MACMILLAN Commemorating the Children of World War II in Poland: Combative Remembrance

This book explores contemporary debates surrounding Poland’s 'war children', that is the young victims, participants and survivors of the Second World War. It focuses on the period after 2001, which saw the emergence of the two main political parties that were to dictate the tone of the politics of memory for more than a decade. The book shows that 2001 marked a caesura in Poland’s post-Communist history, as this was when the past took center stage in Polish political life. It argues that during this period a distinct culture of commemoration emerged in Poland – one that was not only governed by what the electorate wanted to hear and see, but also fueled by emotions.  Review “Thoroughly researched, Stańczyk’s book provides excellent surveys of the history of the Łodź camp for Polish Christian juvenile offenders, the Warsaw Uprising, the Majdanek camp and the Gdańsk Kindertransport which can be used as precious educational tools for students of Holocaust studies and East/Central European history.” (Dana Mihăilescu, Slavonic and East European Review SEER, Vol. 98 (2), April, 2020) Review “Stańczyk’s book can be read as a general introduction to present-day Polish culture, skillfully sketching recent trends and tensions. In this view, Polish remembrance becomes a touchstone of the contemporary cultural processes of the post-communist state, and the author’s informative accounts of contemporary Polish debates support this possible reading. ... Stańczyk’s expert diagnosis of memory culture, rooted in observations of local projects, discussions, and activities, naturally provokes questions concerning memory activism.” (Maria Kobielska, hsozkult.de, 2021) “In each chapter, the author reviews a selected case study in a novel, thought-provoking manner combining very productive ethnographic methods and memory studies. Importantly, Stańczyk offers a fresh perspective on the war not just by applying a new method, but also by touching upon subjects that are relatively unexplored in (particularly non-Polish) historiography. ... Here is a publication which provides an essential point of reference for the increasingly popular studies of wartime experience and children’s memory.” (Lidia Zessin-Jurek, Acta Poloniae Historica 122, 2020) From the Back Cover This book explores contemporary debates surrounding Poland’s 'war children', that is the young victims, participants and survivors of the Second World War. It focuses on the period after 2001, which saw the emergence of the two main political parties that were to dictate the tone of the politics of memory for more than a decade. The book shows that 2001 marked a caesura in Poland’s post-Communist history, as this was when the past took center stage in Polish political life. It argues that during this period a distinct culture of commemoration emerged in Poland – one that was not only governed by what the electorate wanted to hear and see, but also fueled by emotions.  About the Author Ewa Stańczyk is Lecturer in East European Studies at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.