Five Chimneys: A Woman Survivor's True Story of Auschwitz

by Olga Lengyel

Olga Lengyel relates one of the most terrifying stories of all time, honestly and without apologies. This authentic, recorded account is a personal, day-by-day account of a lovely woman who lived through the horrors of Auschwitz and Birchenau. This book serves as an essential reminder of one of the most heinous chapters in human history. It had been an eye-opening experience. It's a startling novel.

Genres: Holocaust, Nonfiction, History, World War II, Memoir, Biography, War

224 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1947

About the author

Fue una enfermera de nacionalidad rumana, víctima sobreviviente del Holocausto, testigo de cargo en el juicio de Bergen-Belsen, y escritora.
En tiempos de la Segunda Guerra Mundial estudió enfermería y fue esposa del doctor Miklos Lengyel, a quien asistía en su hospital de Cluj-Napoca antes de ser deportados a Auschwitz en 1944, donde a su llegada perecieron sus padres e hijos, su esposo murió después, poco antes de su liberación.
Lengyel fue la única superviviente de su familia y escribió sus vivencias en su libro Five Chimneys (Los Hornos de Hitler, en la edición en español), que se publicó en 1947. Su vida posterior al Holocausto fue dedicada a mantener la memoria de los hombres, mujeres y niños que murieron como resultado de los abusos en Auschwitz.

Reviews

[Petra X · Rating 5 out of 5]

Olga Lengyel lived through seven months of hell in Auschwitz when she chose to accompany her husband into deportation in Germany from Poland where they lived. Their children and her parents went too, and all except Olga Lengyel were murdered by the Nazis. Her husband, Dr. Lengyel, had been accused of crimes of resistance, and it seems to be her perspective is a little different from most survivor accounts. She does say that Jews and Gypsies were chosen for the worst treatment and extermination, and that German criminal prisoners and homosexuals were often chosen for guarding and other prison jobs, which they performed with a free rein on brutality.

Holocaust literature isn't just history, and it isn't just about the Jews. It's about crimes against humanity, specifically the one we now call, 'ethnic cleansing'. Obviously methods vary between Burma, Bosnia, Cambodia, Rwanda, et al, but the mind-set is always the same: a set of people are considered ethnically inferior and it is promoted politically that the quality of life, economically and in life-style will be greatly improved once the land is ridden of these people by state-sponsored murder. Five Chimneys is Olga Lengyel's story of living through this period in the concentration camps of Germany.

The lessons we can learn from her book in particular and that period in general will always be relevant. Of the terrible inhumanity that results when enough people are swayed into believing and supporting the policies that lead to the destruction of millions of people because they are told it will benefit them personally. When their avarice overcomes any idea of reality they individually as well as militarily become willing to terrorise, betray and murder in pursuit of this 'better life' without any moral sense of the evil they are doing.

Only when we link each of these terrible acts of mass murder by the state and admit that the mindset is always the same, and not separate different events. When we admit that the Holocaust, the ethnic cleansing of the Balkans, Pol Pot's killing fields et al have the same root and do not differentiate them with different 'reasons' do we stand a chance of educating people into standing up for the truth and firmly, together, against any that would persuade them that mass murder would be the right course of action for them whatever the time or place might be.

Rewritten 2 June 2013

[Greta G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Today, January 27, is International Holocaust Remembrance Day. On 27 January 1945, Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi death camp, was liberated by Soviet troops.
The victims of the Holocaust are commemorated every year on this day.

And it just so happened that on this special day, I finished reading jewish survivor Olga Lengyel's testimony about her experiences in Auschwitz-Birkenau, since her deportation in May 1944, together with her husband, their son and their newly adopted son, and her parents. Sadly, she is the only one that survived.

