What do you think?
Rate this book
Music Maker of Auschwitz IV
The inspirational true story of an Allied POW appointed Kapellmeister to the Nazis in Auschwitz.
When called up to fight in yet another World War, Drum Major Jackson promised his beloved wife Mabel that he would return to lead his band and play for her once more.
In May 1940, he was captured at Dunkirk and interned in several German forced labour camps throughout Poland. Two years later he was transferred to Auschwitz IV, part of the notorious concentration camp complex where it is not widely known held Allied POWs.
When his captors appointed Jackson their ‘Kapellmeister’ (man in charge of music), he seized the opportunity to provide entertainment for his fellow prisoners at rehearsals, and cover for escapees during concerts.
Finally liberated in May 1945, malnourished and gravely ill, Jackson carried his secret war diary—an incredible exposé on five years of life and death in Nazi concentration camps.
THE MUSIC MAKER OF AUSCHWITZ IV, based on Jackson’s diary, is written by his granddaughter. It is a thrilling testament to the resilience one man found in the darkest of times through his two greatest loves—music and the woman who waited for him.
When called up to fight in yet another World War, Drum Major Jackson promised his beloved wife Mabel that he would return to lead his band and play for her once more.
In May 1940, he was captured at Dunkirk and interned in several German forced labour camps throughout Poland. Two years later he was transferred to Auschwitz IV, part of the notorious concentration camp complex where it is not widely known held Allied POWs.
When his captors appointed Jackson their ‘Kapellmeister’ (man in charge of music), he seized the opportunity to provide entertainment for his fellow prisoners at rehearsals, and cover for escapees during concerts.
Finally liberated in May 1945, malnourished and gravely ill, Jackson carried his secret war diary—an incredible exposé on five years of life and death in Nazi concentration camps.
THE MUSIC MAKER OF AUSCHWITZ IV, based on Jackson’s diary, is written by his granddaughter. It is a thrilling testament to the resilience one man found in the darkest of times through his two greatest loves—music and the woman who waited for him.
324 pages, Paperback
Published March 3, 2021
6 people are currently reading
117 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
July 31, 2023
The Music Maker of Auschwitz IV by Jaci Byrne is an interesting story taken from the diary notes of WWII Prisoner of War, Drum Major Henry Jackson (b1898-d1964). The book starts with recollections of the time immediately prior to Henry going to war – we learn about his wife Mabel, his children, and his life in Britain at the time.
Henry was caught by the Nazis on the Franco-Belgian border in mid-1940. Reading the details of a participant in the war in Europe, one realises just how brutal it was – the German’s attacks were ferocious and unrelenting. Henry was part of the medical-corps, and as such was often looking after injured allied soldiers in makeshift conditions, with meagre supplies. You can really feel a sense of hopelessness regarding his situation. When captured – they were kept captive in various labour camps, eventually he and his fellow POWs were marched to Poland to be detained in Auschwitz Camp IV, for POWs. The treatment he and the other POWs received on this march (death march) was appalling. Stragglers were either left to die, or shot.
Henry regularly added to his secret diary up until the end of the war in 1945. Naturally, we read about the atrocities committed by the Nazis, and the even-more brutal way they treated others, such as the Poles and Jews. He survived five years of not knowing if he was going to be alive at the end of the day – imagine the fatigue, mentally and physically?
Henry was a keen musician, and a good one at that. He was given the responsibility of creating and managing the ‘camp band’. They would put on shows periodically for the Germans as well as the POWs. It seemed to be the main thing that kept him going. That and the love for his family, particularly his wife (“the wife”), Mabel.
The final few chapters details Henry’s return home following the end of the war. This was no easy thing, as you could imagine. Sometimes it’s difficult to reintegrate back into family life after a hard day at work, imagine doing the same after 5 years as a POW?
For those interested in WWII history, you will find this a worthwhile read. The book was written by his granddaughter Jaci Byrne, taken from his notes he kept secret during his time in captivity.
