Somehow I’m managing to keep to my two book goal for this week.
Customary warning: This is a reminder that these are my personal opinions. My thoughts and feelings are not your thoughts and feelings. I may not always be the target audience for a book; sometimes I am. If I do not like a book, that doesn’t mean you’ll dislike it. If I love a book or simply like a book, you may hate it. Take everything I say with this knowledge. If it sounds interesting to you despite what I’ve said, then go ahead and read it. You’ll only know you like something if you read it yourself.
That being said… Spoilers ahead.
The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
Synopsis From The Book
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.
Initial Thoughts Before Reading:
My mom told me that I had to read this book and I was like “okay.” Its a romance, I don’t do romances much. Also, it’s about the holocaust that makes me so angry that it gets uncomfortable to read, however this is an important story. Its important because its about such a tragedy, I’m just going to feel awful writing a review for it.
Initial Thoughts After Reading:
Wow. I’m emotionally drained after reading the book.
Plot Overview:
The story follows the life of Lale Sokolov, a Jew from Slovokia. We follow from when he was first taken, to how he got his job as a tattooist, to when he escaped. The story follows his time there, the atrocities that he witnesses, and his romance with Gita.
What I Liked:
The writing style; It was a told story, as if clearly someone was telling the story second hand, but with the details that shake you to your core.
I find it difficult to speak more on this book, not because it was horribly written but because of the intense emotional reaction it got out of me.
Time Taken To Read
1hr 30min
Rating: 5/5
I’m not simply rating this a 5/5 because its a book about the holocaust. I’m rating it a 5/5 because if I had to pick a book to take with me out of my whole library, this is one of the ones I’d bring.
Marlena Marie 
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