. To say the Jewish community was treated cruelly and inhumanely would be accurate, but it could never capture what the victims truly went through, the atrocities committed. Mengele, a.k.a the Angel of Death, was notorious for performing gruesome experiments on Jews, especially twins and dwarfs. However, he had an unhealthy obsession with twins, believing that they were the key to racial purity. The Nazis would be responsible for years of irreparable damage done to the Jewish community. The heartache and pain these evil men induced must never be forgotten but used as a testimony. But what drives a human to do such despicable things? What goes on in the mind of a man who shoots not only one but thousands of innocent children? However, Mengele stands out as perhaps the cruelest, taking the term Mad Scientist Syndrome to a whole new level. Because of Richard’s resilience and sympathetic nature, Kalman and Leopold provide an in-depth look into what took place at the extermination camps.

Reading Kalman and Leopold was quite an experience. Hearing these two Holocaust survivors, Leopold and Kalman, recount their traumatizing time at Auschwitz leaves one at a loss for words. Unimaginable cruelty became the deed of the day, and to be a twin was a death sentence on its own. The terror and heartache they suffered at the hands of the Nazis are unspeakable. The images throughout the book are not only heartbreaking but spirit-breaking and will be forever etched into one's mind. It is incomprehensible that one human could be so cruel to another, all in the name of ‘purifying’ a race. At the time, speaking about mental illness was taboo, but surely today, the forerunners of the Nazi Party, such as Mengele, Hitler, and Von Verschuer, would be diagnosed as having a type of mental disorder. Sadly, these people were given power only to commit the world’s most heinous acts. It is thanks to books like Kalman and Leopold that the survivors and victims of these madmen will never be forgotten. Readers who are interested in the Holocaust will find Kalman and Leopold a very valuable and worthy read. I highly recommend it.