Commissioned by her children, Beyond Courageous - The Extraordinary Life of Zsuzsanna Kolmann (1924 - 2019) is a testament to one woman’s strength and valour.

Zsuzsanna (Suzanne) Kolmann and her twin brother George grew up in a large loving family and enjoyed a privileged childhood in Budapest. In 1943, her mother escaped from a cattle car heading towards Auschwitz and Suzanne ran away from a labour camp. They hid in a hospital in Budapest, until in January 1945, they were taken to a basement in the Arrow Cross headquarters where they were subjected to unspeakable horrors. Then, they were marched naked in the snow to the banks of the Danube River. They stood holding hands before being shot into the river, along with many other Jews. Suzanne’s beloved mother was killed but, miraculously, Suzanne survived and was rescued from the freezing water and taken to the ghetto where she was reunited with her grandmother, the last family member still alive (or so she thought). Just two days later, the Russians arrived to liberate the ghetto.

Soon after the war ended, Suzanne married another survivor. As they walked to their wedding ceremony, her beloved twin returned from Germany, still wearing his concentration camp uniform.

As the communists took over Hungary, Suzanne and her husband moved to Beechworth in regional Victoria. They raised two children, but, ever fearful, hid their Jewish heritage from them. Eventually the family moved to Melbourne, where they ran two iconic coffee lounges for decades.

After retiring, Suzanne felt ready to overcome her deep fear and provide her testimonies. She devoted the rest of her life to Holocaust remembrance work and seeking justice alongside Nazi hunter Efraim Zoureff. 

Writers & Editors: Georgie Raik-Allen & Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Trisha Garner

This book is a private publication and is not available for purchase.

As a young Jewish boy in Poland during the Second World War, Mark Spigelman narrowly escaped capture by the Nazis by posing as a little German girl and hiding alone in a neighbour’s attic. As the danger grew, Mark and his parents found refuge in a garbage dump and then a farmhouse next door to a notorious concentration camp.

Many decades on, it is finally time for Mark to share his remarkable story with his beloved grandaughters.

This beautiful book was written and illustrated by Mark’s wife, Rachel Spigelman.

Editors: Georgie Raik-Allen and Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Marianna Berek-Lewis

Blue Eyes Wide Open is available for purchase at Booktopia, Amazon and other online bookstores

Gentleman Jockey: The Life and Times of Frank Dempsey. Frank was a legendary Australian jockey who made a name for himself in the early twentieth century. Known for his gentlemanly conduct on and off the track, Frank won the hearts of racing enthusiasts throughout the country and internationally. His story, written with great affection by his grandson, provides a fascinating insight into the early history of horseracing in Victoria. The magnificent, art deco-inspired design that features a flip book animation of a galloping horse. 

Authors: Michael Arendson

Editors: Georgie Raik-Allen & Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Trisha Garner

Magid: A Remarkable Legacy is 400 pages long and features glorious images and stories that span Ira and Isador’s extraordinary life in China and Australia. From leading the Shanghai Jewish community to inventing Twisties, developing Greater Melbourne and becoming major benefactors of countless educational, artistic and religious institutions. whilst overseeing the absorption of Russian and Ethiopian migrants in Israel… the impact of this remarkable couple cannot be overstated. Their legacy is preserved in this stunning, limited-edition book that will be treasured by family, friends and future generations of the Magid family.

Authors: Romy Moshinsky & Jacki Goodridge. Foreword by Sam Lipski

Editors: Georgie Raik-Allen & Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Trisha Garner

In his first memoir, Goodbye Shanghai, Sam Moshinsky shared his memories of growing up in the exotic city of Shanghai during a period of war and political turmoil. In 1951, at the age of seventeen, Sam migrated to Melbourne as the vanguard of his family. In Hello Australia, Sam reveals his early struggles to adapt to Australian life, his eventual path to professional success, and his lifelong commitment to supporting communal organisations.

Writer: Sam Moshinsky

Editor: Romy Moshinsky

Editorial Assistance: Georgie Raik-Allen

Design: Jacki Starr

EBook and hardback editions available for purchase at Booktopia, Amazon and other online bookstores

Trevor Cohen’s The Greatest Gift uncovers the remarkable 200-year story of his Jewish family and its uniquely Australian journey, from convicts to prosperity.

Cohen’s vivid tales of his family’s history are complemented by his significant collection of photographs, documents and memorabilia, which help bring the history of European settlement in Australia, and the development of Melbourne from a settler-colony to a metropolis, to life.

This book is available for purchase at www.thegreatestgift.info

The second, linen-bound edition of The Greatest Gift was created as a priceless gift for close members of the author's family.

