Tuesday, October 30, 2018

The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris


Here is what it is about...


Based on interviews that were conducted with Holocaust survivor and Auschwitz-Birkenau tattooist Ludwig (Lale) Sokolov—a love story in the midst of atrocity.

In April 1942, Lale Sokolov, a Slovakian Jew, is forcibly transported to the concentration camps at Auschwitz-Birkenau. When his captors discover that he speaks several languages, he is put to work as a Tätowierer (the German word for tattooist), tasked with permanently marking his fellow prisoners.

Imprisoned for over two and a half years, Lale witnesses horrific atrocities and barbarism—but also incredible acts of bravery and compassion. Risking his own life, he uses his privileged position to exchange jewels and money from murdered Jews for food to keep his fellow prisoners alive.

One day in July 1942, Lale, prisoner 32407, comforts a trembling young woman waiting in line to have the number 34902 tattooed onto her arm. Her name is Gita, and in that first encounter, Lale vows to somehow survive the camp and marry her.





Here is what I thought....


     To fall in love during the bleakest time in all of history seems nearly impossible but to have that love give you hope that keeps you alive? Beautiful. Lale’s story is amazing and wonderful and almost unbelievable. I am so glad that I got to read and know him.  This book is not perfect (it has some choppy transitions) but it does not matter at all. This is a true story of the amazing human spirit and how much we need love to survive.  




Author's site: https://www.heathermorris.com.au/



No comments:

Post a Comment