Fredy built a wall against suffering in their hearts . . . Amid the brutality of the Holocaust, one bright spot shone inside the Nazi death camp of Auschwitz. In the shadows of the smokestacks was a wooden hut where children sang, staged plays, wrote poetry, and learned about the world. Within those four walls, brightly adorned with hand-painted cartoons, the youngest prisoners were kept vermin-free, received better food, and were even taught to imagine having full stomachs and a day without fear. Their guiding light was a twenty-seven-year-old gay, Jewish Fredy Hirsch. Being a teacher in a brutal concentration camp was no mean feat. Forced to beg senior SS officers for better provisions, Fredy risked his life every day to protect his beloved children from mortal danger. But time was running out for Fredy and the hundreds in his care. Could this kind, compassionate, and brave man find a way to teach them the one lesson they really needed to how to survive? The Teacher of Auschwitz shines a light on a truly remarkable individual and tells the inspiring story of how he fought to protect innocence and hope amid depravity and despair. Genres Historical Fiction Historical World War II Audiobook War Fiction Holocaust
Book Review: The Teacher of Auschwitz An unforgettable portrait of courage, compassion, and the quiet heroism of one man who dared to build hope inside the gates of hell.

There are stories that haunt you, and then there are stories that illuminate even the darkest corners of history—The Teacher of Auschwitz does both. Inspired by the true legacy of Fredy Hirsch, this novel brings to life a man whose unwavering belief in the power of dignity, imagination, and education became a lifeline for the youngest prisoners in Auschwitz.

Fredy, a 27-year-old gay Jewish man, wasn’t just a protector—he was a builder of emotional refuge. Inside a wooden hut dressed with cartoon murals and children’s art, he carved out a sanctuary amid the ashes. Here, against all odds, children sang, created, and for a few precious hours, dreamed. Even as the world around them collapsed, Fredy fought tooth and nail—often pleading with SS officers—to give his “pupils” a sliver more food, a little more safety, a bit more time.

What makes this novel so extraordinary is its focus on quiet resistance. Fredy didn’t smuggle weapons or sabotage machinery—he smuggled hope. And in doing so, he risked everything. Through vivid prose and emotionally rich storytelling, the book captures not only the physical horrors of the camp but also the emotional fortitude required to preserve innocence where it was meant to be extinguished.

This is not an easy read—but it’s a necessary one. The novel honors Fredy without sugarcoating the stakes he faced. It challenges readers to see heroism not just in defiance, but in tenderness. In moments where a child learns to smile. In the act of making a classroom out of dust and fear.

The Teacher of Auschwitz is a deeply moving tribute to the resilience of the human spirit and a reminder that sometimes, the most powerful resistance begins with kindness

This was a good typical fictional story of what took place in ghettos during the holocaust. Nothing outstanding to put it above others though.

I’ve read a little of Freddy’s story via other Auschwitz stories, so this was nice to flesh out more of an influential character in history.

While it’s sometimes a little awkward to me to take a fictionalized view of someone real, especially in 1st person, always wondering what is truth and what wasn’t, there was still enough to research on my own to kind of add context to it. The book did well at showing both the courage and the flaws of Freddy, especially when it came to his seeming naïveté towards extent of the evils of the Nazi’s, his resilience, perseverance and determination to care for the children was completely inspiring.

The book was well written and engaging and the narrator did a great job on this as well.

Thanks to Netgalley for and advanced copy of this edition of the audiobook. All opinions are mine.

Fantastic book. I love reading historical fiction books relating to the holocaust. I am recommending this book on my book group on Facebook. Easy five stars!! Great job!!

I was given this book as an Advanced Reading Copy. I enjoyed it since I always like reading WWII historical fiction. This is inspired by a true story of a man named Fredy Hirsch. He risked everything for the safety of the children of Auschwitz. He created camps, school lessons, and a community for them when they most needed it. He fought for their rights and tried to make their lives richer and happier when that didn’t seem possible. Being a gay man made this feat even more difficult, but he never gave up and fought for the children and taught them how to survive. It’s a heroic story and true evidence of the good in humanity even in times of great despair.

