Travels of a Toy Monkey

When Gert Berliner fled Germany during the Holocaust, he had to leave his entire family behind despite being only 14-years-old at the time. Almost 80 years later, his son Uri is attempting to reconstruct his family history around that traumatic event and rediscover long lost relatives. Listen to hear how one toy monkey connected the Berliners to new relatives and helped bring a family closer in the wake of incredible trauma.

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Story Length: 9:58

Listen to the Story:

Listening Comprehension Questions

In what ways did Andrew Carnegie’s libraries serve their communities?
How did Carnegie benefit from a library when he was growing up?
Which personality traits helped propel Carnegie from poverty to riches? Bring specific details from the story to support your ideas.
According to Carnegie, what should rich people do with their money and why? Why was Carnegie known as both generous and “brutal”?

Discussion Themes

In your opinion, what should really rich people do with their fortunes?
What does it take for a person to rise from “rags to riches”?

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