In the shadow of the Holocaust, the Soviet Union's quiet yet brutal campaign against Polish citizens is often overlooked. Wesley Adamczyk's gripping memoir, "When God Looked the Other Way", gives voice to the hundreds of thousands of victims of Soviet barbarism. Adamczyk was a young Polish boy when he was deported with his mother and siblings from their comfortable home in Luck to Soviet Siberia in May of 1940. His father, a Polish Army officer, was taken prisoner by the Red Army and eventually became one of the victims of the Katyn massacre. The family's separation and deportation marked the beginning of a ten-year odyssey in which Adamczyk endured nearly intolerable living conditions, meager food rations, and life-threatening epidemics, first in the Soviet Union and then in Iran, where his mother succumbed to exhaustion after mounting a harrowing escape from the Soviets. A memoir of a childhood spent in unspeakable circumstances, "When God Looked the Other Way" not only illuminates one of the darkest periods of European history but also traces the loss of innocence and the fight against despair that took root in one young boy. Unflinching and poignant, "When God Looked the Other Way" stands as a testament to the trials of a family during wartime and an intimate chronicle of an atrocity yet to receive its historical due.

About the Author
Wesley Adamczyk is a retired chemist and tax consultant who lives in Illinois. He is also a champion bridge player.

Reviews
"Mr. Adamczyk writes heartfelt, straightforward prose.... This book sheds light on more than one forgotten episode of history." - Gordon Haber, New York Sun "One of the most remarkable World War II sagas I have ever read. It is history with a human face." - Andrew Beichman, Washington Times "Adamczyk recounts the story of his own wartime childhood with exemplary precision and immense emotional sensitivity, presenting the ordeal of one family with the clarity and insight of a skilled novelist.... I have read many descriptions of the Siberian odyssey and of other forgotten wartime episodes. But none of them is more informative, more moving, or more beautifully written than When God Looked the Other Way." - From the Foreword by Norman Davies, author of Europe: A History and Rising '44: The Battle for Warsaw "A finely wrought memoir of loss and survival." - Publishers Weekly"



Book Information
ISBN 9780226004440
Author Wesley Adamczyk
Format Paperback
Page Count 288
Imprint University of Chicago Press
Publisher The University of Chicago Press
Weight(grams) 454g
Dimensions(mm) 23mm * 15mm * 2mm