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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A great page turner! A different type of holocaust story. Very inspiring, how people live on after they’re gone and how if we pay attention to others we can learn. A different kind of resolution to the story.
A wonderful story told by the tattooist of Auschwitz. Memorable characters, extremely realistic historically, and a triumph of the human spirit. Excellent read especially since this is the 75th anniversary of the liberation of those who survived Auschwitz.
Incredible book
A romance set in a Nazi concentration camp is a hard topic to tackle. What I got out most from the book was information about camp life, as horrible as it was. You will find yourself rooting for the couple to survive!
There are two words that draw fear to those who have a clear meaning of the horror within them – Auschwitz and Birkenau, two WWII Nazi concentration camps known for their shocking, terrifying brutality.
Heather Morris, the author, was given the honor to hear and write Lale and Gita’s love story – a story forged within the cruelty and hopelessness of one of the deadliest concentration camps in history.
At times I could not put the book down and at other times, I had to lay it down to ease my aching heart. However, the courage, determination, and love between Lale and Gita was so powerful and profound that I had to press on, following their journey. Love and the will to live proved to be a driving force in their lives.
Many times during my reading, I had to stop and reflect on my own life. What would I have done in these austere conditions? How would I have handled beatings, starvation, and cruelty? No one knows, but this book put hope in my heart that courage, perseverance, and love stem from fellowship, faith and forging ahead one day, one moment at a time.
A truly unforgettable book.
I decided to read this book because a friend of mine (who for some unknown reasons, loves war/holocost books) read it and gave it a good rating. I on the other hand, cries too easily so I shouldn’t read them. I hate the cruelty dished out to those people just as much as I hate the treatment dished out to black people/slaves and I feel like it hardens my heart towards Germans/whites.
One thing for sure though is that the story needs to be told and we need to be educated and informed about both.
Lale and I are both October born and on the same date…. hmmmm. Resilient. You can’t break us if we don’t allow you. (less)
I liked the book, hated the ending
Sometimes I read a book just because of the hype and then wonder what it was all about. That’s this book. The writing was just okay. It’s certainly not the best story ever of the Holocaust. And it really wasn’t much of a love story. But it was easy and quick reading.
We know the story of Auschwitz and the horrors that took place there. But this book follows a man who, because he speaks many languages, is not sent to the labor squads. He is, instead, used as a tattooist, permanently numbering each person’s wrist as they enter the camp. He falls in love with a woman, and through ingenuity and luck, they survive for 3 years. The story follows them out of the camp to their life together. It is well written and gives a view of this atrocity from the standpoint of one man.
Many of us have read stories of the horrific things that happened at Auschwitz. This book is the story of Lale Sokolov, who is chosen to be one of the tattooists at Auschwitz. In this position, he of course sees the horrors of Auschwitz, but is also able to provide help and hope to some of the other prisoners. In the midst of all the terrible things he tries to maintain hope himself and unbelievably finds love too. A truly memorable story!
This is definitely the best WW2 historical fiction book I’ve ever read!
May we never forget what happened at Auschwitz!
Truly a different look at life in the Nazi concentration camps and what a prisoner was willing to do in order to survive. Although Lale’s life in the camp seems somewhat hard to believe, the author does point out that this is a work of fiction based on her interviews with Lale.
Lacks emotion
This was a hard book to put down. The story was interesting, written in a technique that managed to avoid going into great details of the horrors of Auschwitz while not forgetting any of them either. The love story helped soften some of the horrors and the focus remained just soft enough to keep from being too tragic. An excellent first product from this author.
/ 5
I haven’t actually read any books that talk about Auschwitz yet, but I know from what I’ve heard that The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris just touches on the horrors that went on there.
At its essence, this story is about a love between two prisoners; Lale the tattooist for Auschwitz, and Gita whom Lale meets for the first time when he has to tattoo her number onto her arm. Of course we also read about many of the horrors that Lale witnesses there and treatment of prisoners, but mostly it is about them. I was rooting for them the entire time and was hoping against hope they would stay alive and end up together.
I ended up mostly listening to the audio, but I also read parts of the book as well. I really liked the narrator Richard Armitage, and without listening I wouldn’t have known how to say most of the names or places. I would recommend listening but then reading the very end of the physical copy, which is an afterward, a couple notes from the author, plus the book also had pictures and a map at the end which were very helpful.
The Tattooist of Auschwitz is heartbreaking, but also shows incredible strength from both Lale and Gita. It was very inspiring to read their stories and follow them on their journey surviving Auschwitz, even though the book is mainly told from Lale’s perspective. There were so many things that made me cringe, but somehow there was still a tiny bit of humor in the book which was sorely needed!
Song/s the book brought to mind: Win by Brian McKnight
Final Thought: If you like historical fiction that focuses on people surviving through incredibly dark times, then I highly recommend The Tattooist of Auschwitz. I love movies based on true stories, and it turns out I feel the same way about books based on them. It made everything that much more real to me, and the writing of this book just blew me away. This may be a debut, but you would never know it. I know that Gita and Lale are going to remain in my heart and thoughts for years to come.
Oustanding novel. As someone who was not an avid bookworm prior to picking up this book, I’d say this was a great kick-starter. Since reading ‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’, I have continued on to read 20+ historical novels (about 1 book every three weeks) this year alone.
This was such a great sad, redeeming story. I cant wait to read Cilka’s Journey
An important addition to Holocaust literature. New insights on those who suffered it
This is an important book that everyone should read.