I am finding it hard not to cry when remembering this beautiful yet heartrending story, of Lale, the Tattooist of Auschwitz.

The guilt, horror and disgust felt by Lale for doing what he must to survive in the concentration camp, heightened his compassion to share his benefits with other prisoners. As to save one was to save the world. Lale’s tale is not merely of survival but one of love, as he finds Gita, the one woman who captures his heart and at their first meeting he tattoos numbers into her skin.

Based upon the real Lale’s recollections of his past, this was an incredibly powerful read, and one that is cemented into my heart after reading the author’s note at the end.

Fantastic. I can't stop thinking about this book. Perfect for fans of WWII/Holocaust historical ficiton.

This is a really difficult book to review. The story was powerful and bittersweet and tragic. This was the first book I’ve ever read about WWII and to be honest, my knowledge of the holocaust is woefully lacking. This was such a horrible time in the history of humanity that we cant forget it lest it happen again.

The trouble I had with this book is the writing itself. I’m hoping the author chose to keep the narratives as close to the original words of (NAME) and that’s why it was lacking for me. Despite that, the story itself was incredibly powerful. The horrid things he witnessed and had to endure, no human should have to suffer. But he made the best of the situation in which he found himself. He found a way to help in any small way he could, to ease the suffering and save as many lives as possible. He also found love, and against all odds, they both lived and despite being separated when Auschwitz was shut down, they found each other once more and got married and had a family.

The afterword in this book by his son was a wonderful touch, it showed another aspect of how the holocaust had a lasting effect not only on the survivors, but their descendants. I won’t spoil it for you, but if you read this book, you really should make sure to read the afterword as well.

Ultimately, I didn’t care for the writing style, but the story is well worth a read, as every story of the holocaust is important and should be shared.

(Listened to a finished Copy)
I held off on reading this one for a while after hearing about the historical inaccuracies in it.

Lale is one of the people who tattoos the new arrivals at Auschwitz. He doesn't like this job, but he also knows it's one of the only things keeping him alive. Because he is good at this he is granted special privileges and he uses those as time goes on to help himself and his fellow prisoners. He gets food, medicine, etc. by being able to move around freely and making deals with others in the camp as well. During all of this, he sees Gita and he instantly falls in love with her. They get to know each other and start a romance that is rather dangerous to be doing.

Overall I did find this book interesting. It's always nice when you are a big reader of historical fiction to see things from a new perspective. But I do also think it's important to know the inaccuracies and be aware of them especially when they are around terrible atrocities like the Holocaust. Turning a place like Auschwitz into a type of romance and showing the guards being friendly to Lale did make me feel uneasy while I was listening to it and even now looking back on it while I write this review. I know it is based off of one man's story, but I can't look past all the inaccuracies personally, and the writing style of this one just didn't work for me either.
Throughout the entire story, you never become attached to the characters and this type of story is one that you need to know and care about the characters and it just wasn't there for me at least.

I know lots of other people have enjoyed this book. But I would have to say if you are wanting to read a WWII book there are so many others out there that are better and more worth your time.

I enjoyed this book when I read it, however I did not get to submit full review in time as unfortunately I lost my devices when my house was burgled and it took me a long time to replace my belongings and just get back on track. I have an ereader again (and a laptop, although I am not reactivating my blog and have started a bookstagram instead) and I hope to review again in the future.

Amazing book. Makes me proud of my heritage and sad of what everyone went through under the Nazi regime.
Looking forward to reading the next one.
Highly recommended and extremely well written.

I absolutely loved this book and will highly and frequently recommend it to my customers! Thank you, NetGalley, for the advance copy!

I personally put this down about a third of the way through but I acknowledge how popular it has been at our shop and how generally well received it has been. I personally quite enjoy historical fiction but this didn't do much for me, I think I felt a bit uncomfortable when the romance became the focus because of...well...where they were. Obviously based on a true store but I always say there's a reason it's classified as fiction still and i don't know, I just feel like whilst this is obviously is a story about finding hope in the darkest places, turning Auschwitz into a romance when I'm sure the people were probably equally or more concerned about other things, and to not address that equally made the book lose weight for me. But, look, it sells.

