The #1 International Bestseller & New York Times Bestseller
This beautiful, illuminating tale of hope and courage is based on interviews that were conducted with Holocaust survivor and Auschwitz-Birkenau tattooist Ludwig (Lale) Sokolov—an unforgettable love story in the midst of atrocity.
“The Tattooist of Auschwitz is an extraordinary document, a story about the extremes of human behavior … Auschwitz is an extraordinary document, a story about the extremes of human behavior existing side by side: calculated brutality alongside impulsive and selfless acts of love. I find it hard to imagine anyone who would not be drawn in, confronted and moved. I would recommend it unreservedly to anyone, whether they’d read a hundred Holocaust stories or none.”—Graeme Simsion, internationally-bestselling author of The Rosie Project
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.
A vivid, harrowing, and ultimately hopeful re-creation of Lale Sokolov’s experiences as the man who tattooed the arms of thousands of prisoners with what would become one of the most potent symbols of the Holocaust, The Tattooist of Auschwitz is also a testament to the endurance of love and humanity under the darkest possible conditions.
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The story was well told. A book everyone should read
Beautifully haunting – I am always amazed at what the human spirit can endure!
True story of resilience of Jewish people in Nazi prison camps and how true love encouraged people to survive.
The fact that this book is based on a true story made me like it all the more. Stories from Holocaust survivors are always terrible and incredible, in the sense that the atrocities bring out the best and worst in people. You see the inhumanities committed and how people stuck up for each other, chose to keep going against all odds, made friends and sacrifices. This book details all the bad and also shows the good. Not what they experienced but how the prisoners responded.
However, I’ve vacillated between 3 and 4 stars because the writing is maybe not the best. I’m going with 4 because the story is still good.
The story itself is told mostly from Lale’s (main character) point of view. It does get confusing when the POV switches to Gita’s, as Lale leads the show previously for quite a good space. The the story suddenly switches to Gita’s POV with no warning. It’s not terrible, just confusing at first. However, it’s more confusing when a supporting character gets a page or two from his/her POV. It seems random and always without warnings (which makes the audiobook especially confusing).
Lale is a really strong character. I loved seeing his weaknesses but also his strong desire to do what is right. I loved his commitment, his determination, and his heart. I was also drawn to his love for Gita. It seems his love for her singlehandedly kept her alive.
There were a few details I wondered about whether they were accurate. They were things I’m not sure we can positively verify, as only prisoners would know whether they happened. They definitely made the story more interesting though.
I can’t deny my favorite part was the author’s note at the end, telling about meeting Lale, his experience and imprisonment in Auschwitz-Berkenau, and what happened for him afterward. I’ll not give anything away here, but it was touching.
Note: be fully aware you understand the subject matter before going into this book (or any book about the German prison camps during WWII). It’s a gruesome subject for any author to tackle. Yes, there is torture, genocide, cold-blooded killings, starvation, rape, brutality, and swearing. The book mentions male and female genitalia, as well as obvious off-page sex. Even with all of this, I felt as though the subject was handled well and the story is good.
AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: Read by Richard Armetage. Good reader. I like the accents for the characters; it helped them come alive. I did wonder about the accent choice for Lale, as it sounded British to me and he wasn’t British, but I’m not an expert. He does perform a fair female voice and isn’t dry to listen to.
Based on true events, this story proves that love can help get through even the toughest of times. Similar to my love for Anne Frank’s story this novel made me think deeply and stuck with me long after finishing it.
I loved this book
Well worth reading over and over. I even got the audiobook and to my surprise Richard Armitage narrates the book and does a fantastic job. Love both the hard back book and audiobook
Very Realistic story of WWII
Too violent for me.
Loved the book but many facts were contradictory from other books I have read about this time in our history.
Here’s the thing, there are so many stories from World War II, but one thing is clear, no matter how many stories you’ve read, they’re all different.
How one responds to a tragedy, how one fights for survival is unique to that individual. Not everyone shares the same instincts. Not everyone has the same will to live. Not everyone can look for the positive when faced with the negative.
Could this story have been told/written better by someone else? Perhaps, but a story of survival somehow speaks to all of us no matter how it’s told. Inevitably, you ask yourself, would I have made the same choices? Could I have survived? You begin to question your own character. So to me, Heather Morris has done her job with this one. I connected to the characters, I felt empathy towards them, I felt hope for them when they had no hope.
It’s a beautiful yet somber story. One that saddens me that ever had to be told.
An excellent read.
Painful reminder of the horrors of the Nazi era
A true story written in fiction form. Though some of the characters do not have a satisfying ending, this WWII story is a good read. Haunting, yet hopeful, it is a story I would not want to miss.
Knowing this was a true story, that the main characters were not fictional, made this novel more than another concentration camp story. The resilience, compassion and intelligence these camp inmates showed was amazing. Determination and love carried them through it also. The author did a wonderful job bringing To life the story recounted to her by the tattooist.
Insightful
It is a true story and a must read.
It was interesting to hear a different perspective of Auschwitz from a prisoner who was more privileged than the others in the same camp.
This book was one of the best books I’ve ever read, Not for the faint hearted, characters are wonderful but through pure willpower show what mankind is capable of enduring. It’s a true story too and truly Amazing!
I liked it but I didn’t love it. A quick read but quite boring.