Heather Morris’ novel The Tattooist of Auschwitz is based on interviews with Holocaust survivor Ludwig (Lale) Sokolov who was the tattooist in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp during the height of World War II. Lale was the person who would tattoo the numbers on men and women (he did not tattoo children according to this novel) coming into the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp in 1942. Morris has taken the interviews with Lale to create a fictional story about love, courage, and hope during one of the darkest times in recent history. The Tattooist of Auschwitz is not only historical and biographical fiction, but also a harrowing love story about how the power of love can keep anyone going, even in the darkest of times.
Lale is an incredibly likeable character who the reader will cheer for and cry for time and time again throughout The Tattooist of Auschwitz. Morris has done a wonderful job creating a protagonist that readers will enjoy learning about, and readers are bound to feel joy from Lale’s persevering personality. As the story progresses, Lale falls in love with a woman named Gita, who just happens to be Lale’s wife in real life. The reader will find that they will be cheering for Lale and Gita all throughout the novel, Morris has done an excellent job of portraying what unconditional love is, even in the absolute worst circumstances. The antagonists throughout The Tattooist of Auschwitz are all of the Nazi SS Officers that Lale and his cohorts have to deal with at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. Morris has written some brutal scenes that are bound to make the reader feel pain and an unbearable sadness for the men, women, and children who were subjected to these heinous cruelties during World War II. While Lale was the tattooist at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp he ends up befriending one of the SS Officers named Baretski. Even though Baretski takes part of the horrendous acts at Auschwitz-Birkenau, he seems to still have a soul as he unlikely becomes Lale’s friend and there is a shared respect, be it a bare minimum. Morris uses Baretski as a metaphor to show that even amongst the vilest and cruellest, there can be beacons of hope.
The overall story that Morris has written is absolutely fascinating and it keeps the reader entertained throughout the entire novel. A lot of the story takes place at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp with the last quarter of the novel focusing on Lale’s escape. The beginning can seem to drag on in some parts, leaving the reader wondering how Lale is ever going to get out of that wretched place. Since the first three quarters of The Tattooist of Auschwitz are more of a slow burn, the last part of the novel can seem out of place and rushed. The characters in Morris’ novel are all believable and well written. It is easy to see that Morris put a lot of effort into researching various aspects for The Tattooist of Auschwitz and has created a hauntingly beautiful piece of historical fiction that not only reminds us of those who lost their lives in the Holocaust, but also reminds us that love truly can conquer all.
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Synopsis | Goodreads
In April 1942, Lale Sokolov, a Slovakian Jew, is forcibly transported to the concentration camps at Auschwitz-Birkenau. When his captors discover that he speaks several languages, he is put to work as a Tätowierer (the German word for tattooist), tasked with permanently marking his fellow prisoners.
Imprisoned for more than two and a half years, Lale witnesses horrific atrocities and barbarism—but also incredible acts of bravery and compassion. Risking his own life, he uses his privileged position to exchange jewels and money from murdered Jews for food to keep his fellow prisoners alive.
One day in July 1942, Lale, prisoner 32407, comforts a trembling young woman waiting in line to have the number 34902 tattooed onto her arm. Her name is Gita, and in that first encounter, Lale vows to somehow survive the camp and marry her.
A vivid, harrowing, and ultimately hopeful re-creation of Lale Sokolov’s experiences as the man who tattooed the arms of thousands of prisoners with what would become one of the most potent symbols of the Holocaust, The Tattooist of Auschwitz is also a testament to the endurance of love and humanity under the darkest possible conditions.
