Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Length: 07:25:00
Narrator: Richard Armitage
Published: September 2018
Do we really need another book about the Holocaust? Yes, yes, yes, a thousand times yes. We must continue to revisit societal tragedies lest we forget. The unique aspect of The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris is that she took a very dark time in history and shared a story of joy, hope, and love through this tale of two courageous individuals. The book is based on the true story of Lale and Gita who fall in love at first site as Lale is given the horrible task of tattooing numeric identifiers on captured Jews. A multilingual Slovakian Jew, Lale was one of the "lucky" ones who was able to secure a "privileged" position of tätowierer. Once he meets Gita for those few moments, there is an instant connection and he knows he must find her again. He is successful and a challenging love affair ensues. So, while the backdrop of this book is the Holocaust and World World II, the prevailing plot is a love story.
I listened to this book via Audible. It was narrated by English actor, Richard Armitage, who was simply perfect in his narration. His voice is captivating. Granted Heather Morris has told a beautiful tale, and Armitage's voice just added icing to the cake. I found myself almost tired at times pulling for Lale and Gita. I won't say I was pulling for a happy ending because what is happy about the Holocaust, but rather, I was yearning for a hopeful ending. I felt strongly that hope would be revealed in the end, but it was a struggle listening to the atrocities before both main characters arrived there. Both the story and the narration pulled me in and didn't let me go until I'd finished listening to the author's notes and son's afterword at the very end.
Some criticisms I've read about this book is that there was not enough focus on the evils of the concentration camp. I disagree. If you want to read a book that goes into more in-depth detail on the horrors of Auschwitz and other concentration camps, there are hundreds of fiction and non-fiction books that will meet that need. This book is a love story, so much so, that the concentration camp setting of the book seemed to be relatively short to me even though it covered three long, tortuous years. My only criticism of this book is that some of the loose ends were not resolved. For example, what happened to Silka and Donna?
Recommendation: The Holocaust was real. It is a reality that the few living survivors continue to be haunted by. I really appreciated this hopeful perspective on this harrowing time period. If you're a WWII historical fiction (although this book included non-fiction elements) junkie, I think you will appreciate this book. Do yourself a favor and read along with the sultry Richard Armitage!
Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.
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