Based on the experience of a real life Auschwitz prisoner, The Librarian of Auschwitz tells the story of a young girl who risks her life to share the magic of books with her fellow prisoners.

"The Librarian of Auschwitz" is a moving story about courage and hope in the darkest of times. Based on the real-life experience of Auschwitz prisoner Dita Kraus, who risked everything to keep the meaning of books alive during the Holocaust..
This story is really emotional, heartwarming but also heartbreaking.

A story built on the bricks of truth- the young 14 year old girl who became the librarian" of the children's block at Auschwitz. This book is a testament to the determination of a young Jewish girl and her focus on being brave. The book does not hold back with descriptions of life in the camps- the indescribable horror as well as the small victories. Told from the perspective of Dita, the young librarian, we can experience her'childhood' in a living hell. We meet her tormentors and her heroes. We are astounded to lean that even in a living hell-love can prevail

2 stars, only because I feel bad giving it 1 star since the story isn't bad...it's just the translation that really hurts the quality of the book.

The frequent flashbacks, while I understand their inclusion, aren't seamlessly integrated into the story and instead take away from the story's effectiveness. I felt that there was a lot of "telling" and not a lot of "showing" and as a result, I didn't feel as moved by this story as I should have. I couldn't connect with Dita and felt that her character was shallow in the sense that she didn't seem like a real person. As a librarian, I very much looked forward to this book and learning more about this story. Unfortunately, the book was poorly executed and I was unable to make myself finish it, which very rarely happens to me.

After reading other reviews of readers who read this is in the original language, it appears that maybe the English translation doesn't do the text justice. If this is the case, it's very unfortunate and sad. I'll attribute this book's lacking to the translation, and not to the author himself.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC. All opinions are my own.

I expected to like this one more than I did. I love history, WWII especially. And historical fiction is one of my favorite genres. The story is good enough, but it just seemed a bit drawn out and didn't hold my attention as much as I'd hoped. Based on a true story, it tells the tale of young Dita. A prisoner at Auschwitz, she finds herself appointed the librarian of a very much forbidden collection of books. Admirable, of course, but told in a more matter-of-fact manner than I usually would choose. Not one of my favorites but a decent read.

The incredible courage and dignity of the Jewish people during WWII never ceases to amaze me. Antonio Iturbe has taken the bare bones of the facts of the family camp at Auschwitz and created a full bodied picture of the lives the prisoners lived. Your heart will be broken, but at the same time filled with joy at their small victories.

May we never forget.

I am really glad Dita's story is going to be told to English speaking audiences. I hope this book is turned into a true to life film because this is a story everyone needs to hear. While I've noticed from some reviews that I've read, some readers did not like the writing style, I personally enjoyed it. It made me feel as if I was there. I felt Dita's fear, which at times made it hard to get through. I hope to see this as summer reading in high schools.

I loved this beautiful melancholy tale and I can't wait for this to be available for everyone to read. I truly want to thank net-galley for allowing me an arc copy of this beautiful story. I loved how there was hope and light from books in such a hell. This is one of my favorite reads of 2017!

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Based on a true story.

Dita is a teen in Auschwitz. She has been charged with keeping track of the prisoners' "library," a cache of 8 books that have been smuggled into the camp. This book tells her story; both her background before the war and also descriptions of life in the camp.

As with other books I've read recently, I enjoyed this story, but think I would have appreciated it more had it been told in first person. The limited 3rd person point of view really distances the reader from the main character, and with a story as harrowing as Dita's, the reader wants to hear what the protagonist is thinking. This book has received excellent reviews for the original (untranslated) text, so it could also be that something was lost in the translation.

Bottom Line: Buy it for your library if your patrons can't get enough Holocaust literature.

Recommended for: tweens
Red Flags: violence, human cruelty - all things you'd expect in a concentration camp
Overall Rating: 4/5 stars

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Netgalley for the purposes of review.

After Dita's family is transferred from the Terezin ghetto to Auschwitz, Dita takes charge of the library for the family bloc. Composed of eight varying books, the library is a symbol of better times, hope, and life itself.

Although Dita's story was fascinating, there was something a bit off about the writing style. The book didn't have the realism that most holocaust stories have. This may be because it is a translation. I think the book is a bit slow moving to capture the attention of most teenagers, but I enjoyed it.