Leslie Kleinman was born in 1929 to an Orthodox Romanian family. From the ghetto in his hometown Satu Mare, Leslie and his family were deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau, where only he and one sister survived. From there he was sent on two Death Marches, first to Oranienburg and then to Dachau. On the March to Dachau he was liberated by American troops and a solider arranged to send him to first to an American-run hospital and later to a monastery to recuperate. While at the monastery Leslie learned that his only surviving sister had died soon after liberation. Leslie discovered that the British government had agreed to take in 1,000 child survivors of the Holocaust and he joined the group that would eventually become known as ‘The Boys.’ Leslie went on to marry and settle in Canada, where he raised two children. He recently returned to the UK and now regularly shares his experiences in schools and colleges across the country.

Gitl Braun, the child of Holocaust survivors was born in Haifa in 1950. At the age of three, due to the failing health and extreme poverty of her parents, Gitl was moved to a local orphanage where she received a strictly religious upbringing. At eighteen she married a young Rabbinical scholar with whom she moved to the UK in 1973. Having raised her eight children in the orthodox community of Stamford Hill, in 2001, Gitl enrolled in a Fine Arts Programme at Central St. Martins. There she developed the unique and innovative techniques of sculpture and photography that would later win her widespread critical acclaim. Her works, many of which are rooted in her thwarted Jewish past, animate the dead voices of those left behind. Gitl Braun has exhibited internationally across the UK and the US and her work has appeared in numerous arts journals.

Jake Wallis Simons is a novelist, journalist and broadcaster. His most recent novel, The English German Girl — about the Kindertransport — was published by Polygon in April 2011, and was one of eight winners of the Fiction Uncovered competition. Described as one of Britian’s most compelling new voices, Jake blends meticulous research with powerful storytelling to evoke the often overlooked experience of those children who escaped to England leaving behind their families and loved ones. In this epic journey from heartbreak to hope that experience is captured beautifully. Jake will read from his and answer questions about his work. 

Eve Grubin’s book of poems, Morning Prayer, appeared in 2006 from Sheep Meadow Press. Her poems, characterized by a “spiritual and artistic discipline,” have appeared or are forthcoming in many literary journals and magazines, including The American Poetry Review, PN Review, The New Republic, Poetry International, Poetry Review, and Conjunctions. She currently teaches at New York University in London and is a tutor at the Poetry School and the poet in residence at the London School of Jewish Studies. Eve will read from and answer questions about her work.