Author: Trevor Cohen

Editors: Georgie Raik-Allen & Romy Moshinsky

Editorial assistant: Annette Nankin

Designer: Trisha Garner

Fortune Favours the Brave is the story of an Australian entrepreneur with fashion in his DNA. In his canded memoir, Carl Dowd shares ripping yarns about his ancestors, and about what happens when you mix great tenacity with the courage to pursue challenging opportunities.

Writer: Carl Dowd with Georgie Raik-Allen

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Editorial Assistance: Romy Moshinsky

Design: Marianna Berek-Lewis

In his candid memoir, Sam Gance, the son of Holocaust survivors, and co-founder of Chemist Warehouse, shares his family history, details of growing up behind a milk bar in North Melbourne, and the staggering growth of an Australian retail empire.

Writer: Sam Gance with Romy Moshinsky

Editor: Romy Moshinsky

Editorial Assistance: Georgie Raik-Allen

Design: Hayman Design

In Tales of Your Ancestors, Geoff Allen reveals the historical roots of his grandchildren’s fascinating multicultural heritage. He traces the stories of their ancestors from Britain, Eastern Europe, Africa, India and China, and their travels to Melbourne from the earliest days of European settlement. In doing, so he provides deep insight into how his extended family connects with the grand sweep of modern history.

Writer: Geoff Allen

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Editorial Assistance: Romy Moshinsky

Design: Jacki Starr

For 40 years, French Holocaust survivor, Sam Braun, remained silent about what he went through as a teenager in Auschwitz and during the 1945 Nazi Death March. He didn’t even tell his own children about his horrific experiences. But, from the 1990s until his death in 2011, he broke his silence to pursue a major ‘work of remembrance’, talking to thousands of students about the barbarity he witnessed and the lessons he learned.

This book is the transcript of an extraordinarily candid series of interviews Sam gave to philosophy teacher, Stéphane Guinoiseau. In Not a Soul Would have Believed Me, So I Kept Quiet, Sam shares his story and his message of respect and faith in humankind to provide hope for a peaceful future.

The paperback edition is available through online retailers.

Originally published in French by Editions Albin Michel - Paris 2008

For more information about Sam Braun, see www.lesenfantsdesam.fr

Text: Sam Braun with Stéphane Guinoiseau

Translator: Victoria Taylor

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Editorial Assistance: Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Anne Stanhope

When the global pandemic hit Melbourne in March 2020, Frances Prince resolved to spend her afternoons in lockdown reading to David, her 95-year-old father. The books they explored together revived David’s memories of his own Holocaust experiences and his life as a Polish Jewish university student in postwar Munich. As the days passed, what began as a reading project to fill the time, turned into an unexpected and rewarding journey of discovery.

Writer: Frances Prince

Editors: Georgie Raik-Allen & Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Marianna Berek-Lewis

The paperback edition is available for purchase from online retailers and www.francesprince.com

Click here to watch the book launch hosted by the Jewish Holocaust Centre and featuring a fascinating discussion between Frances Prince and Joanna Murray-Smith

Our Journey is a fascinating memoir that traces the author’s life from Budapest to Bondi and beyond.

This is a private publication shared with family and close friends. The author has chosen not to disclose her name online.

Editor: Romy Moshinsky

Editorial Assistance: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

In Malou: French Resistance Fighter, Michele Huppert details the role her mother played in the liberation of France during World War II, including transporting coded messages to operatives hiding in the forest, smuggling revolvers to Resistance assassins and preparing political prisoners for jailbreak. At just three years of age, Michele accompanied her mother during many secret operations, providing the perfect ruse for SS officers and enemy collaborators searching for Resistance fighters.

Writer: Michele Huppert

Editors: Georgie Raik-Allen & Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Marianna Berek-Lewis

This hardback edition is available for purchase from online retailers

Click here to watch the online book launch hosted by the Jewish Holocaust Centre

Under a Lucky Star recounts Josh Pila’s inspirational story through the unimaginable horrors of the Holocaust, the deprivations of post-war Europe, the pioneering spirit of the newly created State of Israel, and the relative tranquility of life in Melbourne, Australia.

Josh’s journey tracks a universal Jewish narrative of persecution and redemption. A combination of tenacity, resilience, hope and a liberal dose of luck took Josh from the turbulent depths of the twentieth century to a peaceful life, filled with love, laughter, success and fulfilment.

Writer: Ron Pila

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Editorial Assistance: Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Trisha Garner

Available for sale at The Avenue Bookstore in Elsternwick & Jeffreys Books in Malvern

Also available through online retailers including Booktopia, Amazon and Book Depository.

