Review: The Child of Auschwitz

Title: The Child of Auschwitz

Author: Lily Graham

Publisher: 8th November 2019 by Bookouture

Pages: 255 pages

How I Read It: ARC book

Genre: historical fiction, WWII

My Rating: 4.5 cups

Synopsis:

It is 1942 and Eva Adami has boarded a train to Auschwitz. Barely able to breathe due to the press of bodies and exhausted from standing up for two days, she can think only of her longed-for reunion with her husband Michal, who was sent there six months earlier.

But when Eva arrives at Auschwitz, there is no sign of Michal and the stark reality of the camp comes crashing down upon her. As she lies heartbroken and shivering on a thin mattress, her head shaved by rough hands, she hears a whisper. Her bunkmate, Sofie, is reaching out her hand...

As the days pass, the two women learn each other’s hopes and dreams – Eva’s is that she will find Michal alive in this terrible place, and Sofie’s is that she will be reunited with her son Tomas, over the border in an orphanage in Austria. Sofie sees the chance to engineer one last meeting between Eva and Michal and knows she must take it even if means befriending the enemy…

But when Eva realises she is pregnant she fears she has endangered both their lives. The women promise to protect each other’s children, should the worst occur. For they are determined to hold on to the last flower of hope in the shadows and degradation: their precious children, who they pray will live to tell their story when they no longer can.

A heart-breaking story of survival, where life or death relies on the smallest chance and happiness can be found in the darkest times. Fans of The Choice and The Tattooist of Auschwitz will fall in love with this beautiful novel.

My Thoughts

I have read other Lily Graham books and I like her writing. That combined with an interesting story - could a baby be born in Auschwitz and survive? - was enough of an enticement to pick up this book. Given the sorrowful theme, it is brightening to see there is still an uplifting feel to think that when many did not survive, a small human being could defy the odds. 

This is a wonderful story on many levels. Foremost is the female perspective of surviving the Holocaust - the strength these women exhibited to live and survive through dire situations and push through holding onto hope and each other. Add to that, banding together to try and preserve and nurture a new life is really quite something. 

Although this story delves into flashbacks of the Nazi invasion of Prague, it really is a character driven tale. This is all about friendships and the courage needed to work together as one in the hope of living through such trauma. There are of course circumstances where spur of the moment reactions of timing or bad luck arise and for some there would sadly be no escape. 

Sofie shrugged. ‘Because the smallest thing here can make a big difference. Which line you’re in, what train you end up on. The fly that sees that the window is open by a crack lives, Kritzelei. The one that doesn’t just beats itself to death against the glass.’

This book was inspired by a true story of one such woman who gave birth in a bunk of  at Auschwitz-Birkenau in December 1944. Overall, I found this to be a compelling read  of survival and the sense of hope shines through strongly in spite of the sadness and tragedy.  A beautifully written tale of friendship, hope and love. 

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.