Hero • Martyr • Poet
The
inspiring story of a remarkable life cut short.
“I don’t think Hannah wanted
to die for the sake of having her memory exalted in history or
to prove herself equal to a romantic image she conceived for
herself. Her purpose wasn’t to die. She died for her
life’s purpose.”
—U.S. Senator John McCain, in Why Courage Matters
Hannah Senesh, poet and Israel’s
national heroine, has come to be seen as a symbol of Jewish
heroism. Safe in Palestine during World War II, she volunteered
for a mission to help rescue fellow Jews in her native Hungary.
She was captured by the Nazis, endured imprisonment and
torture, and was finally executed at the age of twenty-three.
Like Anne Frank, she kept a diary from the
time she was thirteen. This new edition brings together not
only the widely read and cherished diary, but many of
Hannah’s poems and letters, memoirs written by
Hannah’s mother, accounts by parachutists who accompanied
Hannah on her fateful mission, and insightful material not
previously published in English.
Described by a fellow parachutist as a
“spiritual girl guided almost by mysticism,”
Hannah’s life has something of value to teach everyone.
Now the subject of a feature-length documentary, Blessed Is the
Match: The Life and Death of Hannah Senesh, Hannah’s
words and actions will inspire people from each generation to
follow their own inner voices, just as she followed hers.
“A powerful book by a young woman
who was and remains a true hero to many people. She had much to
teach the world when she lived. She has even more to teach it
now.”
—Deborah
E. Lipstadt, PhD, director, Tam
Institute for Jewish Studies, Emory University
“Her life is an offering, her words
a poem, her story an inspiration.” —Elie Wiesel
“Contributes to [your] understanding
of and appreciation for Hannah Senesh’s intrepid
valor.” —Jewish Journal
Eitan Senesh is
Hannah Senesh’s nephew and chairman of The Hannah Senesh
Legacy Foundation, whose aim is to perpetuate the memory of
Hannah Senesh and her comrades.
Marge Piercy is
the author of sixteen novels including Gone to Soldiers; He, She and It; Three Women; and most recently The
Third Child. Her memoir is called Sleeping with Cats. She
has also written sixteen volumes of poetry including The Art of Blessing the Day: Poems with a Jewish
Theme and most recently Colors Passing Through Us. She received an honorary doctorate degree from
Hebrew Union College for her contributions to Jewish culture
and liturgy.
Roberta Grossman, director of Blessed Is the Match: The Life and Death of Hannah Senesh, is a producer at Katahdin Productions, a nonprofit documentary company based in Berkeley and Los Angeles, California. For more information or to purchase Blessed Is the Match visit: www.blessedisthematch.com.
