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tee207's review against another edition
2.0
This book is based off a true story, which I can appreciate and respect. With that said, I really didn't enjoy this book. I think my expectations were too high and it fell really short for me.
However, it is an easy read and covers gyspy concentration camps and child experimentation, which is a new territory for WW2 books comapred to past reads, so that was good. But overall I was disappointed.
However, it is an easy read and covers gyspy concentration camps and child experimentation, which is a new territory for WW2 books comapred to past reads, so that was good. But overall I was disappointed.
foodandfun103's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
laurenisme's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
thekatiefu's review against another edition
2.0
This is, apparently, based on a true story. The author wrote it in the first person as if from a diary or journal of the main character, who was a real person, and this was her real story. I listened to the audiobook, and I honestly can't decide if that made me like it more or less than if I had read it myself.
I am glad to know there really was this bright spot of hope in Auschwitz (which is the main reason I gave it more than 1 star), but it seemed so unlikely that I was shocked to hear it was real history; it is certainly a WWII story I have never heard before. We don't know what the real woman was like, but the author wrote her as if she had an eternal optimism that, for me, was bordering on naive, overly perky, and annoying, making the character, therefore, seem disingenuous and fake. The narrator who read the audiobook read it in an almost sing-songy type of perkiness that just didn't seem to match the setting at all.
I wanted to like it, but it just fell so flat for me.
I am glad to know there really was this bright spot of hope in Auschwitz (which is the main reason I gave it more than 1 star), but it seemed so unlikely that I was shocked to hear it was real history; it is certainly a WWII story I have never heard before. We don't know what the real woman was like, but the author wrote her as if she had an eternal optimism that, for me, was bordering on naive, overly perky, and annoying, making the character, therefore, seem disingenuous and fake. The narrator who read the audiobook read it in an almost sing-songy type of perkiness that just didn't seem to match the setting at all.
I wanted to like it, but it just fell so flat for me.
blshaw35's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
demibontje's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
oceanwriter's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I’ve been trying hard to make my way through my physical TBR. I’m not sure how long I’ve had this book, but it’s certainly been a while. However long it’s been, I wish I’d picked it up sooner!
Based on a true story about a German woman who followed her husband and children into Auschwitz, this book follows Helene. Married to a Gypsy man, she chooses to follow him and their five children when they are arrested and taken to Auschwitz. There, her husband is separated from her and the children, however, Helene is permitted to stay with the kids in a special barracks. Being German, she is also granted other privileges, granted, life is still a nightmare.
Finding favor with Josef Mengele (sadly in part due to her twins), Helene is permitted to operate a nursery/school for the Gypsy children. This provides her and her children with slightly better living conditions, giving Helene the hope and strength she needs to take on each day.
At first, I wasn’t sure I was liking the direction the book was taking with Helene. It felt as though she was absolutely clueless about her surroundings. Of course, she would not have gone in with the knowledge we know now, but at the very beginning, it felt she was incapable of putting two and two together. As the book went on, I felt a shift in her character and I became far more invested. An emotional read, but a worthwhile one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Genocide, Religious bigotry, and War
seaplanegh's review
2.5
Fascinating and truly sad story of a less heard true story of auschwitz. Unfortunately, it was written in a precise, detached style with Americanized and/or modern dialogue that ruined it for me. I also didn’t like the way Mengele was written sympathetically. Despite the story I would not recommend this book.
shaila_m's review against another edition
5.0
Een van de verhalen dat gewoon hartverscheurend is, maar ook een goed beeld geeft van het verleden. Haar verhaal als een sterke vrouw en moeder is zeer mooi omschreven en zeker het lezen waard!