Books and Film
Two recent English language books have focused on the Bielski story: Defiance (1993) by Nechama Tec and The Bielski Brothers (2004) by Peter Duffy. The group is also mentioned in numerous books about this period in history. A new book (January 2009) in Polish by two reporters from Gazeta Wyborcza, Odwet: Prawdziwa historia braci Bielskich (Revenge: The True Story of the Bielski Brothers) focuses on the larger political and historical context in which the partisans operated, specifically the fighting between Polish and Soviet resistance groups in the Kresy (former Eastern Poland) region. Fugitives of the Forest: The Heroic Story of Jewish Resistance and Survival During the Second World War, by Allan Levine (first published 1998, 2008 reissue, by Lyons Press), tells the story of Jewish fighters and refugees in forests across Europe, including the Bielski partisans.
In 2006, the History Channel aired a documentary titled The Bielski Brothers: Jerusalem In The Woods, written and directed by filmmaker Dean Ward.
An episode of the BBC series Who Do You Think You Are? featured UK television personality Natasha Kaplinsky discovering that her great uncle Ytsak Kaplinski was a member of the Bielski partisans. He survived the war and emigrated to South Africa.
The BBC series Ray Mears's Extreme Survival featured an episode about the Bielski partisans.
The feature film Defiance, co-written, produced and directed by Edward Zwick, was released nationwide on January 16, 2009. It stars Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, Jamie Bell and George MacKay as Tuvia, Zus, Asael, and Aron Bielski respectively. It opened to mixed reviews and raised questions about the roles various groups played during the war.
Read more about this topic: Bielski Partisans
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