10 literary works on World War II

The Pianist by Wladyslaw Szpilman. [Photo/Agencies]

Title: The Pianist

Author: Wladyslaw Szpilman

Country: Poland

Published: 1988

The Pianist is a memoir of a Polish composer of Jewish origin Wladyslaw Szpilman and written and elaborated by Jerzy Waldorff, who was a friend of Szpilman.

The story centers around Szpilman's life in the slums of Poland during World War II, his separation from his family and how he struggled to survive. The protagonist met a German officer one day in search of food, and under the officer's orders, Szpilman was forced to perform a piece by Chopin. The officer, touched by Szpilman's talents, decided to help him find a place to hide and provided food and clothing to help him live. After the war was over, Szpilman did his best to find the whereabouts of the German officer, but was shocked when he heard the officer was suspected of being a spy and died in captivity.