The Stone Crusher
The True Story of a Father and Son's Fight for Survival in Auschwitz
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The Stone Crusher
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Narrated by:
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Christopher Lane
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Written by:
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Jeremy Dronfield
About this listen
In 1939, Gustav Kleinmann, a Jewish upholsterer in Vienna, was arrested by the Nazis. Along with his 16-year old son Fritz, he was sent to Buchenwald in Germany, where a new concentration camp was being built. It was the beginning of a five-year odyssey almost without parallel. They helped build Buchenwald, young Fritz learning construction skills which would help preserve him from extermination in the coming years. But it was his bond with his father that would ultimately keep them both alive. When the 50-year old Gustav was transferred to Auschwitz - a certain death sentence - Fritz was determined to go with him. His wiser friends tried to dissuade him - “If you want to keep living, you have to forget your father,” they said. But that was impossible, and Fritz pleaded for a place on the Auschwitz transport. “He is a true comrade,” Gustav wrote in his secret diary, “always at my side. The boy is my greatest joy. We are inseparable.” Gustav kept his diary hidden throughout his six years in the death camps - even Fritz knew nothing of it. In it he recorded his story, a tale of survival and a father-son bond which proved stronger than the machine that sought to break them both.
©2018 Jeremy Dronfield (P)2018 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved. This audiobook is published in arrangement with Chicago Review Press c/o Susan Schulman Literary Agency.What listeners say about The Stone Crusher
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 2021-02-19
Excellent book
Great narration and story pace. I finished this book quickly and highly recommend it to all history buffs.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Steve Westcott
- 2023-12-06
Amazing story of survival
Highly detailed and a true survivor story. Tough to listen to but great narration. Highly recommended.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Halibut Queen
- 2021-10-19
Insightful
This is a hard story to listen to but I learned a lot. I recommend it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Eric Blezensky
- 2020-01-02
Perfect Narrator
A bone chilling account of the atrocities of the Holocaust. Shows how important a strong will is.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- KYO
- 2021-08-03
absolutely brilliant book
writing, story, recording all amazing. one of the best books I've read by the Holocaust survivors.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Langer MD
- 2022-09-05
Eye-Opening Account
Which Jew in their right mind would *volunteer* to go to Auschwitz? "Useful" trained Stonemason Fritz Kleinmann (who wants to remain with his father), that's who.
This chronicle - informed largely by the secretly-kept diary of Fritz's dad, Gustav - is a gripping tale of dedication & love in the face of unimaginable trials. Historian Jeremy Dronfield follows the experiences of the various members of the Viennese Jew Kleinmann family - from Anschluss & Kristallnacht to escape/exile of various family members to Britain & America and the extermination of Fritz's mother & youngest sister.. but concentrates on the father & son as they make their way from captivity in Buchenwald to slave labor in Auschwitz. The author capably turns a torment-filled memoir into a captivating, strikingly realistic semi-dramatization (the dialogue is obviously fictional while the events described are undeniably authentic).
The narration by Christopher Lane is solidly above-average: exhibiting praiseworthy diction, timbre, and cadence.
The tone, however, is the best aspect of the performance (the reader finds an excellent balance between emotiveness and matter-of-fact relation). Yes, Lane reads too slowly (listen at 1.15X for the most natural experience), but he was a great casting choice from Brilliance Audio.
Altogether, this audiobook merits 9 stars out of 10. Some of the subject matter is uncomfortably viscerally-affecting (it would be a little too much for kids) and Dronfield takes considerable artistic license, but it's well worth a download. Although 'The Stone Crusher' was made available as a 'Plus' option, it would actually rate a Credit.
Similar to "The Diary Of Anne Frank", this book would be an excellent option for readers who want to put a human face on the horrors of the Holocaust (you really can't understand what happened in Europe during WWII without hearing stories like this one).
[NOTE: This book relates infuriating American & British Immigration and Refugee policies early in the War. Be prepared for some frustration.]
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Caron Bright
- 2022-05-07
moving
Excellent, but hard to hear. should be required reading for all high schools. educational
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Brandonn yorke
- 2022-02-24
Breaks your heart
A story that make you feel in great depth what a father and son breaks your heart
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Chris Willey
- 2022-11-25
An amazing story of survival.
From the ugliest part of human history father and son journey to stay together. To deal with the horrible things and trying to keep themselves alive is empowering, anyone feeling like they have things going bad in their life should read.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 2020-08-12
A must read
This is a must read for absolutely everybody.. a horrible story of the bravest people ever. I think I would’ve given up. Luck, bravely, friendship and hope kept some people alive. We HAVE TO listen to their stories and never forget!!!
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1 person found this helpful