Published by Pen & Sword Genres: Holocaust, Nonfiction, War
Format: ARC, eBook
1943
Elsa is taken to Auschwitz and survives because she played an instrument and was able to join the women’s orchestra. She never told her family, her son found out later and worked hard to unearth his mother’s history, to learn more about his mother who he had a difficult relationship with.
Contemporary Day
Determined to learn more about her life “Before” he sets out to meet and interview the other orchestra musicians. His quest will take him to many countries where he learns more about the women and his mother.
I know this was a labor of love and had great personal meaning to the author and I hope this brought him peace. I love that he names all the women who were in the orchestra in the Author’s note. This is a great story which has also been told before in another book by the same title. That book was a five-star read for me. This one told the story of the same women, but the writing/storytelling did not work for me. Plus, I could not help to compare it to the other book by the same title.
A harrowing and worthwhile story about the women’s orchestra in Auschwitz and one man’s attempt to learn more about his mother’s secret past.
Others enjoyed this more than I did, please seek out their reviews as well. It was hard for me to get past the way the book was written.
Thank you to Penn & Sword and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.