Peter Avery has always had a thirst for adventure. In his beautifully designed memoir, wrapped in sailcloth, Peter shares details of his intrepid travels, his love of sailing and motorbikes, his creative passion projects and his commitment to protecting the environment. Peter also delves into his rich family history and honours the wonderful characters he has met on his life journey.

Writers: Peter Avery with Romy Moshinsky

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

Leon Velik was in his mid-nineties when he embarked on the significant task of writing his memoir. In Looking Forward, Leon Velik shares the details of his fascinating life and the wisdom he accumulated along the way.

Writers: Leon Velik with Georgie Raik-Allen

Editors: Georgie Raik-Allen & Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Trisha Garner

Thrice Told: The Psychological Evolution of the Artist Peter Trusler is an epic work. Peter Trusler is a masterful Australian artist best known for his wildlife art and scientifically rigorous reconstructions of prehistoric fauna. The book is a psychological exploration of his life and art of as told from his own evolved perspective and that of the two psychologists who worked with him over the course of several decades.

The book itself is a work of art, housed in a die-cut slipcase that hints at the self portrait of the artist adorning the front cover.

Writers: Peter Trusler, Dr Sandra E.S Neil & Dr Robert L.N Silverberg

Editors: Dr Simonne Neil, Romy Moshinsky & Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Samantha Lynch, Hayman Design

Publishers: Real Film and Publishing with The Satir Centre of Australia

This striking book celebrates Ten Cubed, a remarkable ten-year project undertaken by Dianne Gringlas and Ada Moshinsky. The book records each stage of the journey, from conception to building the gallery, acquiring the collection and staging the exhibitions. The 300+ artworks that form the collection are all featured in this stunning publication.

Available for sale: Art Ink

Interviews: Robyn Whitehouse

Foreword: Robert & Frances Lindsay

Editors: Romy Moshinsky & Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Jill Clinch, Hayman Design

In Unfinished Business, David Danziger shares the lessons and valuable insights he has learned along his professional trajectory - from working as a storeman at his family’s humble haberdashery business in Cape Town to managing some of the leading wholesale and retail companies in South Africa and Australia.

An eBook version is available online.

Interviews: Dr Simonne Neil

Editors: Georgie Raik-Allen & Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Jacki Starr

In this moving memoir, Ann Bennett chronicles the life of her father, Sir Leo Curtis, who came to Australia as an orphan at the age of 12 and went on to become an iconic figure in the business world and the lord mayor of Melbourne in 1963. Ann’s mother, Lady Elvie Curtis, renowned for her style and philanthropy, also had a powerful influence on Ann’s life. This book is an evocative account of growing up in one of Melbourne’s most prominent and influential families.

Writer: Ann Bennett

Co-authors: Romy Moshinsky & Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

Melekh Ravitsh - The eccentric outback quest of an urbane Yiddish poet from Poland, is a fascinating and beautiful book about art and adventure, Jewish history, First Nation Australians, and the plight of refugees in the modern world.

In 1933, as fascism spread its terrifying tentacles across Europe, the Yiddish poet Melekh Ravitsh traversed the Australian outback from Adelaide to Darwin in search of a homeland for persecuted Jews. On this romantic and optimistic enterprise, he took 90 Box Brownie photographs, annotated in Yiddish. Decades later, Ravitsh’s son, the artist Yosl Bergner, was inspired by his father’s photographs to make a series of paintings called Melekh Ravitsh in the Kimberleys.

This creative, wildly imaginative father and son are linked in their dream of a better world, and in their prescient recognition of the similar fates of Indigenous Australians and persecuted European Jews. With haunting reference to the current refugee crisis, the author Anna Epstein has uncovered Ravitsh’s daring and exuberant adventure, in her own and in Ravitsh’s words. Ravitsh’s fascinating photographs of the 1930s outback have been miraculously magnified. In vivid colour reproductions of Bergner’s paintings and in his writing, the story is refracted through the son’s wry, later-life view of his father. But although Bergner saw his father’s adventure as a fantasy, his quest demonstrates a profound understanding of refugee reality.

Available from The Avenue Bookstore and Readings

Writer: Anna Epstein

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Editorial assistance: Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Trisha Garner

This book is a selection of anecdotes and lessons Paul Sundberg learned from playing professional cricket and enjoying a successful career in the corporate world. His musings have been brought to life by Andrew Weldon’s brilliantly funny illustrations.

Writer: Paul Sundberg with Romy Moshinsky & Simonne Neil

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Illustrator: Andrew Weldon

Designer: Trisha Garner

.