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for the early release audible arc. Heartbreaking story of a MMC trying to survive during heartbreaking times while doing all he could to save the others around him. I didn’t like the male reader as he was hard to listen to for the entire book but I did enjoy the storyline and book.

In a Nutshell: A WWII fiction based on the inspiring life of Fredy Kirsch, a homosexual German Jew. Could have done better on a couple of factors, but overall, it was exactly as you would expect from this kind of book: heartwarming and heartbreaking in equal measure. I avoid WWII fiction these days, but this one was worth a pick just to know Fredy. Recommended.

Plot Preview:
"I'm a teacher. I'm a dreamer. I'm not just a number."
Fredy Kirsch was a twenty-seven-year old teacher with a passion for teaching, music, sports, and children. He used all of these attributes when he was forced into a Jewish ghetto in Czechoslovakia. His main aim was to ensure the welfare of children, and to not make them feel the pain of their living conditions. However, things were soon going to get worse. Would it even be possible to keep children safe in Auschwitz?
The story comes to us in the first-person perspective of Fredy over multiple back-and-forth timelines, spanning 1924 to 1944.

After having burnt myself out on WWII fiction a couple of years ago, I diligently avoid picking up books where the blurb even mentions any year between 1939 to 1945 as all these novels have started blending into each other. Another thing I am fed up of is books with a mention of Auschwitz in the title. After ‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’ became such a bestseller a few years ago, there came a spate of books using similar titles: ‘The Sisters of Auschwitz’, ‘The Brothers of Auschwitz’, ‘The Redhead of Auschwitz’, ‘The Midwife of Auschwitz’, ‘The Dressmaker of Auschwitz’, ‘The Violinist of Auschwitz’, ‘The Child of Auschwitz’, and so many more. It felt like originality had been lost. Why then did I choose a book with a title in the same mundane structure? Simple. The word ‘teacher’ intrigued me, and the blurb stressed on how much Fredy loved children. I have a soft spot for kids, so I knew I had to read the story of a man who did his best to keep children happy even in such miserable conditions.

Bookish Yays:
👌 Fredy Kirsch. The man and the character. Loved him and everything he stood for. A bit too idealistic and impulsive at times, but also utterly selfless and inspiring. It is good to know that the kids around him had someone like Fredy to care for them.
👌 The depiction of the struggles faced by children in the ghetto and the concentration camp and how Fredy and his ragtag group kept the children motivated. Not that I didn’t know about such atrocities before, but their stories still broke my heart. Reading about human unkindness towards children never becomes easier. 😢
👌 The plot development, with the story beginning at the deep end and then moving across timelines to offer a back-perspective of Fredy’s life. An interesting structural choice, it worked well for me as it revealed Fredy’s character and the influential moments of his life in an orderly manner. (Slightly tricky to follow on audio, though.)
👌 The two divisions of the plot: pre-Auschwitz (which itself has two subdivisions – Fredy’s past and the ghetto years) and Auschwitz. Not many WWII novels focus on the ghetto experience in such detail. So it’s like reading Jewish persecution at two levels: brutal (ghetto) and deadly (Auschwitz camp.)
👌 The research, be it into Fredy’s life or socio-political circumstances or the cruelties against the Jews (including but not restricted to German Jews) or Nazi wickedness or the actual camp conditions. Impeccable! I never thought I still had new facts to learn about Auschwitz.
👌 The character-focussed writing, which helps us understand key characters even when we see them only through Fredy’s eyes. The description of the places is understandably limited, but the details about the human experiences are brilliant.
👌 The ending. Well, it was what I expected and it also wasn’t. Not at all an easy scene to get through, but given the facts, I guess I understand why the book ended that way.

