Paper Tombs

Paper Tombs, Volume 1, is a scholarly work of history and social sciences that examines the role of yizker bikher, or memorial books, created by survivors of the Holocaust in Eastern Europe. Published in association with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, this text analyzes how these collaboratively written volumes served as vital tools for reclaiming memories of destroyed towns and murdered loved ones.

Jennifer Rich explores these sources within the realms of anthropology and religious groups studies to challenge the view that memorial books are merely nostalgic accounts. Paper Tombs demonstrates how these records provide critical insights into prewar Jewish life and the cruelty of the Nazi occupation. This study of Jewish history and cultural anthropology repositions these forgotten volumes as essential resources for understanding the diversity and devastation of Eastern European Jewish communities.