As with the majority of historical fiction novels I read with a WW2 background this was a highly emotional read with an incredible story and I loved it!

Sara, a German born Jew in a long standing family of tailors and seamstresses finds her life changed irrevocably forever when war breaks out. Her family torn apart, life as she has known it over and finding herself sent first to Ravenbruck concentration camp and then Auschwitz.

Being an adept seamstress helps save Sara from the more extreme horrors and situations within these camps. A somewhat "easier" situation but, still one fraught with danger, , overbearing hunger, the ever growing dread of disease and the pressure of the SS over shadowing and ever watching everyone and everything.

This is a beautifully interwoven story with strong characters. Full of utter bravery, compassion, resilience love and hope.

Hope for a better future. Hope for a better world.

Both of these are strong emotions, they can promt you to want to survive any situation no matter how dire the circumstance and this story shows how simply having love and a shared hope for a world without such horror for your family, for the people around you and sometimes a love that happens when you least expect it can be the saviour you didn't know you needed.

I’ve always been a sucker for a WWI or WWII book, so when I saw this book I knew I needed to read it.

This book follows Sarah, a teenage Jewish seamstress. She comes from a long line of seamstresses and tailors. Her father owned the towns sewing shop but once their town had been invaded they were targeted and shunned for being Jewish.

Eventually Sarah and her sister are taken to a concentration camp where they are quickly used for their talents, and then transferred to Auschwitz’s to make dresses for the commanders wife and friends.

Throughout the story Sarah experiences tons of heartache losing people she loves, while also finding new people to care about.

This book was gut wrenching most of the time and by the end I just couldn’t believe that one person could experience SO MANY things. If you are like me and love a historical fiction book I highly recommend picking this book up, but be ready to have your tissues handy.

Thank you for this book and exchange for my honest review. Unfortunately, I was completely disappointed in this book from the first chapter on. Therefore, I was unable to finish it and did not have any desire to do so.

Someone else in the reviews put it in the perfect words, I felt like the author was telling me the story rather than showing me, there wasn’t a huge amount of dialogue and I think it’s needed in these kinds of books. The story did make me cry though and I would recommend it to anybody who likes this kinds of books, it was really well told and an interesting read.

Stunning, such a harrowing heartbreaking story written so incredibly well. I absolutely loved the novel and the story, I enjoyed the tattooist of Auschwitz but I think I preferred this. I will be recommending to everyone as a must read.

It did start slightly slow however after 20% I flew through it and couldn’t put it down. I stayed up most of the night just finishing it.

My Instagram post is to follow

This book follows Sara, a Jewish teen, through the onset of WWII and the changes the Nazi regime made on her daily life. Then gives a personal relevance to her time interned in concentration camps.

I didn't like how the author jumped through time without any dates. (Even "fall of 41" or something would have been helpful). It was very simplistic writing, like maybe it was meant for tweens and teens(?). There were many repeated metaphors and phrases that irked me, but overall I liked the book.

It is an easy read with historical insight that I would recommend to anyone over age 10.

In this piece of World War II historical fiction, McAdam brings Sara Schonflies, the latest in a line of skilled tailors and seamstresses, to life. As a young Jewish woman in Germany, the rise of the Nazis has made life incredibly difficult. When she and her sisters are sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau, their sewing skills keep them alive as they sew dresses for Nazi wives. Following Sara from Germany to the camps and Palestine, this novel is in the vein of similar works by Heather Morris and Roberta Kagan with its focus on Jewish women under Nazi rule and their struggles and triumphs. With brilliant characters, a complex and well-developed plot, and great heart, this novel, through Sara’s eyes, brings her world to life. A story of friendship, sisterhood, strength, and skill, McAdam’s prose and characters, as well as the historical research, bring Nazi Germany to life. The depth of detail and historical information adds to the atmosphere and tone of the book, bringing the horrors of Auschwitz to life in this complex work of historical fiction. The characters are the heart of this particular story, and Sara’s relationships with other characters further humanize her and the larger narrative in this fascinating novel.

There are so many stories to come out of WWII. The Greatest Generation is said to be the American soldiers that fought in WWII, but I think it could be said for those who survived it as well, whether they were part of the resistance or surviving a concentration camp. As teenager Sara, watches Germany change around her, not sure what to do. Sara's father is a tailor and was teaching Sara to be a seamstress. Sara ends up in Ravensbrück. Because she has skills of a seamstress, she was sent to help make uniforms for the Nazis. She is eventually transferred Auschwitz where she had to create the latest fashions for the Nazi wives and dignitaries. Despite everything Sara faces, sickness, death of family, near starvation, she still has the will to survive. I appreciated this book follows what happens after the liberation of the concentration camps.

I enjoyed this book, the writing was well done, the characters interesting, the history good, the plot kept my attention. But it needed to be more - longer, the pacing was off so it was too short & quick!

This was a very well done heartbreaking story of life in the concentration camps. I feel like the story was very well done and did a great job conveying what life was like for the Jews in the concentration camps. I look forward to reading more by this author. If you are a fan of historical fiction set during World War II, pick this one up.

The Seamstress of Auschwitz
By: CK McAdam
Publish Date: April 21, 2024

Thank you to NetGalley, Book Whisperer, and the author CK McAdam, for the advanced copy of The Seamstress of Auschwitz.

Any time I read a book about WWII period, and the Holocaust, I feel every emotion. Even in those unimaginable dark times, goodness, love and hope can shine through. I greatly enjoyed this book, being able to read from a different viewpoint, as a seamstress who received what could be considered better or privileged treatment in the worst of conditions but wasn't spared the losses.

