A Year-Long Holocaust Book Series from the JFCS Holocaust Center
Turning Pages, Bearing Witness is a year-long book lecture series for adults who want to engage deeply with Holocaust history, memory, and meaning. Through four public gatherings—some in person, some virtual—participants will explore landmark works of Holocaust literature with the guidance of expert facilitators, distinguished authors, and the resources of the JFCS Holocaust Center.
Together, we will read, reflect, and discuss how these stories shape our understanding of the past and our responsibilities in the present.
WINTER
Saints and Liars: The Story of Americans Who Saved Refugees from the Nazis
By Debórah Dwork
About the Book
A gripping history that plumbs the extraordinary stories of American relief and rescue workers during World War II. Renowned historian Debórah Dwork follows the story of rescue workers in five major cities as the refugee crisis expanded to Vilna, Shanghai, Marseille, and Lisbon. Followed by Nazi agents, spiriting people across borders, they learned secrecy.
“Saints and Liars” illuminates the unpredictable circumstances and often fast-changing historical events with which these aid workers contended, while revealing the moral questions they encountered and the devastating decisions they had to make.
Drawing on a multitude of archival documents, from letters to diaries and memos, Dwork offers us a rare glimpse into the lives of individuals who – at times with their organizations’ backing, but sometimes against their directives – sought to help people find safe haven from persecution.
About the Program
Meet the Author
Thursday, January 29, 2026 in San Francisco
Don’t miss this rare chance to hear directly from one of the world’s leading Holocaust historians. At the inaugural Benesch and Tandler Lecture, renowned scholar Debórah Dwork will discuss her exceptional new book, Saints and Liars: The Story of Americans Who Saved Refugees from the Nazis—revealing the human courage behind these remarkable rescue efforts. This is a free, additional offering to the Turning Pages, Bearing Witness program. Register here.
Post Event Group Discussion
Thursday, February 5, 6:30–7:30 PM (on Zoom)
Join us for an engaging, small-group conversation that brings the book to life. This one-hour session invites participants to reflect together on key themes, expand on ideas raised during the public program, and build personal connections through shared learning. Whether you’re eager to unpack a particular moment in the text or simply want to hear how others experienced the story, this discussion offers an open, thoughtful space to explore the book more deeply and connect with fellow readers.
SPRING
A German Jew's Triumph: Fritz Oppenheimer and the Denazification of Germany
By Cindy Schweich Handler, Foreword by Harry H. Handler
About the Book
When Prussian soldier Fritz Oppenheimer left the World War I battlefield with two Iron Crosses, he could never have imagined that the pinnacle of his military career would come 27 years later at the German surrender in World War II, when he took top Nazi leaders into captivity and interrogated Wilhelm Keitel, head of the Wehrmacht.
A towering personality packed into a 5’3″ frame, Oppenheimer was a wealthy Jewish Berliner who fled the Third Reich in mid-1938, joined basic training in the U.S. Army at 45, and ultimately became General Eisenhower’s legal aid and translator, tasked with helping to build a sustainable postwar democracy in his former homeland.
This historical biography presents an untold David-and-Goliath story, demonstrating how one person’s efforts can help change the course of history and forge a more hopeful future.
About the Program
Meet the Authors
Thursday, March 5, 2026 in San Francisco
Meet the voices behind the book as authors Cindy Schweich Handler and Harry H. Handler join us for an intimate, thought-provoking conversation about their work and the family history that inspired it. The discussion will be guided by Ron Glait, Director of Community Education, who will draw out key themes and invite reflections that deepen understanding of the narrative and its legacy.
Participants will also have the rare opportunity to explore original archival materials connected to the story, presented by Andrew Roth, Manager of the Tauber Library and Archive. These curated documents and images add important historical context and illuminate the lives and events at the heart of the book.
Together, this program offers a rich, multidimensional experience—linking personal testimony, historical sources, and facilitated dialogue to broaden and enrich the conversation.
SUMMER
LGBTQI+ Persecution and the Holocaust - An Encyclopedia of Prejudice and Perseverance
By Alexis Herr
About the Book
Hitler and the Nazis’ reign of power had dire and long-lasting consequences for LGBTQI+ persons in Germany, Europe, and arguably the world. This survey of key topics and themes within the greater landscape of Holocaust and genocide studies helps identify how deep-seated prejudices against LGBTQI+ persons evolved into eliminationist ideology under the Nazis. Entries consider the lives of the persecuted and the persecutors alongside examinations of the attitudes and ideas that shaped their present and prejudices; in short, how the German society at large came to condone, and at times participate in, the forceful arrest, disappearance, and murder of thousands of their fellow citizens. Considering also the resistance movement, profiles of key individuals tell the story of those who resisted the Nazi assault on LGBTQI+ persons. A chronology of key events, perspective essays, primary sources, and survivor testimony further help shed light on the resilience and resistance of the community and the evolution of their persecution under and after the Nazis.
About the Program
Meet the Author
Thursday, June 4, 2026 | 6:30 – 8:00pm
San Francisco
Join us for a special summer session held in honor of Pride Month.
This gathering features an author conversation with Alexis Herr, whose work invites powerful reflection on identity, memory, and the ongoing relevance of Holocaust history. The evening will include a guided discussion led by Ron Glait, Director of Community Education, creating space for thoughtful dialogue and personal connection.
Together, we’ll explore the book’s themes, reflect on the intersections of history and LGBTQ+ experiences, and engage as a community in meaningful learning.
Participants will also have the rare opportunity to explore original archival materials connected to the story, presented by Andrew Roth, Manager of the Tauber Library and Archive. These curated documents and images add important historical context and illuminate the lives and events at the heart of the book.
FALL
Book and Program Details Coming Soon
This closing session will honor the stories of the Second Generation—children of survivors who carry echoes of their parents’ pasts. We will reflect on how inherited memory shapes identity, and how healing begins when we learn to hold history not only as a burden, but as a source of strength and meaning.
About the Book
Coming soon
About the Program
Coming soon