Surviving the Holocaust in the Sewers of Lvov
Buried beneath a city at war – hope flickers in the dark.
Ignacy Chiger (1906-1975) recounts his family’s desperate struggle to evade Nazi persecution in wartime Lvov, Poland, where they hid in the city’s underground sewers with the help of an unlikely hero. This gripping firsthand account provides a raw, unfiltered perspective on life under two brutal occupations – first the Soviets, then the Nazis – shedding light on the torment, courage, and will to live in the face of genocide.
When the liquidation of the Lvov ghetto left the Chigers with no place to hide, they sought refuge beneath the city, disappearing into the filth and darkness of its sewer system. There, they survived for 14 months, clinging to life in unimaginable conditions. Their salvation came from an unexpected source – Leopold Socha, a Polish sewer worker and petty thief, who risked his own life to provide them with food, protection, and a lifeline to the world above. Once an opportunist, Socha’s transformation into a savior of Jews stands as a testament to the power of human decency in the face of overwhelming evil.
Deeply moving and historically significant, Beneath the Lightless Sky is an essential addition to Holocaust literature – a harrowing memoir of survival, resilience, and the unimaginable horrors of war.
From the father of Krystyna Chiger’s, The Girl in the Green Sweater, the inspiration behind the academy award nominee for best foreign film, In Darkness (2011).
LAUNCH: 27 January 2026
Ignacy Chiger (1906-1975), a resourceful Jewish businessman who defied the odds in Nazi-occupied Poland, masterminding a high-stakes plan to save his family by vanishing into the sewers of Lvov, where they survived in darkness for over a year.