I absolutely recommend this book to anyone looking for a historical fiction to engross themselves into.

3.5 stars

I enjoy reading stories about the Holocaust, especially those based on true events. This one, however, didn’t grab ahold of me like most others do. While I did find certain parts of this book to be emotionally driven, as they should be considering the subject matter, I found most of the story felt rushed and detached. There wasn’t a ton of dialogue and the narration felt like the author was telling me what happened as opposed to showing me; I think that’s where I felt the lack of emotion. Overall, it was an interesting story and different from others that I’ve read, but the manner in which the author told the story is what led me to give it a lower rating.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Paper Forest Press for providing a copy of this book to review.*

Courtesy of Netgalley and The Book Whisperer, I received the ARC of The Seamstress of Auschwitz by CK McAdam.This was an interesting aspect of Holocaust literature and added to my knowledge. By creating compelling fictional characters to portray the history of seamstresses at Auschwitz, and the difficulty of relocating after WWII, the author brought this time period to life, always to be remembered.

The Seamstress of Auschwitz🪡 REVIEW

📖Goodreads Rating: 4.55
📚Genre: Historical fiction, WWII fiction
📄No. of Pages: 247
🗓️Publishing Date: April 30, 2024

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Set in Germany during the beginning of WWII, this story follows a young Jewish girl, Sara Schonflies, and her family of artfully trained tailors/seamstresses. As the Nazi regime gains power, Sara’s world begins to crumble and her family is separated. Sara and her sisters ultimately find themselves in Auschwitz, where their survival is dependent on their gifted seamstress skills while making dresses for the wives of the SS officers in command. As Sara’s life continues to fill with loss and trauma, her ties to sewing, and therefore to her family, keep her moving forward in a world she no longer recognizes.

This was a well-paced read and, with under 300 pages, a quick one too! I was drawn into the story right from the start and felt that the author did a great job balancing the heavy grief and darkness of the setting with moments of hope and the portrayal of the strength of the human spirit amidst great adversity. I did feel that it lacked depth in certain areas, such as the deaths, and perhaps it’s because I’ve read a ton much WWII fiction, but there were moments while I was reading where it felt like something I’d read before vs. something entirely new.

If you enjoy WWII fiction and liked The Tattooist of Auschwitz, this one is for you!

A special thank you to Net Galley, Paper Forest Press, and especially to C. K. McAdam for the honor of reading this copy in exchange for an honest, thoughtful review 🤍

The Seamstress of Auschwitz by C.K. McAdam is a genuinely nice historical fiction book set in Germany in 1932 and the beginning of the 2nd world War. Sara Schonflies and her family come from a family of tailors and seamstress. Her father owns a tailor's shop and Sara and her mother aunt and sisters all love to sew. The book is the story of Survival, Sisterhood Love and Loss as the family who are German Jews are ripped apart during the war. It is a deeply moving historical story and pulls at your heart strings as you follow Sara and her family as they are sent to Auschwitz and how their skills of being a Seamstress keep the sisters alive as they and other Jewish women design and make beautiful dresses for the elite Nazi women in a dedicated salon.
This is the first book I have read by this author, and it is a well-researched book and is a nice, paced book. It Is a very heart retching story told through the eyes of Sara as she tells her story of how Helene and herself try to survive this tragic time in their lives, the torment, stress, and tragedy would break most and did but Sara eventually survives through it all. Defiantly a book for anyone who loves Historical Fiction. Thanks to NetGalley and to the publishers of this book for giving me a free advance copy of the book to preview and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This fictional story was done so expertly and factually that I found myself forgetting it was not true. The terrible situations that the sisters go through are similar to many I have heard in true accounts. The characters and their emotions are live on the page and draw you in immediately. I would add this to any library for young adults and adults alike.

I really liked this. I didn't care for the super long chapters towards the end, but the pacing was nice and the plot kept me engaged. It was nice to see life after the war. I think my mom would like to read this one!

I absolutely loved this book!

Spoilers abound sorry. I know that obviously books set in concentration camps are going to have sadness, but I found this one particularly devastating when Helene died - I was so sure she and Sara were both going to survive so have Sara be left alone at what felt like the eleventh hour was really a punch in the gut! And then I was devastated all over again when we learned Paul had died and would never know that Sara had found Uncle Albert and was waiting for him as promised.

This was a rare book that stayed interesting after the main character departed Europe - oftentimes I find that the post-war ending feels extraneous and boring but this one was just right. However I would have also been interested in seeing the reunion between Sara and her brother Georg, who was sent to America to study well before the war, and her younger sister Clara who was sent on a kindertransport when she was only 10 and thus also escaped the worst of it.

The Seamstress of Auschwitz, by CK McAdam, reminded me so much of many of the WW!! novels out right now, telling of how a child grew up to learn from his/her parent how to tailor or sew, to cook, to fix watches, and so on, and this one was of the same type, thoughI still found it to be interesting.. So many Jewish children basically apprenticed to a famly member to learn how to persorm these skills at an early age and became quite proficient while still young. Hence, in the concentration camps of WWII, some of them had the opportunity to work for the Germans and avoid the gas chambers for a little while longer. It is amazing how the human spirit strives to live on despite the cruelty of war, starvation, no medical care, etc. That anyone actually survived such a horrible life is remarkable. A good book to read and see how some people could overcome such misery.

I absolutely love historical fiction novels from the WWII era, but this one unfortunately fell flat for me.

I generally didn't connect with the writing and the pacing was a little off for me. This is a heartbreaking and emotional story, one of which should be told, but I feel like this book could have benefited from more elaboration at times.