Member Reviews
A beautifully written story. Highlights the mental and physical turmoil experienced by prisoners of the Nazi death camps. The discussions on the moral and ethical dilemmas associated with perpetrator and victim was insightful and expertly handled. Surprisingly approachable for such a difficult topic.
Received as free audiobook from NetGalley.
I loved the narrator and the story of Tova Friedman was interesting. She was only 4 years old when she was taken to Auschwitz. She is the youngest survivor of Auschwitz and through her memories tell us her story. Tova went on to become a therapist and to fight against anti-semitism through writing and speaking to keep her story alive so history does not repeat itself.
This book was amazing and I loved every minute of it. It is a must read for everyone! Having a small child of my own this book made me so emotional. I can not stop raving about it to everyone. Do yourself a favor and read this book; I promise you will not be able to put it down.
The Daughter of Auschwitz is Tova Friedman's memoir. She has the distinction of possibly being the youngest survivor of the notorious death camp Auschwitz. She was just a year old when war broke out. She was 4-years-old when her family moved into the Jewish Ghetto. She was 5-years-old when she and her family were sent to Auschwitz and just 6-years-old when the camp was liberated.
Since I read a lot of WWII fiction, I've started seeking out nonfiction titles and fictional stories that cover aspects of the era that I might not have heard.
The Daughter of Auschwitz is unique in the fact that Tova (she is Tola in the book as that was her childhood name) is such a young child during the war. Her memoir details her life after the war as well.
This is a hard book to listen to. It's not that I wasn't aware of the horrors that occurred in the ghettos and camps, but it was the fact that a child was witnessing it. She mentions how she helped her parents helped carry bodies to graves dug by her father after the Germans had massacred members of the ghetto. She says she could do much because she was so young but she did what she could - lift a leg, cradle a head.
Can you imagine telling your five-year-old that she needed to behave in a way so that she wasn't shot? How many 5-year-olds do you know have enough control to only go to the bathroom twice a day? Or stand in a line, outside, without fidgeting for an hour?
In a lot of ways Tola was way more mature than her age. But she also kept some of her innocence and so spared some of the fear that the adults leaved with.
One of the reasons I like reading stories from WWII is because I love stories of people overcoming adversity and the human spirit enduring. And Friedman has embraced this and has thrived. In that sense this is a story of hope as well as resilience.
The audiobook is well done. Saskia Maarleveld is excellent as the narrator. Her voice is easy on the ear and I easily followed the story.
My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Wednesday - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2022/09/the-daughter-of-auschwitz-by-tova.html
Listened to this ever powerful and important memoir in one day. Tova and her family's story is one that will stick with you for a long time.
Thank you to author, Tova Friedman, for bravely sharing such a moving story, Harlequin Audio, and NetGalley for an ALC. Listening was an honor.
This is a powerful memoir, everything she endured and saw during the most impressionable years of her life and still was able to have as she called it 'a happy life'. It's truly a testament to her mom and their perseverance that they survived the camps. It's hard to comprehend the atrocities that took place during that time. Great memoir.
Thank you Tova Friedman for going thru your most painful memories to write this book, to Harlequin Audio, and NetGalley.
This book was incredibly powerful. Everyone needs to be reminded of how horrible the Holocaust was so that it can never happen again.