The story of how an impoverished three-member Catholic farm family saved thirteen Jews from the Holocaust in Lithuania, seven of them escapees from Kovno Ghetto. All sixteen lived and as of 2015, five of the Jews are still living. This book is being used in public and private schools, colleges and universities, as well as in Holocaust conferences in the U.S. and in Europe. Izzy's Fire was nominated by a People's Choice Award by the Library of Virginia in 2006.
Industry Reviews
"Izzy's Fire is an intensely moving, deeply thought-provoking account
of man's humanity to man in the midst of the unimaginable horror
of the Holocaust. Raising fundamental questions about right and
wrong and the consequences of personal action, Izzy's Fire is a
powerful teaching tool for adults and young people alike."
-Anne E. Derse, U.S. ambassador (ret.)
"I met Nancy Wright Beasley at the American Embassy in Vilnius,
Lithuania. I have never met a person with so much empathy towards
'another' and the terrible Jewish fate during WWII...As a
Holocaust survivor of the Kovno Ghetto, I bow my head to Nancy
and admire the book she has written with such incredible sensitivity."
-Irena Veisaite?, PhD, retired professor,
literary scholar, and theatre critic (Vilnius, Lithuania)
"This book is extraordinary and could become one of the most
important books of its genre."
-Martin J. Goldman, director of survivor affairs (ret.),
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
"Izzy's Fire is remembrance. It should never die."
-Armchair Interviews
"Remembering the Holocaust is the best way to prevent another.
Nancy Wright Beasley courageously stands at the forefront of this
sacred endeavor."
-Rabbi Shmully Hecht,
Shabtai: The Jewish Society at Yale University
"Izzy's Fire gives voice to those who survived the Holocaust in hiding
and is a welcome addition to Holocaust studies shelves."
-Midwest Book Reviews
"A fascinating account of a few Jewish families that escaped the
horrors of the ghetto in Kovno and by some miracle survived the
war years in one of the most hostile environments to Jews on the
European continent. It is a document of unlimited courage and
devotion, of boundless hope, and passion to survive...This book is
another very important addition to the Holocaust."
-Abe Larwe, editor, English section of Gachelet,
a publication of the Association of Lithuanian Jews in Israel.
As the story of one family, this remarkable book may stand as a
metaphor for thousands of others, unknown and untold as accounts
from the victims of the 20th century's greatest crime."
-Charles W. Sydnor, Jr., PhD, author of Soldiers of
Destruction: The SS Death's Head Division, 1933-1945;
executive director, Virginia Holocaust Museum
"Beasley draws from personal interviews, research, and numerous
memoirs, including those from Israel "Izzy" Ipson, who helped his
family escape from Kovno Ghetto, one of the most notorious killing
fields for Jews in Lithuania. Complete with maps and photos, Izzy's
Fire is a story for all time."
-Rebecca Reads
"As a member of Brandermill Rotary, Nancy Wright Beasley upholds
Rotary International's major theme: service above self. In Izzy's Fire,
we're looking at a handbook for service above self. It's one thing to
talk it, but quite another to see in this book how people actually lived
it. Unless we actually live it, it doesn't really mean anything."
-Jim Bynum, governor, Rotary District 7600, 2011-12
"I chose Izzy's Fire as an excellent example of how to show students
and teachers all the situations about understanding the Holocaust.
It relates to victims, collaborators, the Nazis, bystanders, and rescuers,
and offers many moral questions."
-Ingrida Vilkiene?, deputy director of education,
International Commission for the Evaluation of the Crimes of
the Nazi and Soviet Occupation Regimes (Vilnius, Lithuania)
"I know Izzy's Fire changes lives, those of adults and
students. I witnessed it firsthand during the seven years I taught it."
-Rebecca Quesenberry, reading specialist
"Izzy's Fire changed my life, as I never realized how terrible
discrimination can be. If I could, I would make Izzy's Fire required
reading for all middle and high school students."
-Sam Stark, 16, Thomas Dale High
School, Chesterfield County, Va.