I thought this book was more of a love story about Lale and Gita rather than about the horror of the prison camps and the harrowing things that went on there. I loved Lale and was amazed at his story. I loved the book despite it being more lightweight than the usual holocaust books, and I’m looking forward to reading the follow up book, Cilka’s journey

Despite the harrowing subject matter, this book wasn’t harrowing at all. It was an easy read, beautifully written with a happily ever ending. I only awarded 4 stars though because I feel that this distressing subject needs harsher treatment and that at times the softness of descriptions underemphasised the harsh realities of how prisoners were treated by the Germans, Kapos, Russians, people in their home towns when they returned and even fellow prisoners.

The Tattooist of Auschwitz presents us with a love story amidst all the trauma and suffering the people at Auschwitz-Birkenau went through.
Of course this book is a bit hard to review, because it's based on true stories (Heather Morris interviewed Lali Sokolov for this book) and the names of the MCs are actually their real ones.
What makes this book so different from the others based on the Holocaust, is that it has focused on the romance of Lali and Gita, and also showed the kindness of the prisioners: how they shared their rations, took care of each other when someone was sick, how they helped the weak get better jobs, and even the outsider workers, like Victor and Yuri, that helped Lali with extra food to shared among a lot of people in the camps.
There were plenty of passages that were graphic and very hard to read, so I really don't think this was written from a rose-colored glasses point of view.
As the curious reader I am, I ended up researching all the names that showed up in this book. I've learned a lot from it.

Great story. Gives you insight into another part of WWII that isn't talked about as much. You're grabbed from the get go and become so invested in their story.

A unique look at the concentration camp way of life from the viewpoint of the serial number/ID tatooist. Falling in love and living in hope and doing what he could to help hundreds of people and families during the war, he was a hero that I won't easily forget.

This book made me feel like I knew the two lovers. I liked them. I rooted for them. I wanted them to survive, and I wanted them to thrive after the war. It was a big success, because I felt everything I should fee.

This story is based on interviews that were conducted with Holocaust survivor and Auschwitz-Birkenau Tattoist, Ludwig (Lale) Sokolov, and how he not only survived but found love in the midst of atrocities. In April 1942, Lale, a Slovakian Jew, was transported to Auschwitz. When the guards discover that he is fluent in several languages, they put him to work permanently marking his fellow prisoners, as the camp Tätowierer (Tattoist). He was imprisoned for over two and a half years, during which he experienced and viewed horrific atrocities, as well as acts of bravery and compassion. He witnessed the best and worst of humanity. At the risk of his own life, Lale used his position to obtain jewels and money confiscated from murdered Jews to trade for food that helped keep his fellow prisoners alive. One day, he meets a terrified young woman when he has to tattoo the number 32407 onto her arm and vows to make sure they both survive and to marry her when they get out.

This was such a powerful, heartbreaking story. It tattooed itself onto my heart and I’ll never be the same having read it. I’ve read concentration camp stories and they’re all touching and unique but this one truly lets you see things through Lale’s eyes. Heather Morris did such an amazing job with every aspect and it couldn’t have been easy to put herself in Lale’s shoes. Lale’s story exudes compassion, corage, and empathy.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
I thought that this was a well written, heartbreaking and unforgettable story of survival.

INCREADIBLE! A heartbreaking story based on true events, The Tattooist of Auschwitz is a very good historical fiction. The will to survive another day was truly inspiring, as well as the clever negotiations with unexpected people, other prisoners and SS guards, which ultimately changed the course of his life. I highly recommend this book. Thank you NetGalley for the e-reader copy, all opinions are my own.

What a marvellous, harrowing, heartfelt and ultimately uplifting story, all based on actual facts. This was a great read, I loved it.

What a story.
I think my favourite part was the matter of fact way in which it was told and somehow this made the horrors of the camps more explicit and the quiet dignity of the tattooist Lale more moving.

Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris

Brief Summary: Lale, a Slovakian Jew, is imprisoned at Auschwitz-Berkenau Concentration Camps and becomes the camp tattooist. During his time at the camp he meets and falls in love with another prisoner Gita. This is their based on a true story of love and survival.

Highlights: It is remarkable that this story is real and that Lale survived all that he did. I loved the author’s notes at the end and his son’s contributions. The love story is beautiful. I also loved hearing what happened to all the characters after the story ended.

What makes this book unique?: There are many stories of survival of concentration camps during the Holocaust. Lale’s story is unique in that he used his position of power for good to help his fellow prisoners.

Explanation of Rating: 4/5 This is a must read for WWII enthusiasts and history lovers. I won’t forget this tale anytime soon.

Favorite Quotes: When you spend three years not knowing if you will be dead in five minutes you don’t get upset about trivial things.

Thank you to Net Galley and Bonnier Publishing Australia for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review