The Watchmakers: A Powerful WW2 Story of Brotherhood, Survival, and Hope Amid the Holocaust

As the memory of the Holocaust recedes and the number of survivors dwindles, first-person witness accounts that speak directly to readers become more important every year. The Watchmakers by Harry Lenga and Scott Lenga, is one such valuable account. Scott Lenga spent years recording his father Harry’s experiences in the Holocaust and presents Harry’s recollections in the first person. The tale leaps out of the page at the reader like the graphic novel Maus, by Art Spiegelman, but without the graphics. It is that good.

Lenga provides a matter-of-fact accounting of the survival of Henry and his two brothers in the Nazi horror camps. Watch repair was a valuable skill in the pre-digital era. Watches of the era often needed repairs and cleanings and the Lengas were able to trade their skills to obtain lifesaving benefits from camp authorities and others. This inspiring tale of how the three brothers relied on each other to survive the Holocaust is a valuable addition to the “witness” genre of Holocaust literature. No reader will walk away unmoved by the courage that the three brothers summoned from within to survive one of the bleakest chapters in Europe’s history.