‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’ is a historical fiction based on a true story of holocaust survivors. It is about Lale Sokolov — a 24 year old jew who was sent to Aushwitz in 1942 where he found his love interest, Gita Furman, a sweet Solovokian. It portrays an interesting and heart wrenching tale about survival and the power of love.
I have read my share of books about the holocaust, like ‘The Boy In Stripped Pajamas’ but ‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’ had a romance sub-theme which really interested me. I am an avid romance reader. When I discovered that the story is based on true events, I was more than excited to read it. BUT, the book did not stand out. The book started by introducing Lale Sokolov, who volunteered to go to Auschwitz in place of his older brother who was married and responsible for the upbringing of his family. Upon arriving at the camp, he stands out to his fellow prisoners who saves his life when he takes ill. Throughout this narrative, the writing is very plain. The sentences feel like an explanation which fail to paint any strong imaginative pictures. The build up comes when Lale is given the task to become a tattooist, which leads him to meet the female protagonist — Gita Furman. Her arrival in his life was a reason for him to survive the camps. My hand tremble as I write negatively about this real life, beautiful love story. After I finished this book, I took a moment to reflect on what I just read and came to a realisation that I, in fact liked the story. There are actual pictures, Birkenau map and accounts of Lale being taken into Penal Unit. All these added a personal touch which made me connect to the story — not to the book.
We are all aware of the horrors and dehumanising acts of WWII. ‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’ would have been like a shining sun in heavy rain portraying a delicate story in tough backgrounds. It tries hard to balance the romance with the trepidation of concentration camps but it fails. I find the problem to be the writing style. I was not shocked to found that Heather Morris is a screenwriter. She deals with dialogues and expressions more than setting scenes in words. It is pretty evident throughout the course of the book, that she deals with much of ‘she said’ ‘he said’. There are pages long conversations which are discerned to be play-like. While the writer focused on the story, there was a lack of building in environment and the background setting. Even the characters were poorly set, if felt like their whole purpose was to fall in love. The writer was telling us what is happening, instead of showing it through her words. I hardly found any sense of urgency in her language. It lacked to spark any solid emotion inside me. Lale’s journey has many turns where he finds a very sadistic doctor, his daily routine in camp and how he manages to survive. Similar with Gita. There was more of what could have been narrated. Heather Morris took 3 years interviewing Ludwig (Lale) which shows her dedication to let the world know their victorious love. I wished the same amount of time was taken to write the book too. Lale and Gita’s is a unique story, which motivates people to fall in love and win; it is about surviving in difficult situations and fighting for what you love. I respect the authors study, nonetheless, I hope the story was done justice.
GoodReads Rating : 1 Star
