Žena bez čísla

by Iby Knill, Zuzana Kamenská (Translator)

As seen on BBC televisionThe Woman Without a Number is the inspirational story of holocaust survivor Iby Knill, whose early childhood was spent in Czechoslovakia before her parents - alarmed at the persecution of Jews in Germany - smuggled her over the border to Hungary.While there, she was caught by the Security Police, imprisoned and tortured, not just for having Jewish connections, but for being in Hungary illegally and for aiding the resistance movement. Eventually, she was sent to the infamous Auschwitz-Birkenau camp.In June 1944, Iby left Auschwitz-Birkenau by volunteering for labour at a hospital unit. Transported to Lippstadt, she was put in charge of a hospital and risked her life protecting the weak and helpless from the gas chambers before being freed by Allied Forces at Easter, 1945, and going on to marry a British Officer.This is a truly remarkable tale that has waited sixty years to be told.

Genres: History, Holocaust, World War II

296 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was not quite what I expected. The book splits between her life in the resistance, the concentration camps and her life after liberation before reaching England.
The vast majority of the story is outside the concentration camps and often she has the honesty to say that she does not remember details about being detained or life in the concentration camps. However she can often go off on a tangent and spend pages talking about darning, sewing and detailed wedding plans and gifts. Iby loves talking about sewing and linen. However, she'll throw in a sentence about a person and say 'but that is a different story' but unfortunately that is the story I wanted. It reminds me of talking to your grandparents and listening to a lot of detail to get to the heart of the story. This book needed an editor to reorganise and focus the story. I saw Iby Knill on tv and bought this book because she was such an amazing person but this book does not do her justice.

[Sarah u]

25/09/2018
Today I visited the National Holocaust centre in England and heard Iby Knill talk about her life in occupied Europe during the Second World War, which was amazing.

[Katka R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5*
Tak celkom som nepochopila, o čom to malo byť. Či o spôsobe života v prvej polovici minulého storočia, alebo o hrôzach 2. sv. vojny. V žiadnom prípade nechcem zmenšovať mieru utrpenia, ktorú Iby Knill zažila, ale Žena bez čísla sa mi zdala byť taká akási neúplná a nejednoznačná.

[Bob Marshall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remember two things, please:
Under the skin we are all the same
and – each of you can make a difference.
So do not disappoint me!
I read the book after Iby Knill (age 98) came to Bradford Cathedral for the 2022 Holocaust Memorial Service and read to us the poem which is a summary of her story.
It is an honest account of the life of a teenage girl who was lucky to survive without having to do anything she was ashamed of.
The point of the title is that Iby was in a group of women who were not tattoed on arrival at Auschwitz. It was appropriate that she married a man whose surname was Knill.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me forever to finish, but it was soooo worth it! I have always found books about the Holocaust extremely interesting, and Iby pretty much went through everything a Jew living in that time could have gone through. It was also really cool to read a book while living in a place that she lived in (she even mentions the street I live on by name!).

[Jennifer Pirie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A truly different view. About a life, not just a place.

[CM · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very enjoyable read and very humbling.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great story taking us up to 1946. Iby lived through a lot of things that many of us find hard to imagine. She chose not to tell her story until much later in her life. An amazing woman.

[Jacqui Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book I couldn't put down

A very moving tale . A story which should not be forgotten. Very heart rendering. What a brave woman s h e was

[Alison Brownlee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is one of those books that you probably shouldn't enjoy reading because of its subject matter. However I found out that I could not put it down and wanted to keep reading if only to get to the silver lining at the end. I liked that the book seemed real, honest and in no way filled with hatred towards what happened to her which naturally you might expect. It's a bitter sweet, very sad tale of life, loss and the will to keep on living. The who Natzi treatment of the Jews is such a dark stain on our history and it is not often that you read an account so well rounded as after all life does, eventually for the lucky ones at least, goes on. My only criticism of the book would be that those author throws in characters in one sentence and in the next dismisses them with 'that's a story for another time.' There where far to many unanswered questions about people and as a very curious individual myself I kept thinking 'no but I want to know.' Other than that I think it's a really good read of a modest, brave and interesting woman.

[Rebecca Haslam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was fortunate enough to meet this lady earlier this week at a Holocaust Memorial event here in Huddersfield. She was attending the unveiling of plans for a permanent memorial to be erected in the town centre, which will now go on Huddersfield University's campus. She was kind enough, once I bought this book, along with two '6 million plus' badges, to help with the fundraising efforts, to sign it for me, and I spent the next few hours reading. Her story is one of survival, of family, of courage and ultimately one that I hope will be read and shared by many more. Each year, fewer and fewer survivors of the Holocaust atrocity remain, and their lives and stories MUST be passed on in order for everyone to never, ever forget the horrors of what happened.

[Marianna Still · Rating 4 out of 5]

An extraordinary account with minute details of everyday life which sets it apart from other Holocaust accounts. She finds a good balance between darkness and light, between sadness and humour, letting you read between the lines when recounting her most horrific experiences.

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

very interesting book but would have liked more details of time under occupation and in camps. also would have preferred it all to be In correct sequence rather than the earlier years being at the end. however excellent read about a very brave lady

[Hillingdon Libraries]

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[Rebeckah11 · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting tale of survival. However more about pre & post war events than that Holocaust itself. Although I find that slightly more realistic because recording memories of those horrific events must be painful and hard - as Knill confesses she cannot remember it all.

[Kazimiera pendrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

aook really great read very well writen an interestin i would recommend this b