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.

Review: The Paris Secret

Title:  The Paris Secret

Author: Lily Graham

Publisher: 4th October 2018 by Bookouture

Pages: 205 pages
How I Read It: ARC book
Genre: historical fiction, WWII

My Rating: 4 cups

Synopsis:

On the brink of the second world war, a beautiful Parisian bookshop hides a heartbreaking secret that will tear one family apart forever …

The last time Valerie was in Paris, she was three-years-old, running from the Nazis, away from the only home she had ever known.

Now as a young woman, Valerie must return to Paris, to the bookshop and her only surviving relative, her grandfather Vincent, to find out what really happened to those she loved. As she gets to know Vincent again, she hears a tragic story of Nazi occupied Paris, a doomed love affair and a mother willing to sacrifice everything for her beloved daughter.

Can Valerie and Vincent help each other to mend the wounds of the past? Valerie isn’t after a fairy-tale ending, she only wants the truth. But what is the one devastating secret that Vincent is determined to keep from his granddaughter?

My Thoughts

‘He gave you away for a reason, Val. I know that you want this fairy-tale reunion but I’m just not sure you’re going to get it.’

What a great little read this turned out to be! A Parisian bookshop during the Nazi occupation - it has heartbreak written all over it! I enjoyed so much of this tale, the writing so was wonderful that you felt yourself sitting anxiously in the bookshop awaiting the vile Nazi officer’s arrival. Detailing the story of  Mireille during the occupation and later with Valerie in the 1960s, you will find much to admire in this mother and daughter duo.

‘None of us knew what would happen –we’d hoped they’d be here a few months and then be gone, driven back by the allies … we couldn’t know what was to follow. In a way that was a blessing, and a curse.’

Loving all things Parisian and booky, you cannot help but get swept away in the misadventures that take place in this bookshop. You will be drawn in by the well described characters and most certainly find a special affinity for Vincent - a seemingly grumpy old man on the outside, but just look at all he has had to bare throughout with his daughter and granddaughter. I especially enjoyed his commentary on the range of book titles offered.

My only disappointment is that the book was too short! At just over 200 pages, I read it in a day! So whilst on the one hand it was great to have the story move along at such a cracking pace, I could not help but wish for just a little more detail. The characters were certainly inviting, but to have been given the opportunity for greater depth towards more of the thoughts behind their actions - especially Valerie’s father or Vincent’s anguish and loss - would just have provided the icing on the cake!

‘This is about me, or the man I used to be, before my country went mad –the world, really – and when I’m with you I think maybe I could be that man again, some day…’

It truly packed a punch for such a short read. It was enlightening to be provided with such a strong insight into the horrific bullying that took place during the Occupation, to then witness the bravery and sacrifices of those who fought in the resistance - simply heartbreaking how so many lives were irrevocably altered.

‘The city wanted to rid itself of every last reminder of the Occupation. To punish all those people who had collaborated with the Germans.’

This was a wonderful weekend read with the alternating timelines working well. For its length it was so focused in depicting this one family’s tale during a distressing time in history. I only wished it could have gone on for longer as I was saddened to leave this cosy Parisian bookshop.

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