World War II letters that I focused on were from author Bonnie Klapper Goldenberg expressing her fathers legacy in the army. The main focus in the beginning of the book was how they were in New York and celebrating summer of 1941 before her father Abraham Klapper introduced himself to his future wife and mother of his children Lillian Schein. Bonnie received the letters from her mother when she got older that were stored in shopping bags. Though the letters added up to 800, that didn’t stop Bonnie from writing her book “Love Abe: A Jewish GI’s World War II Letters Home”. Letters relating to family that were sent from soldiers in the army are the reason why letters have grown in improvement of communication and passion.
Abraham Klapper and Lillian Schein shared similar parts of their lives in being children of Jewish immigrants. They didn’t start dating until 1941 when they both made eye contact and the phrase of opposites attract were the key to them becoming a couple. Though they broke up due to the circumstances of Abraham having to leave for the army, they managed to work things out and make sure they were willing to marry each other after taking blood tests. Abraham left for the army in 1943 while Lillian was pregnant with Bonnie. Abraham sent as many letters as he could to Lillian and baby Bonnie of how he couldn’t function the idea of being in the army and traveling across Europe and different states in the United States for camps.
During World War II, many restrictions from the government were implied to Jews to remain in Germany. It was part of their roles in the army as Jewish fluent Germans to be located in Germany for a better understanding of the effects the war has caused. V-E Day was a main factor in Europe according to Abraham because it was before war in Europe was over. He said in his letter on May 13, 1945, “I am tired of uncertainty and having people post on a bulletin board what I must wear, must say, must eat, [when I] must get up and sleep” (Klapper 155). Regardless of where the soldiers were staying before receiving their report of active duty from the army, there were to be many obstacles based on attacks that were to be sent to America.
Back to Abraham’s letters, he mainly focused on the brighter side of traveling throughout Europe before traveling back to their original camps in New York. Many of his members in the army were sent to war in Japan, and they successfully won. Each letter that Abraham sent was delayed years later because of the traveling situations they were facing. The camps were difficult for the soldiers due to the amount of necessities they carried, so they relied on staying positive and strong as best as they could to represent themselves when they had to write letters for loved ones back home. The soldiers were fighting for their people, themselves, and overall, the world because they have proven their strengths and dignity to be respected by everyone throughout the world.
Letters being used as a source of communication for soldiers serving in World War II impacts how pen and paper can mean the world to somebody. Though many letters could be positive or negative, it was helpful to learn different ways to write for loved ones with limited access to materials. Abraham sending as many positive letters to not only Lillian but his whole family is an encouraging moment rather than feeling disconnected from family. After all, Abraham made it home to his family and lived a long life in remembrance of his success in the army. Many soldiers can say the same, and it works to understand the meaning of bravery. Letters share communication and passion with words of wisdom for anyone that needs to know how life changing a moment can be from a person that processes to be willing to share their thoughts.
Berenbaum, Michael. “Holocaust”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 16 Oct. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/event/Holocaust. Accessed 16 October 2024.
Goldenberg, Bonnie. “Bonnie Goldenberg.” 2022. https://bonniegoldenberg.com/. Accessed 16 October, 2024
Goldenberg, Bonnie Klapper. “Love, Abe: A Jewish GI’s World War II Letters Home.” Sunset Hills Press. 27 May, 2022. https://www.amazon.com/Love-Abe-Jewish-World-Letters-Home/.
Hebrew Union College, Jewish Institute of Religion. “Jews in the Military.” 28 October, 2022. https://huc.edu/library_blog/jews-in-the-military/. Accessed 16 October, 2024.
Sarisky, Madelaine. “How a tattered bag of letters became a book.” 19 August, 2022. https://www.toacorn.com/articles/how-a-tattered-bag-of-letters-became-a-book/. Accessed 16 October, 2024.
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. “German Jews During the Holocaust.” https://www.ushmm.org/collections/ask-a-research-question/how-to-cite-museum-materials#from-the-museums-website. Accessed 16 October, 2024.
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