The Boy On The Wooden Box

Leon Leyson’s The Boy on the Wooden Box (2013) is a memoir for young readers about the author’s experiences as a survivor of the Holocaust. Leyson was one of the youngest persons on the famous list of Jews that businessman Oskar Schindler employed in his ammunition factory in Poland, thus saving them from execution. The book’s title comes from the fact that Leon, being small of stature, must stand on a wooden box to operate the factory machines. While working at the factory, Leon experiences the kindness and friendliness of Schindler, whom he comes to regard as a hero. 

The Boy on the Wooden Box was published shortly after Leon Leyson’s death from lymphoma at the age of 83. The book consists of a prologue, 10 chapters, and an epilogue, and it concludes with an afterword in which Leyson’s widow, daughter, and son comment on his life.

Content Warning: Both the source text and this guide contain descriptions of wartime violence, antisemitism, genocide, abuse, and murder in the context of the Holocaust.

Plot Summary

The book opens with a prologue in which Leon recalls a “Schindler’s Jews” reunion that he attended in 1965 in Los Angeles.