4 Stars
Henry was caught by the Nazis on the Franco-Belgian border in mid-1940. Reading the details of a participant in the war in Europe, one realises just how brutal it was – the German’s attacks were ferocious and unrelenting. Henry was part of the medical-corps, and as such was often looking after injured allied soldiers in makeshift conditions, with meagre supplies. You can really feel a sense of hopelessness regarding his situation. When captured – they were kept captive in various labour camps, eventually he and his fellow POWs were marched to Poland to be detained in Auschwitz Camp IV, for POWs. The treatment he and the other POWs received on this march (death march) was appalling. Stragglers were either left to die, or shot.
Henry regularly added to his secret diary up until the end of the war in 1945. Naturally, we read about the atrocities committed by the Nazis, and the even-more brutal way they treated others, such as the Poles and Jews. He survived five years of not knowing if he was going to be alive at the end of the day – imagine the fatigue, mentally and physically?
Henry was a keen musician, and a good one at that. He was given the responsibility of creating and managing the ‘camp band’. They would put on shows periodically for the Germans as well as the POWs. It seemed to be the main thing that kept him going. That and the love for his family, particularly his wife (“the wife”), Mabel.
The final few chapters details Henry’s return home following the end of the war. This was no easy thing, as you could imagine. Sometimes it’s difficult to reintegrate back into family life after a hard day at work, imagine doing the same after 5 years as a POW?
For those interested in WWII history, you will find this a worthwhile read. The book was written by his granddaughter Jaci Byrne, taken from his notes he kept secret during his time in captivity.
4 Stars
July 11, 2022
"The Music Maker of Auschwitz IV, based on Jackson’s diary, is written by his granddaughter. It is a thrilling testament to the resilience one man found in the darkest of times through his two greatest loves—music and the woman who waited for him."
The description of this book is adequate for any review to add to other than it sheds light on the deplorable conditions experienced by Drum Major Jackson who was captured in 1940 and interned in several German forced labour camps throughout Poland and two years later transferred to Auschwitz IV where Allied POWs were interned in this notorious concentration camp.
Jackson detailed his experiences, deprivations, starvation and brutality to him and his fellow prisoners. Having a musical background saved him at times from the harsh work duties that others laboured and died. He was able to create makeshift concerts with others, anyone capable of holding a tune on anything available.
Arriving home malnourished and extremely ill, physically and mentally he found himself at odds with the changed face of women who had to take up the responsibilities of men while they were away at war. Long gone are the gloved hands, pretty hats and compliant nature of women, developing strong and decisive attitudes. This is difficult for many returned service men who also suffered with night terrors and poor mental health. Jackson fits into all these scenarios and to make things worse he jumps to conclusions when hearing a baby’s cry in their house believing that his wife, the only thing that kept him going while a POW had been unfaithful and having a baby. It takes some time and the intervention of his mother in law to relay the truth of events, however, it takes much more time for him to accept the child as his own, their daughter of the baby refusing to be the mother.
The book is slow going in parts as with most diaries with repetitive scenarios.
The description of this book is adequate for any review to add to other than it sheds light on the deplorable conditions experienced by Drum Major Jackson who was captured in 1940 and interned in several German forced labour camps throughout Poland and two years later transferred to Auschwitz IV where Allied POWs were interned in this notorious concentration camp.
Jackson detailed his experiences, deprivations, starvation and brutality to him and his fellow prisoners. Having a musical background saved him at times from the harsh work duties that others laboured and died. He was able to create makeshift concerts with others, anyone capable of holding a tune on anything available.