Her memoir, originally published in french in 1946, is not an easy read. I also have read other holocaust memoirs (Primo Levi, Imre Kertèsz, Wiesel,...), and saw several documentaries and movies on the subject, including the recent Oscar- and Golden Globe winning Hungarian movie "Son of Saul".
But this book, unlike the aforementioned, made me feel really bad for several days. It is the most frank and detailed personal account of life in hell that was the extermination camp Auschwitz-Birkenau. Thus my rating is not for enjoying the book, but for the information it provided.

The author made it her life mission to testify about the horrors she witnessed in the camp, if she would survive. And she did. Not only did she penned this book, only a year after the end of the war ; she also founded The Memorial Library in 1962 as a repository for World War II memorabilia (http://www.thememoriallibrary.org).
In 1998, she gave a 5 hour interview for the USC Shoah Foundation that can be watched on youtube (Part 1: http://youtu.be/ufxLw-xSEMM Part 2: http://youtu.be/Zq1Uh_BiMso)

Albert Einstein was impressed by her book, and wrote her a letter to thank her for it : “... Thank you for your very frank, very well written book. You have done a real service by letting the ones who are now silent and most forgotten speak”.
Furthermore, her book inspired William Styron for his classic fiction novel "Sophie's choice".

An important book.

9/10

[Dem · Rating 4 out of 5]

A moving and emotional true account of Olga Lengyel, a survivor of Auschwitz and a woman who has Given the world a heartbreaking but frank account of her seven months as a prisoner of the concentration camp. Not a word is wasted in the vivid and shocking account.

I have read numerous books on the concentration camps and am still shocked by what I read and Five Chimneys is a difficult and emotional read but an important story that was originally published in 1946 under the name of Souvenir de l’au-dela as this brave woman was determined to have the shocking details of the camps documented as quickly as possible so as the world would know the extent of the atrocities that was was committed by the Nazis. She was the sole surviving member of her immediate family and her account and story deserves to be read and listened to. I can only imagine that when the camps were librated many of the suvivours were left without voices, unable to relive the horrors and the pain they endured and afraid to speak out which makes these written accounts all the more important and they should be read by YA in schools all over the world.

This is a relatively short account page wise and yet it took me days to listen to as it is intense and emotional and I found myself exclaiming out loud so many times. Olga Lengyel writes at the beginning of this book that she feels responsible for the deaths of her parents and sons as she chose to accompany her husband who had been detained and was to be deported from Romania to Germany and how she had to live her whole life with this torture along with everything else she had endured, how would anyone ever have known the evils that were taking place and she was in no way responsible for what happened to her family and was just doing her best to stay together as a family.

Albert Einstein was so moved by her story that he wrote a personal letter to Lengyel, thanking her for her ""very frank, very well written book” <\b>

It’s books like this that make historical fiction stories on the Concentration camps pale in comparison for me and why I think works like this should be read and discussed in schools least we should ever forget.

I listened to this non fiction book on audible and the narration was pretty good.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can one ever say about such a book? That anyone had the tenacity and spirit to survive the holocaust is amazing. That you would not go completely insane under such circumstances unimaginable. Reading this book was not easy. Even though we know all the atrocities, having someone set them down in a first person narrative and knowing that these are not just tales but experiences for her was heartbreaking.

I cry over images of mistreated dogs on Pit Bulls and Parolees. Trying to imagine watching people undergo such cruelty and being unable to do anything more than struggle to survive, is more than I find bearable. I did not want to read this, but I think all of us need to. We need to for the memory of those who endured it, like Olga Lengyel, and we need to because cruelty and horror still occurs, on a lesser scale, but just as devastating to those who witness it or are subjected to it.

In the words of Olga Lengyel:

In setting down this personal record I have tried to carry out the mandate given to me by the many fellow internees at Auschwitz who perished so horribly. This is my memorial to them. God rest their poor souls! No hell anyone could conceive could equal what they endured. Frankly, I want my work to mean more than that. I want the world to read and to resolve that this must never be permitted to happen again. That after perusing this account any will still doubt, I cannot believe.

Lest we forget.

