This is the story of Wladyslaw Szpilman, a Polish-Jewish pianist who, through luck and divine intervention, survived the German occupation of Poland. The book begins by describing a very memorable scene: Wladyslaw playing Chopin’s Nocturne in C#Minor live on the radio. His piece is interrupted halfway through by German shelling. And so begins his journey of survival. Slowly he and his family are forced into Jewish ghettos and eventually are made to board a train to Treblinka, a Jewish concentration camp. However, just before Szpilman gets on the train, he is recognized by one of the officers, separated from his family, and pulled out of line–an act that saved his life. He would find later that his parents and siblings did not survive their time in the camp. Wladyslaw seeks help from various friends who all give him temporary shelter, but soon he has nowhere else to go. He finds himself living in abandoned buildings and eating whatever food he can find. One day he discovers a piano and cannot resist playing Chopin. A German military officer discovers him but instead of turning him in, he brings him food and clothing–another act that would save his life. When Szpilman is finally able to come out of hiding after the war, he discovers that the German military officer who helped him has been captured and is in a prisoner of war camp. However, Wladyslaw had never asked his name and was not able to find him until it was too late. The book ends with Szpilman resuming his live radio rendition of Chopin’s Nocturne in C#Minor. This story is incredibly sad, but one worth reading. And it’s available in SWAN.