Tag: #auschwitz

Feature Post and Book Review: The Last Baby in Auschwitz by Anna Stuart

Book Description

Naomi Demetriou has survived three years behind the walls of Auschwitz. Torn apart from her family, every breath could be her last. She’s learnt to survive by secretly trading the clothes she’s forced to sort through in exchange for food. But when an SS officer singles her out, her life becomes even harder. And then she discovers she’s pregnant…

With the support of Ana, the kind midwife, and the other mothers in Barrack 24, Naomi does the impossible and gives birth to a tiny baby boy. Hiding in the shadows, Naomi vows to do whatever it takes to keep baby Isaac safe. With rumours circulating of an Allied invasion, Naomi holds onto the hope the camp will be liberated. And she dreams of returning to her house by the Greek sea with her son.

But the day comes when Naomi hears heavy footsteps and the harsh voice of an SS guard. ‘Out! Now! You can’t take anything with you!’ She’s shoved into a line of people being marched out of the iron gates. Thick snow falls around them. Tears sting in Naomi’s eyes.

It all happened so fast. And she was unable to grab the bundle of blankets containing her little boy. But Ana is still there, will she and the other brave women be able to save him?

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/245614282-the-last-baby-in-auschwitz?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=crxQw7dHl2&rank=1

***

My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

THE LAST BABY IN AUSCHWITZ by Anna Stuart is an emotional, gut-wrenching WWII historical fiction story following two young cousins from a Jewish Greek family as each fight to survive in their own way every day in the Auschwitz concentration camp during WWII. Two different girls, but strong family ties that refuse to be broken. A difficult read told in alternating perspectives that is hard to put down.

Naomi Demetriou is separated from her escaping family and captured as they tried to flee from the Nazis who have overtaken her Greek island. Naomi’s mother is Polish and is fierce in her protection of her family and knows the Nazis are dangerous and warns Naomi that no matter what happens, she must survive. After a harsh start in a barracks with Russian women prisoners, she is sent to work sorting the clothes from the prisoners off the trains and is transferred to a hospital barracks for women giving birth.

Lieke Demetriou is rounded up with her father, mother, and brother. Lieke’s mother is Austrian and finds it difficult to believe the Germans would harm them. When they reach Auschwitz, Lieke and her mother are among the few lucky prisoners because they are bilingual and are chosen to work in the offices, while her father and brother are separated from them.

Throughout the years, the cousins can occasionally speak to each other and remind the other that as their mother told them, their family ties are like a spider’s web and even when destroyed, the spider will keep rebuilding them. And as the Russians approach the camp to liberate the remaining prisoners, Naomi will do anything to protect the secret that came from all the suffering.

This story follows the two very different paths of the cousins over their years in Auschwitz and the varying sacrifices they had to make to survive. This would be terrible for anyone, but when you realize how young these girls were, it is especially heartbreaking. This is such a horrific story of what people will do to other people and yet the author is able to ultimately turn it into a beautiful story of family, love, and survival.

I highly recommend this emotional rollercoaster of a historical fiction story.

***

About the Author

I wanted to be an author from the moment I could pick up a pen and was writing boarding-school novels by the age of nine. I made the early mistake of thinking I ought to get a ‘proper job’ and went into Factory Planning – a career that gave me some wonderful experiences, amazing friends and even a fantastic husband, but didn’t offer much creative scope. So when I stopped to have children I took the chance to start the ‘improper job’ of writing. It’s not been easy but I love it and can’t see myself ever stopping.

I write WW2 fiction, focusing in on some of the lesser known nooks and crannies of this astonishing period and writing from a female perspective. The Midwife of Auschwitz has been my bestselling novel to date but I am always looks to explore emotional tales of courage, strength and overcoming terrible odds.

I also write medieval fiction as Joanna Courtney.

Social Media Links

Website: https://www.annastuartbooks.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/annastuartauthor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annastuartauthor/

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/the-last-baby-in-auschwitz-inspired-by-unforgettable-true-stories-an-absolutely-gripping-and-emotional-world-war-2-historical-novel-by-anna-stuart

Feature Post and Book Review: The Girl with the List by Shari J. Ryan

Book Description

Day in, day out, servant Rosalie is forced to aid in the harrowing medical selections at Auschwitz, marking prisoners as “fit” or “unfit” with trembling hands. She once thought “unfit” meant they’d get the help they needed. Now she knows the devastating truth: “Fit” means they live another day, “unfit” means they don’t…

Every day, her heart breaks further as she hopelessly scans the crowds for the face of the man she loves, torn from her a year ago simply for being Jewish. Praying that he’s still alive, Rosalie desperately tries to save as many other men as she can—risking everything by marking them as fit and hoping her act of rebellion isn’t noticed.

Then one icy morning, she looks up from her list into the stunning green eyes of the man in her line—the man her heart beats for. And now the real fight begins, as Rosalie risks her life to save Stefan’s again and again. But then one morning, Stefan isn’t there. Rosalie frantically searches for him, blood turning to ice. He’s gone. But how far will she go to find him? And can he stay alive without her until she does…?

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/246269747-the-girl-with-the-list?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=4yU8nz5hdT&rank=1

***

My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

THE GIRL WITH THE LIST by Shari J. Ryan is a heart wrenching, gripping, and emotional historical WWII fiction story featuring a young Polish midwife and a young Jewish man who fall in love before the Nazis come to their small Polish town and both ultimately end up in the Auschwitz concentration camp.