Ruth Hampel was born in Chemnitz, Germany in 1930. Devoted communists, her family moved to Leningrad to participate in the creation of a ‘workers’ paradise’. When her much-loved father disappeared during Russia’s Great Purge and her mother was falsely accused of treason, Ruth’s life fell into turmoil. Branded a traitor at the age of seven, Ruth managed to survive, despite the ongoing threats of Stalinism, war and starvation.

In her remarkable memoir, Ruth shares what it means to be a member of ‘Stalin’s lost generation’, and how finding love helped her overcome a childhood steeped in fear and sorrow.

Writers: Ruth Hampel with Romy Moshinsky

Editors: Romy Moshinsky & Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

Philip Munz wrote this memoir for his family. The title Butter Side Up reflects Philip’s optimistic and pragmatic outlook. Despite the challenges of his early life, he continues to celebrate survival and good fortune.

Writer: Philip Munz

Editors: Romy Moshinsky and Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

A stunning leather-bound book, which celebrates the life and times of an extraordinary man.

Interviews: Michelle Schwarz

Editors: Romy Moshinsky & Bev Jacobs

Editorial assistance: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Jacki Starr

The son of a Methodist minister, Geoff Allen grew up in a series of Victorian country parsonages before moving to working class Richmond and the seedy St Kilda of the 1950s. He engaged fully as a student at Wesley College and University of Melbourne where he underwent a crisis of faith which altered the trajectory of his life. 

In On The Record, Geoff Allen provides an insider’s expose of political manoeuvrings and parliamentary carousing at the heart of the Australian government during the 1970s when he worked as senior advisor to the treasurer and leader of the opposition. 

Considered a pioneer in the field of business-government relations in Australia, Geoff recounts the strategies and negotiations that brought Australia’s largest companies together to form the powerful Business Council of Australia during an era of economic reform in the 1980s.

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen 

Editorial assistance: Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Sandy Cull

Alegria tells the story of one family’s culinary journey through the decades and across continents. It forms one of the many threads of Jewish history, marked by migration and dispersion. Karen Liberman traces the stories and cooking traditions of her Sephardi and Ashkenazi ancestors starting with her great-grandparents in Morocco, Russia and Poland. In Karen’s family, as in many Jewish families, preparing meals plays an important part in preserving identity and memories of a past life. Each chapter in this book honours and celebrates her family’s journey and the treasured recipes collected along the way.

Available from The Avenue Bookstore and Readings

Writer: Karen Liberman

Editors: Romy Moshinsky & Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

Yitzchak Meir Kluska wrote this diary during the years 1943 and 1944 whilst hiding from the Nazis in the foundation of a chimney hearth of a Polish neighbour.

The tiny bunker was 2 metres wide, 1.8 metres long and 3 metres high.

He shared the crowded space with his brother Chaskel and five other Jews from Jedrzejow for 694 days before finally being liberated by the Russian army in January 1945.

This extraordinary publication contains two books within one case: the handwritten Yiddish diary on the right and the edited translation on the left. The English version features a moving prologue written by daughter Genia Janover and an epilogue that reveals what happened to Yitzchak Meir and the other survivors once they emerged from hiding.

The original diary has been donated to the Jewish Holocaust Museum and Research Centre in Melbourne.

This book was shortlisted for the Australian Book Design Association (ABDA) 'Best Designed Non-Fiction Book of the Year 2019’

Editors: Georgie Raik-Allen & Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Trisha Garner

The New Sun is a magical tale spun by the late Kristina Dusseldorp with artist Bruce Goold supporting her words with images. It was a labour of love, created over many years that has been brought to life by her loving niece, Teya Dusseldorp.

Writer: Kirstina Dusseldorp (1948 - 2007)

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen 

Production: Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Trisha Garner

In this beautifully illustrated memoir, Michael David Southwick traces his family history and shares details of his own life, including his experiences in the Australian Army during World War II and the decades he shared with his beloved wife.

Continuity preserves the traditions of the past in the hope they will continue to be celebrated by future generations.

Writer: Michael David Southwick with Romy Moshinsky

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

A book of tributes celebrating 70 years of love, laughter and the law (+ bow ties!)

Editors: Romy Moshinsky & Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

This stunning linen book is housed in a bold slipcase and features 100 interviews with the people who define D.B's worlds of: family, friends, fashion and (of course) footy

Interviewer: Elizabeth Briskin

Editors: Romy Moshinsky & Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Samantha Lynch, Hayman Design

A stunning book filled with loving tributes from friends and family in  celebration of Jeanne Pratt's 80 years of Passion and Style

Editor: Romy Moshinsky

Editorial assistance: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

A surprise 50th birthday book that celebrates Nato and reflects his love of the water.