Bookish Mixed Bags:
🤔 The use of the first-person point of view to tell this story. While I loved hearing the story from Fredy’s direct perspective, it was still awkward at times as the first-person voice tends to make everything seem intimate and factual. Listening to Fredy’s sentiments towards children and his confusion over his sexual identity feels genuine, but hearing him voice his attraction and physical stirrings for some male characters feels invasive. I wish the romance-related aspects of Fredy’s life had not been written in detail. (The scenes are closed-door, but still…) I always find it awkward to read about intimate relations between people who actually lived in the past. Would Fredy have liked to see that part of his life become public knowledge? I think not.
🤔 At times, facts are casually thrown into verbal conversations, possibly to educate the reader about what was happening outside. Most of the times, this is smoothly done, but sometimes, it is quite distracting, as it feels like the character is spouting a fact at random even though the character he is speaking with might already know the situation.
🤔 The preface, which makes clear right at the start the true basis of this semi-biographical story. And the author’s note at the end, offering details of Fredy’s life and her research. I just wish there had been some clarity on which parts of Fredy’s life had been fictionalised and where his direct quotes were taken from.

Bookish Nays:
👎 The title – boring and overused. Moreover, thanks to the title (and the blurb), we know beforehand that Fredy will end up in Auschwitz. A major chunk of the book is NOT set in Auschwitz.
👎 A few scenes, especially connected to the random interactions between known people at new locations, felt a bit serendipitous. Given the number of Jews in the ghetto and the concentration camp, this was too fortuitous to accept.

🎧 The Audiobook Experience:
The audiobook, clocking at 10 hrs 9 min, is narrated by George Naylor. He does a commendable job and I absolutely loved his powerful performance. I also appreciate that the author’s note is included in the audio version; we audiobook listeners are often bereft of this chance. Do note that with the back and forth across multiple timelines from multiple locations and numerous overlapping characters, the audiobook is better suited to experienced listeners.

All in all, as expected, this wasn’t an easy read. Many of the scenes are not just sad but also traumatising. This book depicts the true picture of Auschwitz, not the romanticised version sold by Heather Morris in ‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’.
On an aside, due to my narrow-minded approach towards ‘The ----- of Auschwitz’ titles, I missed out on another WWII semi-biographical novel: ‘The Librarian of Auschwitz’, based on the life of Auschwitz survivor Dita Kraus. Fredy had an important role to play in her life, so if you have read that novel, you might already know a little about him. Dita has a small appearance in this latest novel celebrating Fredy.
Definitely recommended to historical fiction fans. Even if the writing choices could have done better to some extent, the overall book is still worth a read to celebrate Fredy and his sacrifices.
3.75 stars.

My thanks to Bonnier Books UK and Zaffre for providing the DRC, and to HarperAudio Adult and Harper Perennial for providing the ALC of “The Teacher of Auschwitz” via NetGalley. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

I received an audio arc of The Teacher of Auschwitz from NetGalley. Every time I read a historical fiction or non-fiction book on WWII, I am amazed at learning something new. Wendy Holden gives us beautifully sad look at Fredy Hirsch's life. Trying to survive as a Jew was hard enough, but being a Jew and gay was even more difficult. No matter where Fredy was, his first concern was always for the children. Making sure they were clean, safe, and sheltered as much as they could be. In the midst of such darkness, Fredy and those that worked with him brought so much light and hope to those around them.

I found the beginning of the book a little confusing with the three different timelines, but very happy I stuck with it. With physically reading the book, it may not be as confusing as it was on audio. George Naylor however was an excellent narrator.

There are a lot of WWII books out there, and why not? What a horrible time. I appreciate both fiction and non-fiction pieces that bring to light dichotomies in humanity that are especially apparent in turbulent times. Freddie's story, especially, illustrates this dichotomy. I am glad his story could be written. People should know about his work to protect, love, teach, and inspire children. This work is essential at any age and time and should be valued and recognized. Stylistically, the story didn't especially pull me in. It has a journalistic feel. There are moments of tension, but for some reason, I didn't feel the emotional pull as intensely as I do with some pieces of fiction. I count the reading experience as worthwhile if only to know one more of WWII's heroes better.

