WHAT THEY DIDN'T BURN

Mel Laytner

No doubts. None at  all: my father’s calligraphic signature hugs the bottom of the tattered Nazi document, his Auschwitz tattoo number – 177904 – the upper right.  I wonder, If one such document exists, might not others?

Book Trailers

"The Auschwitz Registration Form" (:35 )


"Well now," I thought, "this changes everything."

Click to view with audio.

"Relics of Hate" (:1.00)


"I am an apostate on hallowed ground."

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"25 Lashes" (:1.0)


"I had read enough to know how this worked."

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"West 83rd Street" (55 seconds)


"I t haunted me. It fascinated me. It triggered many a story on my father's knee."

Click to view with audio

"The Auschwitz Registration Form" (:35 )


"Well now," I thought, "this changes everything."

Click to view with audio.

"Relics of Hate" (:1.00)


"I am an apostate on hallowed ground."

Click to view with audio
Mel Laytner, Author, Journalist, Speaker

 Mel Laytner was a reporter and editor for nearly 20 years  in New York City and a foreign correspondent in London and the Middle East for  NBC News and United Press International.

THE LONGER VERSION

 

What if you uncovered a Nazi paper trail that revealed your father as a man very different from the quiet, introspective Dad you knew

…or thought you knew?

 

Growing up, author Mel Laytner saw his father as a quintessential Type B, passive and retiring.  As he uncovered the Nazi documents they didn't burn, another man emerged—a black market ringleader and wily camp survivor who made his own luck.

 

Melding the intimacy of personal memoir with the rigors of investigative journalism, Mel tracked down  survivors who remembered his father from ghettos and camps and helped unravel the complex truths surrounding the father’s life.


An inspiring true detective story of dark secrets and hidden diamonds, of  resilience and redemption, What They Didn't Burn is also a dramatic story of how  desperate refugees turned hopeful immigrants rebuilt their lives and families  in America while struggling to overcome the lingering trauma that has impacted their children to this day.

Editorial Reviews for


What They Didn't Burn

Kirkus Review of What They Didn't Burn

A scrupulously researched and dramatic remembrance … the author presents his findings with a remarkable blend of meticulousness and unabashed emotion, movingly communicating what he experienced during the process.

[click for full review]


Midwest Book Review, What They Didn't Burn by Mel Laytner

A memoir and history like no other Holocaust story…Its eye-opening impact makes What They Didn't Burn unparalleled, powerful, and essential reading that will ideally prompt debates and group studies about Holocaust survivors and Nazi experiences.




GoodReads What They Didn't Burn by Mel Laytner

This book is meticulously researched and incredibly well-written…It's not dry and dusty, instead reads like fiction through good writing. It doesn't dramatize or become hyper emotional for effect. It's just so real. So frighteningly real and true… (click for full review)


Praise From Those Who Know...

" . . . A remarkable historiographical achievement that blends the narrative pleasures of a detective story with the intellectual fireworks of a micro-history. In tracing the evidence and reconstructing the facts concerning a single Auschwitz prisoner, Laytner has made a major contribution to the history of that camp and, as such, to our understanding of the Holocaust.

               —ROBERT JAN van PELT, author,

The  Case for Auschwitz, Evidence from the  Irving Trial


"What a thrilling story of wartime survival! Mel Laytner has unraveled the secrets of his father’s past, balancing a son’s love and admiration with a reporter’s commitment to the facts. Chasing after hidden diamonds and digging up damning Nazi documents, Laytner weaves a tale of courage and luck that brings to life an unforgettable cast of characters. A great detective story — and an important work of history."

— ANN KIRSCHNER,

 author, Sala’s Gift


"I know of no other work that so eloquently combines a dogged search for a Nazi paper trail of evidence and a son’s reconciliation with his family’s Holocaust legacy. What They Didn’t Burn is not only an engaging piece of rigorous research, but also a harrowing and heartwarming personal saga of discovery.”

      —SCOTT MILLER, author, Refuge Denied:          The St. Louis Passengers and the Holocaust 


                   Recent Work

Mel Laytner Interviews Mark Sullivan, Beneath a Scarlet Sky

Mel has applied his experience in unspooling the layers of truth behind his father's stories to report and write about other unusual aspects of historical research. Click the button below to see some of his other work.

SEE RECENT WORK

Let's Talk

An experienced and inspiring public speaker, Mel is available to share his remarkable story of discovery, complete with a PowerPoint presentation of the astounding Nazi documents he uncovered, with  book clubs, schools, and interested groups. Please fill out the form below and he'll get back to you promptly.

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