Yesterday, Wednesday 4 February, former Deputy Director of the Leo Baeck Institute London, Kinga Bloch, led a Library of Lost Books Search Day as part of this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day event at the University of Sussex.
The session, titled ‘Forensics at the Library – What Can Books Tell Us About the Holocaust?’, invited pupils from Eastbourne Academy and their teachers to explore how library collections can reveal hidden stories of the past.
The workshop offered a hands-on opportunity for these young participants – described by Kinga as ‘a group of very engaged young citizen scientists’ – to investigate the physical and historical traces left within books once owned, read, or censored during the Holocaust. Participants also had the chance to view the project’s posters and notebooks, which were displayed and shared throughout the day.
We extend heartfelt thanks to Kinga Bloch for her hard work, and to Professor Gideon Reuveni and Diana Franklin for kindly allowing us to use the Weidenfeld Institute’s Library collection for this important search day.
Our gratitude also goes to the wonderful students and teachers from Eastbourne Academy for their curiosity, thoughtfulness, and commitment to remembering through learning.