[Lewis Weinstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

UPDATE 12-22-19 ... fascinating and horrifying to read ... one Nazi atrocity after another, brought down to the personal level of a single person and a single incident ... how can people become so horrible? what do people have to do to survive in such a world?

************

This book, and In the Hell of Auschwitz, which I'm reading at the same time, are both stunning and horrific personal memoirs of what it was like to be at Auschwitz.

[Ian Mellark]

Que libro tan fuerte! Es increíble leer algo tan intenso y perturbador que sucedió hace no mucho! Increíble ver como se puede deshumanizar a las personas (victimas) y como pueden ser tan poco humanas otras personas (victimarios)... Qué triste que esto pasara. No puedo evaluar este libro, pues es algo tan fuerte y real que simplemente no puedo.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you can only read one book about the holocaust, read this one. Olga Lengyel spent about a year in Auschwitz and wrote this book soon after she was liberated. Consequently, the events are sharp and fresh in her memory, not that anyone could forget this horror.

I am willing to bet that Lengyel frequently regretted surviving the camp. She arrived with her parents, her sons, and her husband. She survived the war alone. Particularly grieving was her memory of making a bad decision that cost her oldest boy his life. Upon arriving in Auschwitz the arrivals were split into two columns. Lengyel was the only member of the family placed in the column destined for the camp; the other column was heading straight to the ovens. Unaware of the situation, and wanting to spare the lad the rigors of forced labor, she declined to take her oldest boy into the work column, thereby condemning him to death. Imagine how that would haunt your nights for the rest of your life!

Lengyel was a hospital worker, which is probably the only reason she made it out of Auschwitz. As such, she was in contact with the who's who in the SS and witnessed firsthand the depredations and degradations committed against the inmates by the likes of Mengele and Grese. She is also quite forward in admitting to murdering newborn babies so that baby and mother did not both go to the ovens. Desperate times call for desperate deeds, and that's about as desperate as they come. I couldn't understand why women would become pregnant under those circumstances. No rape was reported on the part of the Germans, and Lengyel mentions promiscuity among the inmates. If pregnancy will condemn you to death, why on earth would you engage in sexual activity. Of course, much fault can be attributed to the men of the camp who wouldn't part with a crust of bread unless sexual favors were part of the recipient's gratitude.

This survivor gives a very clear account of the camp hierarchy and the layout of the camp itself. She was also witness to the panicked German evacuation when the Russian Army approached the camp, a retreat she took no small pleasure in seeing.

This is a carefully planned and well-written book. I can't say I liked it because of the subject matter, but I do appreciate it.

[Matal “The Mischling Princess” Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

When the hit movie “Sophie’s Choice” was written, it was loosely based on Olga Lengyel’s Holocaust memoir, “Five Chimneys: A Woman Survivor's True Story of Auschwitz.” Published in January 1947, this memoir was one of the earliest to be published.

After reading the book, I watched Lengyel’s USC Shoah Foundation interview that is available on YouTube. While the interview included most of what was included in the book, a few items were omitted; the interview took place in the late 1990s—almost fifty years after this book was published. This shows how important Holocaust literature is, and especially the earlier published ones.

At the end of the 1990s interview, I waited to see photographs that are often included at the end of the interviews. However, Lengyel, like so many others, had no mementos to share; her entire family had been murdered and she had been dispossessed of nearly everything.

Olga Lengyel survived one of the most horrific times in history. Even though she’s been gone now for almost twenty-five years now, her story ensures that what she experienced will never be forgotten.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is haunting, evocative and acutely unforgettable. I became interested in the holocaust after watching the movie, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. I first read the book that was tied to the movie and was so horrified by the `story' I had to learn more.

I began by first reading Night by Elie Wiesel which for an introduction into the holocaust and all that entailed I was captured by not only the evil behind the massacre but also the strength and spirit of the prisoners held captive. My heart broke for each and every single person lost and this compelled me to continue reading ... for what I didn't know but I knew I couldn't stop.

