Recollections and Reflections - How I Turned Despair into an Appreciation of Life, by Dr. Jack Brauns, is a must read account of Jack Brauns' life.

The story is personal, engaging and powerful, as we learn about family life in pre-war Kaunas (Kovno) Lithuania, followed by the German invasion of Lithuania, life in the Kovno Ghetto, deportation to German concentration camps, how he utilized his survival skills, then liberation and the path of rehabilitation and adjustment. Trace his journey through maps created by Sir Martin Gilbert.

His story is a triumph of the spirit. The book, different from other accounts of the Holocaust, does not dwell upon the atrocities, but how his philosophy of life got him through. It is inspirational to all, especially young people to whom it is a clarion call to emulate the best instinct of humanity.

We thank you for visiting this web site and invite you to browse through it, especially the reviews of the book by numerous scholars, educators, authors, holocaust survivors and book lovers.