A child of Holocaust survivors grapples with his parents’ untold stories and their profound effect on the course of his extraordinary life.

Growing up in Toronto, Sam Chaiton and his brothers knew their parents had been prisoners in Bergen-Belsen. But what their parents wouldn’t share about their history — including the fact they had also been in Auschwitz — ended up shaping their children’s lives.

We Used to Dream of Freedom touches on the biggest concerns of our time: what a family is or could be, about the psychology of survivors and the impact of survivor silence, about the responsibility of second generations from traumatized communities to share knowledge drawn from their own histories to help alleviate the suffering of others. Irreverent, moving, and tragic, often all at once, at its heart is a story of a man who disappeared on his family, his quest to understand why he had to leave, and the long-overdue discovery about his parents that brought him back.

Sam Chaiton, the middle son of Holocaust survivors, is one of the Canadians who helped Rubin Carter gain his freedom. Co-author of the international bestseller Lazarus and the Hurricane, he is portrayed in the film The Hurricane by Liev Schreiber. A founder of Innocence Canada, Sam lives with his partner in Toronto.

Sam Chaiton's profile page

We children of Holocaust survivors live precariously, with so much trauma ingrained in us, and so many reasons to somehow break free and strive for success. While my survivor parents were adamant about telling their war stories incessantly, many others, like Sam Chaiton's parents, insisted on keeping their stories a secret. We Used To Dream of Freedom paints a poignant portrait of the devastating damage mystery and dark secrets can do to family ties. Chaiton's fearless and moving memoir is a precious gift to anyone who yearns for a better understanding of intergenerational trauma and the path to true liberation.

Jeanne Beker, author, fashion editor, and television personality

No two Holocaust survivors’ stories are alike. Each is unique unto itself. As Sam Chaiton’s revealing, artfully written, and timely memoir makes clear, this is equally true for survivors’ children raised in the shadow of the Holocaust. Chaiton’s second-generation story, singularly his own, is a conversation starter that deserves to be read.

Harold Troper, co-author of None Is Too Many: Canada and the Jews of Europe, 1933–1948