Special thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of this book. This book sheds light on one of the lesser known figures in the Holocaust. While I enjoyed hearing his story and how he cared for the children in Auschwitz I did not like the ending and have read far better WWII novels.

Fredy Hirsch's story is both inspiring and heart-breaking. Fredy is both gay and Jewish, which is a double threat in the eyes of the Nazis. The book flashes back to when Fredy was a child/teen. He found a love for track which he then inspired kids in the future. He realized he had a passion for helping youth so becoming a camp counsellor/teacher was very natural for him. When Fredy arrives at Auschwitz, he is 27 years old. He becomes the teacher of about 200 children. He talks the Nazis into allowing him to have a children's camp/barrack. The Nazis see this as a great opportunity to have a barrack that would be suitable for the Red Cross to see if they should stop by.

With the audiobook, I was slightly confused at times with the jumping around in time frames. I usually got it figured out after awhile. I'm wondering if it would be a little easier to follow reading the print version.

I'm always a sucker for WWII novels that are based on real people. The Author's Note at the end explains that Fredy was a real person who's death by pills has been a bit of a mystery. Some believed he committed suicide when he found out all the children from his barrack are being sent to the gas chambers. Some sources say he was drugged to make sure he wouldn't help lead an uprising. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys WWII historical fiction. Not many books are told in this time period in the point of view of someone who is both Jewish and gay. I would still recommend even though the timeline of the story was confusing at times.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperAudio Adult | Harper Perennial for the advanced copy.

Fredy Hirsch, do not forget his name, was a teacher in a concentration camp during WWII. He risked his life many times to better the lives of the children. Fredy tried to create some normalcy to the children by creating games, plays, poems etc. This was a heartbreaking story filled with despair, devastation, hope and love. Fredy is both Jewish and Gay. The description of the horror, the scenes, the smell were a lot of read. It is distressing to know that this book was based on real events and people. The research Holden did was shown throughout the details of the story. This was another well-done historical fiction set in WWII. Never Again.

The Teacher of Auschwitz is inspired by the remarkable true story of Fredy Hirsch, whose unwavering dedication brought hope to innocent children amid the horrors of the Holocaust. In both the ghetto and later in Auschwitz, Fredy was a beacon of light—his natural ability to connect with children provided them with comfort, structure, and a sense of dignity in an otherwise unbearable world. Though his life was tragically short, his impact lived on through the children who survived.

Wendy Holden tells Fredy’s story with grace and depth, capturing both his humanity and heroism. The narration by Wendy Holden and George Naylor is exceptionally well done, bringing this powerful story to life with sincerity and emotional resonance.

Thank you to NetGalley & HarperAudio Adult | Harper Perennial for letting me read this ARC.

The Teacher of Auschwitz is a deeply moving and inspiring account of Fredy Hirsch, a remarkable Jewish teacher and youth leader whose story—though heartbreaking—is one that truly deserves to be remembered. Set against the unimaginable horrors of the Holocaust, this novel offers a thoughtful and thoroughly researched tribute to a man who brought hope and light to thousands of children during one of history’s darkest chapters.

Author Wendy Holden clearly approached Fredy’s story with great care and sensitivity. Blending historical fact with gentle fictionalization, she creates an emotionally resonant portrait of someone who built a wall against suffering in the hearts of those around him. Fredy’s efforts to create a kind of “school” within Auschwitz, where he continued to nurture children’s minds and spirits, are nothing short of extraordinary. His unwavering belief in the power of education, dignity, and resilience left a lasting impact—even in a place designed to erase all of that.

Though the subject matter is undeniably devastating, the book never loses its focus or emotional clarity. It’s not necessarily a book you rush through—but it’s one that stays with you. The descriptions are so vivid and haunting—like the train carriage described as “a coffin on wheels”—that they allow you to truly feel the atmosphere. Fredy’s courage, selflessness, and humanity are brought to life in a way that feels honest and deeply touching.