Arriving home malnourished and extremely ill, physically and mentally he found himself at odds with the changed face of women who had to take up the responsibilities of men while they were away at war. Long gone are the gloved hands, pretty hats and compliant nature of women, developing strong and decisive attitudes. This is difficult for many returned service men who also suffered with night terrors and poor mental health. Jackson fits into all these scenarios and to make things worse he jumps to conclusions when hearing a baby’s cry in their house believing that his wife, the only thing that kept him going while a POW had been unfaithful and having a baby. It takes some time and the intervention of his mother in law to relay the truth of events, however, it takes much more time for him to accept the child as his own, their daughter of the baby refusing to be the mother.
The book is slow going in parts as with most diaries with repetitive scenarios.
March 12, 2022
A inspirational true story and a gripping read of true resilience and love a real eye opener I look forward to reading more books like this
October 8, 2023
For me it was a strange book.
Firstly I found the title very confusing because of word Auschwitz in it.
Auschwitz- the name of notorious German concentration/extermination camp where millions of people have been cruelly murdered.
Although the full name in the title is Auschwitz IV, but reading other reviews I got impression that nobody bothered to find a difference, and there is, and a big one.
Auschwitz IV - look here - LINK
Author of the diary, Harry Jackson, was moved there in April 1942, that's his relation - ".. we march then to Blechhammer which is a sub-camp of a place called Auschwitz.."
It refers to Blechhammer, a chemical plant located over 65 km from Auschwitz. See here ==> LINK.
At that point I felt quite upset, I felt that using name of Auschwitz in relation to P.O.W. camp which happened to be in a place quite loosely related to dreadful concentration camp is not fair.
I looked for some information about the author of the book - Jaci Byrne - and found something shocking.
In 2018 Jaci Byrne published a book - The Music Maker. One POW provided hope for thousands. I looked into it, it is basically the same text as in The Music Maker of Auschwitz published in 2021.
There is however one significant difference - book without Auschwitz in the title got only 9 ratings, Adding Auschwitz in the title attracted 124 ratings.
I compared text of both books, the only difference I found is that in a copy published in 2021 name Auschwitz appears some dozen times more than in 2018.
No comments.
Now, the actual diary - I found it very honest and touching, but on the other hand the author of the diary had a very limited perspective so the diary is quite repetitive and becomes boring.
The final part of the diary covers time spent with family ater the end of the war and return to England. I found it quite different from the relation from POW camp and very touching, but then - Jaci Byrne, the author of the book, admitted that she added some warm accents to this part of the story ==> LINK.
I loved the final outcome, but it also undermined credibility of the book.
Firstly I found the title very confusing because of word Auschwitz in it.
Auschwitz- the name of notorious German concentration/extermination camp where millions of people have been cruelly murdered.
Although the full name in the title is Auschwitz IV, but reading other reviews I got impression that nobody bothered to find a difference, and there is, and a big one.
Auschwitz IV - look here - LINK
Author of the diary, Harry Jackson, was moved there in April 1942, that's his relation - ".. we march then to Blechhammer which is a sub-camp of a place called Auschwitz.."
It refers to Blechhammer, a chemical plant located over 65 km from Auschwitz. See here ==> LINK.
At that point I felt quite upset, I felt that using name of Auschwitz in relation to P.O.W. camp which happened to be in a place quite loosely related to dreadful concentration camp is not fair.
I looked for some information about the author of the book - Jaci Byrne - and found something shocking.
In 2018 Jaci Byrne published a book - The Music Maker. One POW provided hope for thousands. I looked into it, it is basically the same text as in The Music Maker of Auschwitz published in 2021.
There is however one significant difference - book without Auschwitz in the title got only 9 ratings, Adding Auschwitz in the title attracted 124 ratings.
I compared text of both books, the only difference I found is that in a copy published in 2021 name Auschwitz appears some dozen times more than in 2018.
No comments.
Now, the actual diary - I found it very honest and touching, but on the other hand the author of the diary had a very limited perspective so the diary is quite repetitive and becomes boring.
The final part of the diary covers time spent with family ater the end of the war and return to England. I found it quite different from the relation from POW camp and very touching, but then - Jaci Byrne, the author of the book, admitted that she added some warm accents to this part of the story ==> LINK.
