THE SOCIAL EDGE INTERVIEW: HISTORIAN MARK KLEMPNER
by Gerry McCarthy
Mark Klempner is a folklorist and oral historian. Ten years ago he sought out some of the last surviving Dutch rescuers of Jewish children to better understand how and why they made their courageous choices. The result of this research is his new book The Heart Has Reasons: Holocaust Rescuers and Their Stories of Courage. It was recently published by the Pilgrim Press and is distributed in Canada by Northstone Publishing.
Klempner grew up in New York. He attended Cornell University and won a J. William Fulbright Fellowship. He received a Masters degree in folklore from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
For over 20 years, Klempner worked as a professional musician. As a studio guitarist in Los Angeles he worked with many recording artists, including Luther Vandross, Holly Near, and pianist David Benoit.
Klempner’s work has appeared in numerous publications, including the National Catholic Reporter and Tikkun. He has also been a featured commentator on National Public Radio’s Morning Edition. I reached him in Costa Rica to speak about his new book.
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