WHAT THEY DIDN'T BURN, a KI Reads conversation with author Mel Laytner

384 Harvard Street,Brookline MA 02446

12 July, 2022

Description

WHAT THEY DIDN'T BURN is a dogged reporter's quest, a son's revelation, and a father's unlikely Holocaust saga — confirmed by the Nazis themselves. Unearthing damning documents the Nazis didn’t burn, and chasing after hidden diamonds, author Mel Laytner melds the intimacy of personal memoir with the rigors of investigative journalism to write a Holocaust book for new generations that Kirkus calls "A scrupulously researched and dramatic remembrance." Join us for a conversation with investigative journalist and author Mel Laytner, taking place in person as well as on Zoom on Tuesday July 12th. Book signing to follow the event. Growing up, Laytner saw his quiet, introspective father as a conventional Type B. As he discovers the documents the Nazis didn’t burn, another man emerges—a black market ringleader and wily camp survivor who made his own luck. At a time when the Holocaust itself risks becoming a cliché, how do we show the truth to younger generations further and further removed from the war? Laytner lets the Nazis do it. The Nazi paper trail tracks Josef “Dolek” Lajtner from home to ghettos, slave labor, concentration camps, death marches, and more. In corroborating his more unbelievable stories, the tattered papers also corroborate the stories of Lajtner’s camp comrades, those who survived...and those who did not. What They Didn't Burn is also an inspirational story of resilience and redemption, of desperate refugees turned hopeful immigrants rebuilding shattered lives in America. "Dramatic, harrowing, and haunting...A well-written, potent story of memory and tribute told with integrity and weight." —The Jewish Book Council. 7:00 pm Doors open for seating. Books available for purchase. 7:30 pm Welcome by Shari Lecker, member of KI Board of Trustees. 7:35 pm Author Presentation 7:45 pm Q&A with Mel Laytner moderated by Anna Winestein, Director of Programs. 8:30 pm Book Signing 9:00 pm Event Ends MEL LAYTNER was a reporter and editor of hard news for some twenty years, much of it as a foreign correspondent covering the Middle East for NBC News and United Press International. His first full-time reporting job was with UPI covering all manner of urban mayhem in New York City, his hometown. After a stint as a one-person suburban bureau chief, he moved to the General Desk and became the “slot man” editor, responsible for selecting and editing the day’s top stories for UPI’s 400 afternoon newspaper clients. His first foreign assignment was London. A year later, UPI moved him to Tel Aviv and a year after that, he was named Jerusalem Correspondent. NBC News recruited Mel as its Middle East Radio Correspondent. After eight grinding years in the Middle East, the prestigious Knight-Bagehot program awarded Mel a fellowship in Business and Economic Journalism, which included a year’s residency at Columbia’s Graduate School of Business. Mel holds master’s degrees from the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism, with a concentration in Broadcast News, and from Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs, with a specialization in Foreign Policy Analysis. He lives in New York City with his wife, an artist and teacher, and is the father of three daughters. CONGREGATION KEHILLATH ISRAEL is a traditional inclusive synagogue that actively embraces individuals, its community, and the world. An innovative and prominent voice in North American Jewish life since 1917, it is one of Brookline's oldest synagogues.