February 2024 MBR The Holocaust Studies Shelf

The Holocaust Studies Shelf

The Politzer Saga
Linda A. Broenniman
Bethesda Communications Group
http://www.bcgpub.com
9781736777374, $39.95, HC, 256pp

https://www.amazon.com/Politzer-Saga-Linda-Broenniman/dp/1736777378

Synopsis: A housefire in 2011. The contents of a box that survives become t=
he catalyst for a quest whose seeds were planted in 1983 - the day Linda Am=
brus Broenniman learned that her Catholic father was Jewish and what little=
 family history she knew was a lie.

Searching for truth, Linda pieces together the astonishing story of her Jew=
ish ancestors (the Politzer family) their remarkable lives lost to her fath=
er's secrets.

From the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the 1700s to modern day Hungary and Ame=
rica, she finds her family: doctors and lawyers, entrepreneurs and industri=
alists, writers and musicians, artists and art collectors. She learns of th=
eir resilience in surviving religious persecution, wars, epidemics, and eco=
nomic upheavals. Finding her roots brings Linda a new sense of who she is a=
nd a peace that now she can honor the memories of her family.

Critique: Presenting a family history and personal biography, with the publ=
ication of "The Politzer Saga" by Linda Ambrus Broenniman, encompasses issu=
es that still echo today with respect to the presence and impact of anti-Se=
mitism, prejudice, persecution, and the enduring costs of attempts at assim=
ilation. It should be noted that "The Politzer Saga" from the Bethesda Comm=
unications Group is also the subject of an Exhibition at the Rumbach Synago=
gue, Budapest, Hungary. Especially and unreservedly recommended to readers =
with an interest in Jewish biographies/memoirs and Holocaust histories, "Th=
e Politzer Saga" is an important addition to personal, professional, commun=
ity, and college/university library collections. It should be noted that "T=
he Politzer Saga" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindl=
e, $9.99).

Editorial Note: Linda Ambrus Broenniman grew up in Buffalo, New York. She i=
s the middle child of seven born to Hungarian physicians who survived World=
 War II and started their new life in the US in 1949.Linda graduated from S=
warthmore College with a BA in psychology. Several years after getting her =
MBA from Carnegie Mellon, she left mainstream corporate America to follow h=
er path as an entrepreneur, building companies in technology and biotech. S=
he let her passion for uncovering hidden potential in unexpected places gui=
de her. And she allowed this passion to fuel her search for her hidden fami=
ly.

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