What people are saying about this book...
Media Reviews
"[A] meticulously researched biography."
— Joanne Talbot, BBC Music Magazine
"Newman’s moving and poignant book provides a fascinating glimpse into the psyche of a career-oriented woman who tried to rise above personal disappointments and tragic circumstances through her deep, unwavering belief in music’s power and beauty.
"
— Jeanne M. Thompson, Notes
"May well be the most compelling book ever on the Holocaust."
— Booklist through Today's Books
, September 21, 2000
"This is a book that I think should be read by all."
— The Massenet Society
"This heart-breaking book has been most carefully researched and compellingly presented…. A magnificent testament to a true heroine of the Holocaust.
"
— Sid Grolnic, Penn Sounds
, Spring 2001
"Newman’s is an ambitious and richly detailed book that tells an extraordinary story.
"
— Netty C. Gross, The Jerusalem Report
, March 26, 2001
"Skillfully recreates the ambiance of era, from glorious Vienna of the early 1900’s to the unspeakable horrors of the death camps.
"
— Karyl Lynn Zietz , La Scala Magazine
"Alma Rosé from Vienna to Auschwitz is important literature. Twenty years in the making, it presents not only relatively balanced eyewitness testimonies, but also provides detailed and often moving accounts of Rose’s life before and during her incarceration."
— MusicTeachers.co.uk Online Journal
"Here is a monumental contribution to Holocaust history and women in Holocaust history."
— Sybil Kaplan, Jewish Post and Opinion
, April 11, 2001
"A welcome contribution to Holocaust studies, as well as a brilliantly presented biography of a gifted musician."
— Wisconsin Bookwatch
"The long-overdue biography recounts her brief, tempestuous life, so filled with drama and melodrama that no self-respecting novelist could create it.
"
— Fanfare
, November/December 2000
"A very moving and articulate testament to a most remarkable woman. It is ... superbly written and highly recommended.
"
— Wisconsin Bookwatch
"A tribute to [Alma] and to those prisoners for whom music meant survival."
— Music Educators Journal
"Newman’s moving and poignant book provides a fascinating glimpse into the psyche of a career-oriented woman who tried to rise above personal disappointments and tragic circumstances through her deep, unwavering belief in music’s power and beauty."
— Jeanne M. Thompson, Notes
"A poignant and musically invaluable contribution to the literature of the Holocaust."
— William Littler, Toronto Star
, December 11, 2001
"The authors vividly portray every step in her riches-to-rags horrors... This well researched and highly readable biography provides a moving account of one woman's confrontation with the greatest horrors of the war."
— Kirkus Reviews
"Newman's research is impressive."
— Sandee Brawarsky, Jewish Week
, April 28, 2000
"Newman interviewed more than 100 people who were able to provide firsthand information. This may well be the most compelling book ever written on the Holocaust."
— George Cohen, Booklist
, March 15, 2000
"This is a beautifully written biography, an important addition to the literature about Auschwitz, and a tribute to the power of excellence in music and the will of musicians to survive. I have already recommended it to everyone I know."
— Fine, American Record Guide
"This fascinating book illustrates the courage and determination of a young woman who saved dozens of lives."
— Library Journal
, March 1, 2000
"Newman and coauthor Kirtley have produced an exhaustively detailed account of Rosé's life and times . . . The result is a fascinating and painstaking history of an era."
— Publisher's Weekly
, March 13, 2000
"Newman transports us from Old World-style comfort and high ideals to a night without end. He introduces us to a structured hell where art is an irrelevance, or seems to be. And then, quite suddenly, he reports something beautiful."
— Rob Cowan, Gramophone
"Richard Newman's long labour of love and fascination and pity has come to magnificent fruition with the publication of his deeply moving biography of Alma Rosé."
— Herman Gooden, London Free Press
, April 30, 2000
"Her [Alma Rosé's] story is remarkable."
— John Mark Eberhart, The Kansas City Star
, May 7, 2000
"This is a book to numb the mind and sear the soul."
— Edith Eisler, Amazon.com
"Music critic Richard Newman has produced what may be the last word on the subject."
— Colin Eatock, The Globe and Mail
, May 17, 2000
"From pieced-together shards of painful memory, there emerges a silhouette of a tantalising musician who overcame the twin handicaps of a famous name and modest talent to express a surreal humanity in the midst of mass extermination."
— Norman Lebrecht, The Daily Telegraph - London
, April 5, 2000
"The book encapsulates the plunge from dizzying heights of Viennese culture to fathomless depths of Nazi depredation. And through it all, there is every reason to believe, the Vienna players, performed Beethoven beautifully."
— James R. Oestreich, The New York Times
, May 21, 2000
"This is a disturbing and important book."
— American Music Teacher
"[A] well-researched biography. "
— Book News
"Richard Newman spent 22 years researching Alma's story . . . and he tells it wonderfully."
— Geraldine Freedman, The Post-Star
, July 27, 2000
"Newman does a fine job of depicting Alma's character, her drive, and her talent. . . . For Alma there was no escape. . . . Thanks to the thorough and thoughtful research of Richard Newman, her story did survive. This is a compelling read for anyone, musician or not."
— Elizabeth Dallman, The Instrumentalist
Customer Reviews
Very Good! | March 24, 2001
Reviewer: Anonymous from Virginia (hhughsto@gmu.edu)
I couldn't put this book down! Alma Rose was such a inspiration to a female violinist and to what music can do for the human spirit. The book also made the musicians such as Gustav Mahler more human and easier to relate to. I recommend this book to anyone who plays or loves music! I will never forget the stories and will keep them in my heart forever.
|
