genre: historical fiction
When Lale's cattle car arrives in Auschwitz, he has no idea the horrors that await him there. How could he? Soon, his tenacity and knack for being in the right place at the right time lands him in a safer position than most: that of the tattooist, or tätowierer, who inks the identification numbers onto every person that arrives at the camp. The woman he meets there and how he survives is at the heart of this story about love and the will to survive.
Ugh. When I got to the end and realized it was based on a true story, it helped me not feel so frustrated at the horrible writing. For such an incredible tale, it is told to us in the prose equivalent of a monotone whisper. There is no character development at all, no umph, no spark. It's a fast read because I did care about Lale's experiences but disappointing as a novel.
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