For more than a century, official acknowledgement of the Armenian Genocide (1915) has been disputed by many nations' governments, including our own—even though most historians agree that its atrocious events were an act of genocide. For the descendants of the survivors of the Genocide, it remains a deep emotional scar that is passed from one generation to the next.

The Armenian Genocide is the main reason why so many Armenians live outside of their homeland and is also a direct cause of diplomatic tension between Armenia and Turkey.

On April 24, Armenians around the world commemorate the Genocide and this year, on April 21, a Hollywood feature film called The Promise will be released in theaters nationwide. The motion picture, starring Oscar Isaac, Christian Bale, and Charlotte Le Bon is a love story set in the backdrop of the Armenian Genocide. The Promise will bring to audiences the story of one of the biggest crimes against humanity.

Being a descendant of Armenian Genocide survivors, I felt a sense of responsibility as a librarian to create a list of resources and materials available at the library for those interested in learning more about this tragic period in history.

Articles & Databases

World History in Context: "Armenian Genocide"

Modern Genocide: Understanding Causes and Consequences: "Armenian Genocide (1915-1923)"

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Holocaust Encyclopedia: "The Armenian Genocide (1915-16): In Depth"

Nonfiction

Justifying Genocide : Germany and the Armenians from Bismarck to Hitler / Stefan Ihrig

Ihring explores the connection between the Armenian Genocide and the Nazi Holocaust and ways in which Germany supported and later emulated the actions of the Ottoman Turks.

 

 

 

 

 

The Burning Tigris : the Armenian genocide and America's response / Peter Balakian

Balakian’s historically accurate narrative of the Armenian Genocide and America’s circumspect reaction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Operation Nemesis : the assassination plot that avenged the Armenian genocide / Eric Bogosian

Bogosian illustrates the assassination plot carried out by 5 Armenians seeking revenge for the Armenian Genocide.

 

 

 

 

                                                                                   

The Armenian Genocide legacy / edited by Alexis Demirdjian

This body of work uses an interdisciplinary approach to present the complexities of Genocide, while recognizing the centennial of the Armenian Genocide.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The history of the Armenian genocide : ethnic conflict from the Balkans to Anatolia to the Caucasus / Vahakn N. Dadrian

An analyitical study of the Armenian Genocide and how it preceded the genocides that would occur thereafter.

 

 

 

 

"They can live in the desert but nowhere else" : a history of the Armenian genocide / Ronald Grigor Suny

A historical narrative using archival documentation and eyewitness accounts to cut through nationalist myths and propaganda, uncovering when, how and why these atrocities occured.

 

 

 

 

The hundred-year walk : an Armenian odyssey / Dawn Anahid MacKeen

An epic story of one man’s courage in surviving  the genocide and his granddaughter’s quest to tell uncover his story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Four years in the mountains of Kurdistan, 1915-1919 : an Armenian boy's memoir of survival / Aram Haigaz

A true story of an Armenian boy ecaping genocide, living amongst Kurdish captors and coming of age before escaping again to the United States.

 

 

 

 

 

Fiction

The spice box letters / Eve Makis

A young woman inherits her grandmothers spice box and uncovers her past, filled with pain and grief as a Genocide survivor.

 

 

 

 

The sandcastle girls / Chris Bohjalian

An American woman falls in love with a widowed Armenian engineer in Aleppo, Syria. Years later their granddaughter discovers their secret history.

 

 

 

 

 

The Gendarme / Mark T. Mustian

A World War I veteran seeks out a woman to beg for forgiveness for crimes he had committed during the Armenian genocide.

 

 

 

 

 

Orhan's inheritance : a novel / Aline Ohanesian.

A man seeks out a woman who has inherited his late father's estate, and he learns her secret will endanger his family's legacy.

 

 

 

 

 

Film

The Cut  written, directed and produced by Fatih Akin
 

A man loses his family during the Armenian genocide, later discovering his twin children are alive he goes on a journey to find them.

 

 

 

 

 

The Lark Farm / directed by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani

A wealthy family is devestated by a forbidden love story and surviving during the Armenian Genocide.

 

 

 

 

Music

My Armenia : dedicated to the 100th commemoration of the Armenian genocide / [performed by] Sergey & Lusine Khachatryan

Classical Armenian music from renowned Armenian composers performed by siblings to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

 

Young Adult Nonfiction

Genocide in Armenia / Zoe Lowery and Jeri Freedman

An informative historical exploration of the massacred Armenians.

 

 

 

 

Young Adult Fiction

 

Like water on stone / Dana Walrath

 

Orphaned children escape the horrors being inflicted upon their family and their people.