Editors: Romy Moshinsky & Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Samantha Lynch, Hayman Design

During countless voyages transporting cargo and passengers across the high seas, Captain Henry Leighton confronted stowaways, scared off pirates, navigated turbulent oceans and explored foreign ports in far-flung lands. He also survived when The Tresillian sank in the North Atlantic Ocean during a raging storm.

Seadog will appeal to adventurers, history enthusiasts, armchair travellers, and anyone who has ever responded to the siren song of the sea.

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen 

Editorial assistance: Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Sandy Cull

Here Lived (Hier Wohnte) is the extraordinary story of the Stumbling Stones and the neighbours in Thomasiusstraße who honoured Ruth Birnbaum, her sister Ursula and the parents they lost in the Holocaust.

Editor: Romy Moshinsky

Editorial assistance: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Lisa Lipshut

One man's struggle to overcome a life of addiction and crime.

Available in paperback and hardcover.

www.leonardottone.com

Author: Leonard Ottone

Editors: Georgie Raik-Allen & Romy Moshinsky

Designer: Lisa Lipshut

Neil Kaplan was born in London during WWII. He survived polio as a child and, as a teenager spent many months immobilised after spinal surgery. Despite years of isolation and missed schooling, he qualified as a lawyer and has enjoyed a distinguished career at the Bar as Queen's Counsel, later as a High Court judge in Hong Kong and as a leading international arbitrator. His memoir details the obstacles he overcame during his early years and fascinating insights into the many cases he has conducted and presided over in the last 50 years.

Writer: Neil Kaplan

Editors: Romy Moshinsky & Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

When Ida made the heart-wrenching decision to accompany her mother to Auschwitz, her husband Ondrej (Mali) Malinovsky did not hesitate to follow: Where you go, I go. It was a simple but profound gesture that reflected the couple's devotion to each other. The great love between Ida and Mali, combined with their resourcefulness, practical skills, work ethic and absolute determination to honour family, ensured their survival during the holocaust and continued to define them throughout their long life together. 

Writers: Romy Moshinsky & Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Jacki Starr

Available online at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Library Collection

A captivating biography about A.V's early life in France. Created to mark the occasion of his 80th birthday.

Writer: Romy Moshinsky

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

The story of the late Dr Michael Cohen as told by those closest to him. 

This book was shortlisted for the Australian Book Design Association (ABDA) 'Indie 1000' Best Independent Publication Award in 2017.

Writer: Romy Moshinsky

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer & Illustrator: Trisha Garner

A collection of 63 interviews celebrating the life of a special man.

Interviewer: Romy Moshinsky

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Jacki Starr

Syahisti Abdurrachman's memories and dreams of her early life in Indonesia and her journey to Melbourne in the 1950s remain vivid and fascinating. Her life story has an epic quality that engages and inspires. 

Spice of Life was shortlisted for the Australian Book Design Association (ABDA) 'Indie 1000' Best Independent Publication Award in 2014.

Writer: Syahisti Abdurrachman

Editor: Romy Moshinsky

Editorial support: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

In his memoir, Sam Webb recalls in great detail the love and camaraderie of his Jewish family and community in Brest-Litovsk, Poland. He also shares his warm memories of growing up in the vibrant Jewish hubs of Carlton and Brunswick during the Second World War and of the opportunity-filled post-war period when he met Raymonde, the love of his life.

Writer: Sam Webb with Romy Moshinsky

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Trisha Garner

A book created in honour of Harry's barmitzvah 

Interviewer: Romy Moshinsky

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Photographer: Jeremy Blode

Designer: Trisha Garner

Through Sam Moshinsky's memories of his early life and love of history, we learn of Shanghai's uniqueness as a home and haven to thousands of Jews over many centuries. 

Also available as an audio book and an eBook. 

Recently republished in Mandarin by the Shanghai Joint Publishing Company.

Available for purchase at Amazon, Booktopia and other online bookstores

The Goodbye Shanghai film can be viewed here

Writer: Sam Moshinsky

Editor: Romy Moshinsky

Proofreader: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Jacki Starr

A book celebrating the life of a much-loved mother and grandmother.

Interviews: Romy Moshinsky

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Kelly Barber

A collection of interviews and images to celebrate Jacqui's 60th birthday. 

Interviews: Romy Moshinsky

Editor: Georgie Raik-Allen

Designer: Lisa Lipshut

Real Publishing will be adding 6 more exciting books to the book stack in 2022

Ten Cubed is a private art collection open to the public. Real Film and Publishing has produced two short films about two artists in the collection:

Alasdair McLuckie - https://vimeo.com/91885933

Tim Silver - https://vimeo.com/91243929