Story of a Secret State: My Report to the World - Jan Karski Audiobook

Written by Jan Karski
Read by Janusz Guttner
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 64 Kbps

Story of a Secret State: My Report to the World
Penguin Modern Classics
By: Jan Karski
Narrated by: Janusz Guttner
Length: 18 hrs and 15 mins
Release date: 06-24-11
Unabridged Audiobook
Language: English
Publisher: Penguin Audio

Publisher’s summary

I do not pretend to have given an exhaustive picture of the Polish Underground, its organisation and its activities. Because of our methods, I believe that there is no one today who could give an all-embracing recital…This book is a purely personal story, my story.

Jan Karski’s Second World War memoir is a heroic act of witness: the courageous testimony of a man who risked everything for his country. First published in 1944, the book became an instant best seller in the US while the war still raged in Europe. At times overwhelming in the details it reveals of the suffering of ordinary people, it is an unforgettable and deeply affecting record of brutality, courage, and survival under conditions of extreme bleakness.

During the first four years of World War II, Karski worked as a messenger for the underground, risking his life in secret missions. He was captured, tortured, rescued, smuggled through a tunnel into the Warsaw ghetto and, finally, disguised himself as a guard to infiltrate a Nazi death camp. Then, travelling across occupied Europe to England, with his eye-witness report smuggled on microfilm in the handle of a razor, he became the first man to tell the Allies about the Holocaust - only to be ignored.

©1944 Jan Karski (P)2011 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“His account of his missions is an electrifying tale of false identities, near captures, spies and secret film capsules … in human terms, Karski’s account is invaluable.” ( Daily Telegraph)
“It deserves its status as a Penguin Classic, not only because it is a great historic document, but also because it’s a cracking good read: Karski’s adventures are worthy of the wildest spy thriller.” ( Nigel Jones, Telegraph)
“The bravery of the man who risked all to tell the world about the Holocaust is truly staggering … an extraordinary testament to Man’s inhumanity to Man, and the even more remarkable courage required to resist it.” ( Ben McIntyre, The Times)
“Story of a Secret State is now viewed as a classic insider’s account of the Resistance in occupied Europe…After all the harrowing descriptions of Holocaust horrors there have been over the years from survivors of Auschwitz, Belsen, and Ravensbruck, Karski’s vivid account of what he saw back in 1942 is still deeply moving. We feel his shock and incredulity that this could really be happening in 20th century ‘civilised’ Europe.” ( Tony Rennell, Daily Mail)