I loved the final outcome, but it also undermined credibility of the book.
July 13, 2021
First and foremost, this is a true story.
The main character, Harry Jackson is a bit of an anomaly. He did his time during the Great War and was called up when Hitler decided to wield his sword and spread National Socialism through Europe, North Africa, the Balkans and Eastern Europe. At 41, he was a bit ripe for combat so he was placed in the medical corp. Not a taxing job but still demanding. Being a professional musician it was a bit out of his ballywich, but he kept a stiff upper lip and embraced the assignment.
By a turn of bad fate and a wrong turn, which he told the driver about, he was captured at Dunkirk and spent the next five years in captivity. This isn’t the comedy you see on “Hogan’s Heroes” or “The Great Escape,” this is more reminiscent of “The Bridge on the River Kwai.” In regards to how POW’s were treated.
Through the years there have been many arguments of the treatment dealt out by the Wehrmacht versus the SS. In summary, both were horrendous.
Harry and his mates are forced to march 170 miles on foot with only meager rations being dolled out. If not for the locals, many more of the men would have died. For those that couldn’t continue with the march, they were shot and left to rot in the fields.
I will admit, at the 27% completion point, I as beginning to doze off. His diary entries became monotonous and repetitive. Seriously, what could be so captivating on the day-t0-day life of a POW and harsh treatment their captors kept inflicting on them? The author, Jaci, asked me stick with it. I am so glad I did!
While his time in captivity is beastly, it’s what happens when he is finally liberate and returns home to a world that has completely changed. Women are no longer second-class citizens and while Harry believed he had it rough, he was going to find out how his wife and children dealt with his absence. It was very enlightening when his wife, Mable, who he simply adored, informed him should could carry on with out him, if that was his choice.
I have no problem admitting that as the story began winding down, my eyes teared-up more than once!
This is an excellent addition to any World War Two library. Well done Jaci. A brilliant tribute to your late grand-father.
Five stars!
September 13, 2024
Another DNF... two in a row. That hurts!
I gave up on this once Harry came home after the war, it went from a highly questionable diary to a really bad piece of fiction in the blink of eye.
That's all I will say about that!
I gave up on this once Harry came home after the war, it went from a highly questionable diary to a really bad piece of fiction in the blink of eye.
That's all I will say about that!
September 22, 2021
A beautiful and emotive read!
May 16, 2022
This was a great read - hard in places but it was worth it. It’s hard to imagine how these men survived the atrocities of war and how badly they were treated. Highly recommend it
April 21, 2022
If you're looking for a book similar to the Tattooist of Auschwitz, this is only similar in title.
These are diary entries from a soldier, a prisoner of war, which really made me rethink some of what I thought I knew about WWII.
While it was very eye-opening and definitely worth the read, it's sometimes a bit monotonous because that was his life for weeks and years on end during his captivity.
However - and I cannot stress this enough - it was a great story for musicians to read. He talks about the power of music over and over again and how being allowed and also encouraged to play brought him comfort but also helped those other prisoners find some comfort in their horrible times. I thought it was beautiful how he was always so excited to make music even in the worst places and for the worst people.
This book introduces us to the soldiers' side of the war as opposed to the Jews' perspective. And while he was a prisoner, his experience was incredibly different, though still quite harrowing, than that of the Jews, gypsies, and others interned in the concentration camps. 9/10 and would recommend to musicians especially.
These are diary entries from a soldier, a prisoner of war, which really made me rethink some of what I thought I knew about WWII.
While it was very eye-opening and definitely worth the read, it's sometimes a bit monotonous because that was his life for weeks and years on end during his captivity.
However - and I cannot stress this enough - it was a great story for musicians to read. He talks about the power of music over and over again and how being allowed and also encouraged to play brought him comfort but also helped those other prisoners find some comfort in their horrible times. I thought it was beautiful how he was always so excited to make music even in the worst places and for the worst people.
