THE TATTOOIST OF AUSCHWITZ- Heather Morris

After some serious hype on social media, I took the plunge and grabbed myself a copy of THE TATTOOIST OF AUSCHWITZ and boy was u glad I did...

The story is based around a young man Lale Sokolov, a Slovakian Jew, who volunteers himself to the Germans in an attempt to save his family. The story itself is a harrowing recount of Lale’s time as the main tattooer at Auschwitz and Birkenau. The fact the story is rooted in truth makes it all the more chilling. However, the story itself was an uplifting read, whereby Lale, despite his own dangerous and difficult circumstances, demonstrates both generosity and kindness to other prisoners and sheer grit and determination to stay alive. It’s not just a story of terror and sadness but also an uplifting one of undeniable hope, friendship and love. The story folllows the ever-growing love and bond between Lale and a prisoner he meets in Auschwitz- Gita. The book was truly compelling and unputdownable.

Personally, I didn’t feel the story was written to the highest of levels as it relies heavily on dialogue to tell the story and I felt it could have been more powerful if it had been told in first person from Lale’s perspective; Morris potentially could have made the writing even more emotive had she done this. Despite the alternative perspective, it is compassionately written and it sensitively deals with the issues covered. Ultimately the strong story and likeable characters outweighs the quality of writing.

Whilst it wasn’t as hard-hitting and brutal as I had expected it to be, it was memorable, heart-wrenching tale that will stay with me for a long time. Overall it was a stunning read that I would highly recommend.

Rating: 4.8/5


Comments

  1. So was the book based on an exact true story, or the story / myth of this tattooist?

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  2. Justanotherpageturner3 April 2019 at 01:11

    The author visited Auschwitz and researched journals including lists of prisoners. From these she found Lale and all his details including prisoner number, DOB and role as tattoist. There were also Penal Unit records, detailing his punishment including dates of confinement and who tortured him. The author also visited Lale’s hometown in Slovakia. The author has included pictures of these journals, maps, pictures and details of her trips in the back of the book.

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