I followed Night by reading `I Have Lived A thousand Years' by Livia Bitton Jackson. I don't like to use the word enjoy when describing my feelings on reading these books, but I did learn a lot and was overcome with compassion for her story and what she went through.

My next book was The Cage by Ruth Minsky Sender. This book was my least favorite and if you had to choose one book on the holocaust I wouldn't recommend this one.

In my opinion Five Chimneys is the very best book out there that details the horror, pure evil, cruelty, humanity, kindness, strength of the prisoners and finally the overall happenings at the concentration camp/s. God bless those who suffered. It is truly a miracle those who survived had the capacity to get back up and keep going. I found myself shaking my head as Olga explained the atrocities that went on. Her tone was very matter of fact, but I think maybe a lot of the emotion was lost in translation when the book was turned to English. The only part of the book I thought was missing was how Olga fared in her life once she returned to the rest of the living world. Did she continue being a doctor? Did she remarry and have another family? How did she feel as her life went on and she looked back at the events at Auschwitz? This is my one thought on what I wished could have been included. This is really not any of my business though. Olga shared everything; an active and flourishing imagination could not conjure up such horrendous events so I understand that maybe she felt the rest of her life wasn't relative. I however would have enjoyed knowing how she fared as her life went on.

If you have an interest in furthering your reading, I would start with Five Chimneys, Night, & finish with I Have Lived A Thousand Years. Five Chimneys is not for the faint of heart. The descriptions of what happened to pregnant women, and to the babies/children throughout the camp was beyond horrific and I still struggle with those images in my mind. This book is certainly not for those seeking enjoyment. Five Chimneys is for people who don't want to forget the loss and suffering. For people who hope to gain a better understanding of what happened over 60 years ago and who aim to carry in their hearts compassion for others to aid in preventing such an occurrence from ever happening again.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have never read a book on the Holocaust this is the book you want to start with. Olga Lengyel has written the most graphic horrifying look at the Holocaust I have ever read. The suffering that is described in this book completely defies belief. It is an amazing account of a horrible experience. Well written, eye opening, and very saddening but true account of what took place at the Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp while she was there. From the first page on and through her work she portrays the day to day horror that Nazis inflicted on her and her family. I thought I read it all but each succeeding chapters revealed further revelations of depravity. It got to the point as she says, "We were lost souls. God, Where art Thou?"(p26). If I could have given it ten stars I would. A great book that's impossible to put down. We must remind ourselves periodically of this inhuman event so that It will never happen again.

[Ariannha · Rating 5 out of 5]

“La muerte no significaba más que una liberación.”

Intenso, crudo, cruel, inhumano y sincero... son las primeras palabras que llegaron a mi mente con tan solo leer el primer capítulo. Y es que no hay capítulo suave en esta historia. Una historia real que quisieron ocultar a ojos del mundo, pero que sin embargo grandes supervivientes, han tenido el valor de revivir muchos hechos y contarnos los horrores del peor período de la humanidad.

“Los hornos de Hitler” está basado en hechos reales sufridos por la propia autora, dentro de su estancia en un campo de concentración. Cada capítulo es un testimonio, bastante desgarrador: "experimentos científicos”, maltratos, humillaciones, enfermedades, hambre y muerte.

Olga Lengyel, llega a los campos con sus padres e hijos, siguiendo el camino que le tocó vivir a su esposo, reconocido médico especializado en cirugía general y ginecología en Cluj, Rumania; pero que se convirtió en enemigo de la Gestapo.
A partir de su llegada es testigo de las peores atrocidades y conoce a personajes que posteriormente fueron reconocidos como los peores criminales de guerra: Joseph Kramer, juzgado como el criminal número uno en el proceso de Luneburg; Irma Grese el “ángel rubio” de la muerte; y uno de los más conocidos Joseph Mengele, quien realizó los más macabros experimentos científicos.

Es un relato sincero y puro, que busca contarnos los hechos sin adornos. Narrados en primera persona, desde lo que la autora vio, sintió y vivió antes, durante y después de los campos de concentración.