Rosalie witnessed the death of her mother, the town’s midwife, and sister while giving birth alone in their cottage at the age of eight. She was determined to make up for not helping her mother by becoming a midwife herself and saving everyone she could. She helps a Jewish family delivering their youngest and falls in love with their eldest son, Stefan. When the Nazis come and takeover Stefan’s family’s factory, Rosalie gets scooped up by a Nazi officer who has heard of the amazing midwife and needs her for his wife in their home on the Auschwitz concentration campgrounds.

Rosalie is forced to aid the Nazi officer not only in their home, but in the camp deciding the fate of the lined-up prisoners as fit or unfit for work. Fit prisoners were sent to the factories and farms, while the unfit were eliminated. For a healer this was soul-stealing, but she was determined to help as many as possible while always watching for the eyes of the man she loved.

One morning she looks up and her nightmare comes true. Many times, she must make decisions to try and save Stefan but is his new determination better or worse. All the while her employer knows of their connection and is determined to torture Rosalie as much as Stefan. When Stefan disappears, Rosalie is determined to find him no matter what the cost.

This book was so difficult to read at times, but I also could not put it down because I was so invested in Rosalie and Stefan. Knowing from history how many people died in the camps and especially those that the doctors experimented on, had me on the edge of my seat every time Stefan disappeared from Rosalie’s lists. Rosalie was not only treated poorly physically by her Nazi employers, but the officer psychologically torments her using her morality, ethics, and compassion for others against her. I loved the continual references to time that a human has on this earth, the preciousness of every hour and minute, and Rosalie and Stefan’s belief in their love being able to transcend time. Make sure the tissues are close while reading this book.

I highly recommend this story of love, resilience, and bravery during a horrific time and in a horrific place.

***

About the Author

Shari J. Ryan is an award winning USA Today and International Bestselling Author of over 40 novels, with more than 700,000 copies sold and translations in 13 languages. She writes emotionally evocative WWII fiction inspired by true stories that have resonated with readers around the globe. Her work has earned Top 100, Top 10, and #1 chart rankings, as well as two Rone Awards.

As the granddaughter and great-granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, Shari brings a deeply personal connection to her work. Her stories are rooted in truth and remembrance, written to ensure history is never forgotten.

For Shari, writing is more than a passion; it’s a way of expressing herself and connecting with others. She strives to share the emotions she experiences with every reader who picks up one of her books.

Shari holds a bachelor’s degree from Johnson & Wales University and began her career as a graphic artist and freelance writer until 2012, when she discovered her true calling in writing novels.

Some of Shari’s bestselling books include The Nurse Behind the Gates, The Stolen Twins, The Bookseller of Dachau, The Doctor’s Daughter, and The Last Words Series—gripping stories that keep readers on the edge of their seats.

A lifelong Boston girl, Shari now lives in a small town in the suburbs with her adored husband and two incredible sons, who make her feel like the luckiest woman in the world.

Social Media Links

Website: https://sharijryan.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorsharijryan

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/authorsharijryan.bsky.social

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorsharijryan/

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/the-girl-with-the-list-by-shari-j-ryan

Book Review: Henry: A Polish Swimmer’s True Story by Katrina Shawver

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

HENRY: A POLISH SWIMMER’S TRUE STORY OF FRIENDSHIP FROM AUSCHWITZ TO AMERICA by Katrina Shawver is a memoir/biography that had me turning the pages and finishing this memorable read in just two sittings.

Katrina Shawver was trying to come up with a new story for her column in ‘The Arizona Republic’ when she heard about a former Polish swimming star who survived the death camps of WWII Germany. After her column ran, she knew she had to continue meeting with Henry and tell his entire story. He had an amazing cache of original documents and pictures with stories for them all. This book documents Henry’s story in his own words and the author interjects her own research that verifies Henry’s stories.

Henry tells his story to Ms. Shawver over many taped meetings. With gallows humor and always a sense of hope, Henry recalls his youth and capture by the Germans as they rounded up all Polish young men after their invasion. Henry was a strong young man who was a champion swimmer and water polo player for the Krakow YMCA team at the time of his arrest. Catholic and a proud Pole, Henry was sent to Auschwitz 1 as a political prisoner.

There are several instances when Henry should have died, but he always seemed to know someone who would find him at just the right time to help him survive. Henry knows he was incredibly lucky. From Auschwitz to Buchenwald, Henry details camp life. Even with all the killing and death, there are stories that sound absurd to the situation, but were small moments to forget where and what they were living through so that they could hope and survive for another day.

I have read many stories of the camps from Jewish survivor stories, but this book is through the eyes of a Polish political prisoner. I learned that they could and did send and receive mail, that there were underground activities ongoing in the camps and that the prisoners were segregated from the Jewish prisoners. Buchenwald held mainly German communists, criminals, Jehovah Witnesses, gypsies and the 1000 political prisoner Poles sent from Auschwitz until almost the end of the war.

Henry survives to live under communist rule in Poland because he returns home to his mother. After she is gone, he and a friend have the chance to escape to freedom in the west and they take it.

You will not be able to resist Henry. He is an ordinary young man who survived and lived an extraordinary life. If you are like me and devour books about WWII, this one should definitely be on your list.

Thanks very much to Koehler Books and Net Galley for allowing me to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review. I could not have enjoyed it more.