This story is a powerful reminder of why remembrance matters. Fredy Hirsch may not have been able to save all the children in his care, but he gave them comfort, joy, and a sense of normalcy—even if just for a moment. His name, once buried by time, now echoes with the legacy of a true hero. Find a quiet moment, and bring tissues—this book will both break your heart and restore your faith in the human spirit.

Very moving book. I find stories about this time period and the suffering so many went through so emotionally challenging to get through, but I feel it is owed to them that I hear the stories. I couldn’t help but adore Freddie. Narrator did a great job too

The Teacher of Auschwitz by Wendy Holden, narrated by Wendy Holden and George Naylor. Based on a true story of a Jewish man Fredy Hirsch born 1916. Remember his name. In a time of great horror and inhumanity of our fellow man, woman and children was a man out to save the children. In one of the most brutal concentration camps, Auschwitz, Fredy tries to give the children hope and calm their fears and most importantly, keep them alive. No matter how many books I read about the Holocaust, I am always shocked and devastated that we could do such harm to others. Thank you to #NetGalley and #Harper Audio Adult for this Arc. Releases June 17, 2025. This is my honest review.

Heartbreaking and deeply inspiring—Fredy Hirsch’s story is one of quiet heroism in humanity’s darkest hour.

This novel beautifully honors a lesser-known figure of the Holocaust: Fredy Hirsch, a young, gay Jewish teacher who created a haven for children within the horrors of Auschwitz. Through compassion, courage, and defiance, he gave these children something unthinkable in a death camp—hope.

The story is both devastating and uplifting, rooted in real history and brought to life with powerful, emotional detail. While the pacing slows at times and the narration leans heavily into reflection, it’s an essential, soul-stirring read for fans of The Tattooist of Auschwitz and Born Survivors.

The Teacher of Auschwitz is about Fredy, a teacher who did all he could to save children at Auschwitz. His story is intense and heroic. The horrors of the Holocaust will always be terrible, and we will need to hear these stories. Fredy will forever be a hero, and I’m honored to know his name.

I received this ARC from NetGalley for my honest review.

The Teacher of Auschwitz by Wendy Holden is an emotionally gripping and profoundly moving story that stayed with me long after I finished listening. Based on real events, this audiobook captures the unthinkable horrors of Auschwitz through the lens of courage, compassion, and the quiet resilience of a woman determined to make a difference, even in the darkest of places.

Wendy Holden writes with sensitivity and depth, allowing the weight of the story to settle slowly but powerfully. The narration is beautifully done, steady, heartfelt, and never overly dramatized, which makes the emotional impact even more profound. I found myself fully immersed and genuinely unable to stop listening.

This is a story of unimaginable cruelty, but also of hope, humanity, and the enduring power of education and love. It’s not an easy listen, but it’s an important one, and so worth every moment.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was beautiful and heartbreaking.

The only reason I gave it four stars instead of five is because I wish the author had made a better effort to highlight which bits were dramatized and which were factual.

Still, it should be required reading for anyone who doesn't understand why some Americans are concerned about the things Trump is doing. It's a terrifying, slippery slope to authoritarianism, then fascism, then things that are even worse.

And this paints a very stark picture of what's even worse.

I won't lie.

I cried like a baby during certain parts of this book. It was gut-wrenching.

But that people like Alfred Hirsch -- REMEMBER HIS NAME! -- existed in the world at all gives me hope. Wouldn't it be wonderful if one day, his name -- along with those of other similar brave souls -- was remembered but no one could recall that of Hitler?

I know. I know. Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it. But cowards and madmen like Hitler don't deserve to have their names remembered. It's the people like Fredy Hirsch history should not only remember but honor.

Read this book. Or take the route I did and listen to it. Either way, there's no chance it won't move you.