TELL THEM WE REMEMBER

If you can't get to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., you must read this book. Set up very much like the museum itself, with the same subject divisions, Tell Them We Remember is an armchair tour. It covers ``Jewish Life in Europe Before the Holocaust,'' ``The Survivors,'' and the horrifying steps in between. Brief chapters concisely describe some aspect of the rise of Hitler in Germany, the so-called ``Final Solution,'' and the attempts to rescue Jews, resist the Nazis, and finally liberate the victims. Although well- written and organized, this history stands out because of its generous use of the museum's large collection of photographs. In them Jewish families are not just shown as victims but also in the fullness of their lives before the Third Reich. Pictures of emaciated survivors of death camps are juxtaposed with photographs of those same people smiling and playing, showing that the skeletal, sexless beings were once beautiful men and women. These are perhaps the most poignant images portrayed to personalize an event so terrible that it can be difficult to grasp. Holocaust Museum staff member Bachrach also follows individual stories throughout the book in the margins. Young people's lives are traced from before Hitler to after the war, although some of their stories end abruptly in the camps and elsewhere. Even if you can get to the museum, this history is an invaluable addition to any library. (Chronology; glossary; suggestions for further reading; 80 b&w, 10 color photos) (Nonfiction. 10+)