Author’s Note
The historical facts on which this story is based come from numerous sources — archival material, encyclopedia entries, newspaper articles, books and studies — but the most important source was Milan Koljanin’s monograph on the German Camp at the Belgrade Fairgrounds, published by Institut za savremenu istoriju, Belgrade, 1992, and the study by Christopher Browning, ‘The final solution in Serbia — the Judenlager at the Fairgrounds’, published in Serbian translation in Zbornik 6, SJOJ, Belgrade, 1992. A story, however, is never history, and it respects the facts only insofar as those facts suit the story.
I owe a special debt of gratitude to Milica Mihailovic, curator at the Jewish Historical Museum in Belgrade, who kindly searched for answers to all my questions. Her suggestions were always valuable.
I am also grateful to the Levin Smolar Foundation whose grant allowed me to work without interruption or hindrance.