num_pages: 267
description: A boy escapes from the Nazi gas chambers and survives the sinking of the Struma refugee ship -- Eyelands Book Awards Finalist!Moshe Gittelman is the swim champion of his high school district in Krakow, Poland prior to the beginning of WW II. At the start of the conflict, his family is sent to Auschwitz where the boy’s parents as well as his younger sister are killed, but Moshe’s deft athletic ability allows him to survive the Nazi execution chambers.After escaping from the concentration camp, Moshe is eventually able to secure passage on a refugee vessel bound for Israel called The Struma, but soon after the ship’s departure, an engine failure leaves the craft sitting idly in the Black Sea. The boat is torpedoed by the Russians mistaking it for a German warship and Moshe is one of only a handful of passengers left alive in the wake of the tragedy.
language: English
title: The Swimmer