Unlocking the Doors: A Woman's Struggle Against Intolerance

by Eva Olsson

Autobiography of a Holocaust survivor.

Genres: Holocaust, War

205 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

If anyone has a chance to hear Eva Olsson talk - don't miss it. She is an amazing person and her talk is amazing and heartfelt and tragic. What an amazing woman. She is 90 years old and talked for 2 hours straight and the entire audience was silent and respectful while listening. It is a once in a lifetime experience and I am glad I heard her talk.

[Jules · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have had the pleasure to hear Eva Olsson speak and to also meet her. Just when you think life is difficult, here comes a woman who shows you what true suffering is. She carries her burden like a quiet hero and her story can renew anyone's faith in the human race.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my 2nd favourite book that Eva has written. My 1st favourite was Remembering for Ever as it talks of touring Europe as Eva was taken from her home & ends in Sweden. I am Canadian & never have been back to my ancestors lands in Europe or Norway. For me that book gave me a interesting tour. This novel unlocking the doors was emotional for me as a mother, the suffering & trying to raise a child to be the best she can be while teaching her that all living things are to be respected, as well as religions not just our own & people from various countries. Growing up where I grew up in Ontario I didn’t know their was so much racism, especially to those that look the same as many European people based on their religion. As I married Catholic & reminded Presbyterian this was not an easy life for my husband & I, however we raised her to believe in God & Jesus & it was her decision not to confirm to either dominations. I didn’t realized that the Jewish faith was similar in a variety of dominations. I learned a lot in this novel & all of her novels & would recommend this to anyone with an open mind for learning, trying to understand another time & another place when you were not born yet. I can’t speak for people not born before the mid 70’s as life & their perspective would be different from Mine, however I assume this novel will touch everyone differently based on your own growing up, how you view the world during & before & after WW11, & your perspective on the past, present & future. Something I say to myself everyday that I may think of hating something, I say to myself, hate leads to evil & Eva says never to hate anything it’s too strong of a word, use dislike it has less of a negative powerful effect. Hitler turned a whole nation to hate Jews, & people he deemed unworthy & that lead to WW11 & why he was so successful for so long in causing suffering to innocent people. Trump is doing much the same thing if you compare his speeches to Hitlers. Of course one major difference is that Hitler was highly educated & persuaded people at a desperate time during the Great Depression, where as Trump is just racists, says whatever comes into his head & somehow people believed he will make a better America at least for white Christian people. It is sad that humans have not gone very far from WW11 Natzis as they tend to be persuaded to HATE, they learn it somewhere & it continues to grow to hurt millions of people like the suffering of many people in the states dying needlessly from the War on COVID 19 that their president doesn’t take as seriously as the Canadian Prime minister where all lives matter, not just Canadians. All life matters I believe in Canada as we are a multicultural country. I hope someday that my country will be able to accept that a Canadian is not a colour, race, religion, or sex. A Canadian is a friendly human beings who accepts people as they are & accepts them be it refugee, foreigner or new Canadian as a free person to make Canada the best country in the world to live. I learned this from Eva that my view of Canadians being so friendly to refugees & foreigners she didn’t experience when she first came to Canada. Yes it was right after the war but unfortunately the war didn’t stop all racism. I would love to hear her speak. I met her once by accident as I saw her in the high school I work in & she was leaning against the window frame. I was heading to the office & as my job as an Educational Assistant with special needs children I was having a very frustrating day. One look at her & I felt peace, a calm come over me. I meant to speak to her but I liked the feeling I felt from her & didn’t want to lose that feeling of calm so I walked back to the classroom. The whole time wondering about how I felt so much calm from her & who she was. At the time special needs students were not allowed to hear most presenters in the gym because they were afraid they would interrupt so they stayed in their special classes now they are allowed to go to any presentation & stay even if it’s hard for them to be quiet including Remembrance Day because the soldiers fought for their freedom to be who they are today too! I hope someday to have the privilege to hear her speak.

[Margo Reville · Rating 5 out of 5]

Words cannot describe how truly amazing, strong, powerful, brave woman Eva Olsson is. After sharing her stories from childhood to being a Holocaust Survivor through school or public presentations and writing her own books, has been so empowering! Everything she has gone through with losing her FREEDOM , she still has a positive attitude, and also keeps living her life in the moment not in the past. It was a pleasure hearing her speak when I was in High School and recently hearing her speak a month ago, at the age of 100 turning 101 this year (2025). I am truly honour to have meet a wonderful strong lady! I will always look up to her, as she has been a role model for me. It is amazing to hear her continue to tell her stories and educate the next generation!

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

In relating her personal life experiences, Dr Olsson shared facts from her perspective as well as how they affected her when they happened. Reading, was like walking with her and seeing positive, horrible, scary, and some joyful experiences.

Although my own views do not align exactly with Dr Olssons’, I can understand how she has come to hers. She explains her life views, concerns and hopes for the next generations very well. It is definitely a good book to read and ponder.

[Chelly Couvrette · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book took me back to high school when I got to see Dr. Eva Olsson speak and run the tech for her presentation.

Her writing is very similar to the cadence of her spoken presentations and it brought me right back to all of the emotions of hearing her speak in person.

[Emilie Pelland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing. I cannot wait to hear her speak at my school.

[Alexia Ferrari · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible story of acceptance by a Holocaust survivor.

[Chris Gartshore · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing book. 15 years after I read it and I was able to remember the name, add it into this new app on my phone simply to review it.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book. An especially important considering all the racism and rise of Nazism that is going on. I have met Eva Olsson several times. At talks at school and once or twice through my lineup at work. She lives in my hometown and so I have a bit of a personal connection to the story. It's sad what she endured and what people continue to endure today. That even after the Holocaust we still haven't learned our lesson and allow hate to commit crimes against individuals different from us. I wish that the story had spent a bit more time on her childhood and experience during the war but I did enjoy it overall. I'm sad that she lost her husband so young but glad she has continued to speak out and that she is surrounded with love and family which is more than most can hope for.

[Lorna Driscoll · Rating 5 out of 5]

A remarkable and inspirational woman!

[Hope Lily-Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that is a must-read!

[Alana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book of survival, triumph, forgiveness and solitude.
We all should stove to be a little more like Eva Olsson.
So greatful to have met and listened to her.

[Gisele]

An impactful read with an important message