As the subtitle indicates, this is a memoir of a Holocaust survivor. It was written relatively recently, and the forward explains that so many years have passed that in some way Thomas feels emotionally detached from the events he describes. In fact, all of his time at Auschwitz is described in a mere 20 pages. The detachment in the writing made me feel more detached from his story than I have typically felt when reading Holocaust-related materials. However, I believe that this story is valuable and unique in that it describes more fully than most the days after liberation, when Thomas, as a very young child, was suddenly free, but alone in Poland with no way of knowing if any of his family had survived, and no way of reaching Germany to find out. Pretty gripping stuff.

I picked up this book because I have always been interested in first person accounts of the Holocaust. Written as a personal memoire, this book tells the story of Tommie - a young Jewish boy who survives several Nazi concentration camps included the infamous Auschwitz. It is a compelling story, but Mr. Buergenthal did not write this book until much later in life, so there are some gaps in the story and some of the recollections are limited, but overall I was not only amazed at Tommy's almost miraculous survival, but I especially enjoyed the end of the book where Mr. Buergenthal shares his outlook on the experience and his ability to move beyond hatred toward those responsible.

I liked this book. My mom had made recommended(made me)this book to me. This was different form all the holocaust books I've read. It was all true hard facts, the person really lived it all, nothing not even names,or emotions were made up. I'm glad my mom made me read this because it was a different type of literature altogether.

The perspective of this story is the abuse he suffered form becoming a respected world court judge. Nothing stopped him he didn't let any excuses from torcher get in his way. You see what he went through since the very day he was born. I just find it amazing how he could conjure up the strength to write the terrible event brought upon him for his religion or his background.This is only a little bit of what went on but a big reaction. Just as he says,"Everyone has a story more tragic than the next." And this is his story.

Ok, so, I'm probably going to get some hate from the following review. Here goes nothing...
I will never water down a Holocaust memoir, I know that no matter what the author endured, my life is cake and butterflies and ponies in comparison. But this particular story gave me the feeling of "This happened. Then this happened. Then we were liberated. Then the end." If I'm not mistaken, the author was only in Auschwitz for a very, very short period of time. (A couple days, maybe?) Therefore, I feel as if titling this book "A Memoir of Surviving Auschwitz as a Young Boy" was slightly misleading. THIS IS JUST ME THOUGH.

This is an amazing memoir of how a ten year old child was able to survive Auschwitz, selections, bitter winter transports and 2 ghettos in the midst of the Holocaust. It is a remarkable story of how a child learns to be street smart and how to outfox the Nazis at critical points in his young life. His eventual reunification with family members is yet another interesting point in his story proving that Thomas was quite the "Lucky Child" indeed.

I find myself fascinated by stories of people, particularly children, who manage to overcome incredible odds such as surviving the Holocaust. I am drawn to books about them, and A Lucky Child is one of the more moving and amazing stories I have read in this vein. Thomas Buergenthal recounts his life story. Though perhaps the most incredible section details his survival in Auschwitz (his group avoided a selection upon their entrance to the camp, which would have ended Thomas' life quickly, and he managed to stay with his father and learn the tricks to surviving the camp), his life before and after are no less incredible. Thomas goes from a Jewish ghetto to Nazi camps, including grueling death marches, to spending time as the companion of a Polish army regiment, and even more amazing stories. Through it all, Thomas writes impeccably. His emotions do not cloud his writing; he is reflective, fair, and very detailed, though of course the memories of childhood are often clouded.

I found Buergenthal's take on his early life fascinating, especially the tiny details he remembers from the camp. The way he avoided the selections within the camps highlights the fact that even given the way Nazis are often portrayed as mindless, machinistic monsters, they were only human, and prone to mistakes and distractions. He remembers certain details that highlight the brutality, the humanity, the suffering, and the kindness to be found in all of war-torn Europe in the 1940s. And what Thomas did with his life after the camps is to be commended. He is a hero. It was a very worthy read, and Mr. Buergenthal is a man I very much admire after reading his book.

I liked this- it was a good memoir. My only reservation is the idea of someone writing about things that happened when they were a child, 60 years later. It brings up alot of questions about history and memory and truth and embellishment. I have no doubts this all happened, and it's amazing that such a young person made it through the camps... it just really makes one wonder about accuracy in memory and what makes one Holocaust story different from the others.