Andrzej Szczypiorski was a Polish journalist and novelist whose work frequently explored the complex Polish-German relations and the moral dilemmas of recent history. He published over twenty volumes of novels, essays, and reportage, examining the attitudes of various groups during the Nazi occupation and his country's political conflicts. Szczypiorski viewed literature as a mission to serve society, and his writings often acted as a bridge between Polish, German, and Jewish cultures, earning him recognition as a moral authority.
This is the story of the thirty-six hours that follow Irma Seidenman`s arrest and the events that lead to her dramatic rescue as the last of Warsaw`s Jews are about to meet their death. A handful of people conspire in Irma`s escape; in the author`s masterful hands they form a pattern of intersecting lives ranging backward and forward through time.