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'Life can be beautiful if you make it beautiful. It is up to you. Eddie Jaku always considered himself a German first, a Jew second. He was proud of his country. But all of that changed on 9 November 1938, when he was beaten, arrested and taken to a concentration camp. Over the next seven years, Eddie faced unimaginable horrors every day, first in Buchenwald, then in Auschwitz, then on the Nazi death march. He lost family, friends, his country. Because he survived, Eddie made the vow to smile every day. He pays tribute to those who were lost by telling his story, sharing his wisdom and living his best possible life. He now believes he is the 'happiest man on earth'. Published as Eddie turns 100, this is a powerful, heartbreaking and ultimately hopeful memoir of how happiness can be found even in the darkest of times.' (Publication summary)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Sound recording.
- Large print.
Works about this Work
-
Bearing Witness : A Radical Form of Humanity
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , October no. 425 2020; (p. 35)
— Review of The Happiest Man on Earth 2020 single work autobiography'Eddie Jaku looks out benevolently from his memoir’s cover, signs of living etched across his face. The dapper centenarian displays another mark, one distinctly at odds with his beatific expression and the title’s claim: the tattoo on his forearm from Auschwitz II-Birkenau. Less discernible is the badge affixed to his lapel bearing the Hebrew word zachor; ‘remember’. The Happiest Man on Earth blazes with the pursuit of memory, of bearing witness, but it is also determinedly oriented towards the future, its dedication inscribed to ‘future generations’.' (Introduction)
-
Bearing Witness : A Radical Form of Humanity
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , October no. 425 2020; (p. 35)
— Review of The Happiest Man on Earth 2020 single work autobiography'Eddie Jaku looks out benevolently from his memoir’s cover, signs of living etched across his face. The dapper centenarian displays another mark, one distinctly at odds with his beatific expression and the title’s claim: the tattoo on his forearm from Auschwitz II-Birkenau. Less discernible is the badge affixed to his lapel bearing the Hebrew word zachor; ‘remember’. The Happiest Man on Earth blazes with the pursuit of memory, of bearing witness, but it is also determinedly oriented towards the future, its dedication inscribed to ‘future generations’.' (Introduction)
Awards
- 2021 shortlisted Booksellers Choice Award — Adult Nonfiction Book of the Year
- 2021 shortlisted Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) — Audiobook of the year
- 2021 longlisted Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) — The Matt Richell Award for New Writer
- 2021 winner Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) — Australian Biography of the Year
- 2021 shortlisted Indie Awards — Nonfiction