This book introduces us to the soldiers' side of the war as opposed to the Jews' perspective. And while he was a prisoner, his experience was incredibly different, though still quite harrowing, than that of the Jews, gypsies, and others interned in the concentration camps. 9/10 and would recommend to musicians especially.
March 28, 2024
I listened to this and the narration was good. I 'enjoyed' the first two thirds, as in found it interesting/sad, ghastly etc and the fact that it was based on the authors grandfathers diaries is wonderful. My own grandfather kept a war diary and incorporated it into his life story which I'm currently reading, by sheer coincidence. Jackson was held captive for five years in a variety of German labour camps, finally ending up at Auschwitz IV (I had no idea that this camp contained Allied POW's). His resilience and determination to live, despite being very ill at times, and starving, is extraordinary and seems to be entirely based on his love for his wife (and daughters) and his promise to return to them. Maybe if he hadn't been able to indulge in his love of music things would have been different. I lost interest a bit once he returned from the war, and did find the continual use of 'The Wife' very annoying!
April 30, 2023
An Auschwitz memoire from a different perspective, as a war prisoner from the British army. He keeps this secret journal for several years when being in labour camps and eventually ending in Auschwitz IV. Whilst the words written were likely never intended for anyone else to read, I thought the person was quite judgemental and up on his high horse when returning form the was and not having a clue to think about what life has been like for others, including when he returns home to a young baby and suspects his menopausal wife...
There are many similarities to other experiences, how Jews were treated, mainly the lack of food, quick punishments etc, but as a prisoner of war they had so many more liberties and did get paid for their labour. Not an easy read to imagine life during the war time and how they survived for days with very little or no food and constant fear.
There are many similarities to other experiences, how Jews were treated, mainly the lack of food, quick punishments etc, but as a prisoner of war they had so many more liberties and did get paid for their labour. Not an easy read to imagine life during the war time and how they survived for days with very little or no food and constant fear.
January 17, 2026
I’ve read a number of WWI and WWII novels, including ones like this based on prisoners of war or others held in forced labour camps and Nazi concentration camps.
The basis of the true story resonates and also, unlike other similar war based tales which end soon after the characters leave the camps, this one goes on to tell of the events that happen once a POW returns to England and tries to adjust to life back home. It doesn’t just focus on the POW’s adjustment once home, but also that of his family and I liked the historical references to the changes for women and their lives back home during the 1940s.
The basis of the true story resonates and also, unlike other similar war based tales which end soon after the characters leave the camps, this one goes on to tell of the events that happen once a POW returns to England and tries to adjust to life back home. It doesn’t just focus on the POW’s adjustment once home, but also that of his family and I liked the historical references to the changes for women and their lives back home during the 1940s.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 16, 2025
Questionable diary littered with inaccuracies, for example, ranks. The title is misleading as he was at a prisoner of war camp some 55/60 miles away from the work and extermination camp.
I really could not finish this book and do not reccomend it.
As can be seen from my reading lists I have read plenty on the subject of the holocaust and this didn't cut it unfortunately.
I really could not finish this book and do not reccomend it.
As can be seen from my reading lists I have read plenty on the subject of the holocaust and this didn't cut it unfortunately.
January 5, 2024
I listened to whilst working, it was an interesting book. It gives you an insight to an English soldier captured and placed into a prisoner of war camp and what they went through. The war and then after the war how families have to navigate blended again.
September 1, 2024
A truly heart wrenching magnificent story. Read and developed to honour all those involved.
May 4, 2025
Would not recommend
November 15, 2022
Very different from the series by Heather Morris but those books peaked an interest that I wanted to learn more about. It was interesting to read a different experience and from a prisoner of war camp. Another emotional read but would recommend.
March 3, 2025
Engem nem fogott meg, alapból érdekel a téma, sok könyvet is olvastam belőle. Ez túl monoton volt az ízlésemhez.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews