Resisting the Holocaust: Upstanders, Partisans, and Survivors. Edited by Paul R. Bartrop. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2016. 445 p. Acid free $100 (ISBN 978-1-61069-878-8). E-book available (978-1-61069-879-5), call for pricing.

It is common for researchers of the Holocaust and Holocaust resisters to encounter initial roadblocks when embarking on this journey. Being able to offer scholars, especially those looking to establish a foundation of knowledge on these topics, a reference source that is both approachable for the less experienced researcher, while at the same time provides detailed information and a launch pad to delve deeper into these topics, is an enticing proposition. Resisting the Holocaust: Upstanders, Partisans, and Survivors looks to provide such versatility and value to academic reference collections.

Between the Introduction and the actual encyclopedia entries that provide information for each resister are three critical sections that provide crucial context and detailed definitions of an Upstander, a Partisan, and a Survivor. While brief at only two pages each, this information is invaluable, especially for the novice scholar who may not be well-versed in the Holocaust and the various ways in which people resisted. As an example, part of the introduction to the section describing upstanders during the Holocaust states, “upstanders during the Holocaust were those who resisted the murderous actions of the Nazis, or went out of their way to rescue Jews” (xxiii).

Each entry, approximately two to four pages in length, focuses on a resister and provides details pertaining to the specific resistance actions taken by the resister, as well as geographical context as to where the resistance took place. Resistance took many forms, and this reference work excels at illuminating the multitude methods of resistance deployed by resisters. Information includes where the individual took action, how they took action, and context as to the eventual outcomes of their actions. Sprinkled throughout this volume are reproductions of photographs of many of the resisters covered in this work, which brings this work to life. While there is a separate bibliography located just before the Index, the lack of a selected bibliography at the end of each entry is a very minor gripe.

At the conclusion of the final resister entry, the encyclopedia provides a detailed chronology of events that starts with the appointment of Adolf Hitler as chancellor of Germany in 1933 and continues through the signing of surrender documents in Berlin in 1945. There is also the aforementioned bibliography, which provides citations to dozens of relevant sources for scholars interested in continuing their research beyond this reference work. The chronology further enhances the accessibility of this work, and the bibliography provides easy pathways for researchers to continue their work in additional, non-reference sources.

Its skilled and deft explanation of the ways in which people resisted during the Holocaust, along with the detailed portraits of the sampling of resisters featured in this set combine to make this a recommendable reference work. Academic libraries that support Modern European and/or Holocaust/Jewish Studies programs in search of an approachable, single volume set covering resisters of the Holocaust will be pleased with the addition of Resisting the Holocaust: Upstanders, Partisans, and Survivors to their collection.—Matthew Laudicina, Reference Program Coordinator, Sojourner Truth Library, State University of New York at New Paltz