Summary of Heather Dune Macadam & Caroline Moorehead's 999

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

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#1 The rumor began as a hunch. There was a sick feeling in the stomach, but it was still just a rumor. No one could believe that the government would take teenage girls.

#2 The town crier made an announcement on Saturday morning, telling all Jewish girls age 16 and older to report to the town hall for medical inspections. The blizzard didn’t help matters.

#3 When it came to the treatment of Jews in Slovakia, the government seemed to be trying to surpass the Germans. They passed laws that stunted the education of Jews, and they were not allowed to finish high school.

#4 The world was changing because of girls, but not in the way that people thought. The rumor circulating through the towns and villages of Slovakia was that the government wanted to take teenage girls to work service.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Mar 25, 2022
• ISBN: 9781669372387

IRB Media

With IRB books, you can get the key takeaways and analysis of a book in 15 minutes. We read every chapter, identify the key takeaways and analyze them for your convenience.

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Insights from Chapter 1

#1

The rumor began as a hunch. There was a sick feeling in the stomach, but it was still just a rumor. No one could believe that the government would take teenage girls.

#2

The town crier made an announcement on Saturday morning, telling all Jewish girls age 16 and older to report to the town hall for medical inspections. The blizzard didn’t help matters.

#3

When it came to the treatment of Jews in Slovakia, the government seemed to be trying to surpass the Germans. They passed laws that stunted the education of Jews, and they were not allowed to finish high school.

#4

The world was changing because of girls, but not in the way that people thought. The rumor circulating through the towns and villages of Slovakia was that the government wanted to take teenage girls to work service.

Insights from Chapter 2

#1

On a typical market day, Edith and Lea would go to the town center with a basket between them and do the shopping for their grandmother, Babi. Today was not like other days, as everyone was heading to the market to see if the town crier had any addenda to Saturday’s proclamation.

#2

In fact, the girls were soon to be married off to the boys they had met during the blizzard. The girls took a quick detour to Gross Street, which was filled with the children and grandchildren of the lumber merchant Chaim Gross.

#3

The Gross family was not the only Jewish family in Slovakia to have sent their daughters to safety. Many Polish Jews had sent their daughters to the relative safety of Slovakia, where Jews still had some rights.

#4

The town of Humenné was named after the Slavic word humen, which means backyard. It was a big family-oriented town, and everyone knew each other.

#5

The Friedmans were not close friends with the Beakers, because Emmanuel and Kalman had competed for the same woman. After their marriage, Edith’s mother would not speak to Margie’s father except during Kol Nidre prayers.

#6

The town crier read the proclamation out loud twice. It stated that all unmarried girls between the ages of sixteen and thirty-six had to register at the high school for a health examination on March 20 and commit to three months of government work service.

#7