Definitivamente, considero que este libro como otros escritos por sobrevivientes de los campos, son de lectura obligatoria, porque la humanidad no puede permitir que estos hechos sean olvidados, solo con la intención de que no permitamos que se vuelvan a repetir.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating, shocking, horrifying account of the authors time spent as prisoner at one of the most widely known concentration camps of the Second World War. She documents her time prior to her capture and her decision to follow her husband to the camps under the premise of hard labour. Like many others, Olga could not have imagined what the nazis had in store.

The authors first hand accounts of life inside the camp to coming face to face with the infamous doctor Menagles and tyrannical SS guard Irma Grese is not for the faint hearted. New details are explored not necessarily noted in the history books.

The authors own political views are interesting in some parts of her account. She acknowledges the sheer ludicrousness of persecuting Jews, Gypsies et cetera but then declares others as feeble minded, and in one case, “homosexuals and other perverts.” How this particular quote got publisher approval is a mystery.

The book ended rather abruptly and there were no images of the author which would have added to the authenticity of the account. Likewise, details of her life in post war would have been appreciated. Otherwise, this is an excellent example of Holocaust survival and draws attention to the many stories which unfortunately went to the grave.

[Lorena Téllez Quezada · Rating 5 out of 5]

Todos hemos escuchado sobre el Holocausto, pero no hay mejor forma que te lo cuenten las personas que lo vivieron, que lo sufrieron.
Olga, una Doctora rumana con una vida acomodada al lado de su esposo quien también era médico y que eran dueños de un hospital que fue arrebatado por los alemanes para después ser trasladados junto con sus padres e hijos al campo de concentración de Auschwitz.
Perdió todo, menos la esperanza de recuperar su libertad.
Entrar en detalles creo, está de más. Es un libro fuerte, cruel, y desgarrador. Pero no podemos ser ajenos a la realidad y la historia. Es realmente impactante cómo los nazis fueron capaces de cometer tantas atrocidades.
Pese a lo difícil del tema, es un libro que recomiendo mucho para meterte a las entrañas del Holocausto si te interesa el tema.

[Krisaundra · Rating 5 out of 5]

A heartbreakingly accurate portrayal of life in the death camps of Auschwitz. Written in such a way that without going into graphic detail that could make one's stomach churn, it still manages to paint a picture so vivid of life within the death camps of Hitler's Germany that it leaves one feeling as if they were talking face to face with the brave woman who tells this true story of her survival of many years in camps where few lived more than weeks or months. Yet within every terrible moment she describes, her message of perseverance, resistance, and desire to live, if only as her one continuing act of defiance, woven through each page and making it as hard a book to read as it is to put down. ♥

[Monica Cabral · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Cada forno possuía muitas aberturas. Ou seja, havia 120 aberturas, dentro das quais podiam ser colocados três cadáveres de cada vez. Isso significava que podiam eliminar 360 cadáveres em cada operação. Trezentos e sessenta cadáveres a cada meia hora, que era o tempo que demorava a reduzir a carne humana a cinzas, perfaziam 720 por hora, ou 17 280 cadáveres por dia."

Olga Lengyel vivia com a família na cidade de Cluj, capital da Transilvânia. Em 1944, o seu marido, um cirurgião de renome é transferido para a Alemanha por exigência do Terceiro Reich, Olga decide ir com ele, levando os seus dois filhos e os seus idosos pais.
Á chegada de Auschwitz/Birkenau a família é separada e Olga vive os seus dias com um só pensamento: sobreviver para reencontrar a família e para contar ao mundo o que se passava neste Campo de Concentração. Este livro foi publicado logo após o fim da guerra em 1946, Olga foi a única sobrevivente da sua família, e neste livro vamos conhecer em pormenor e sem floreados os horrores e o sadismo praticado pelos nazis sobre os prisioneiros de Auschwitz.
Esta não foi uma leitura fácil, sentimos em cada palavra a dor , o sofrimento e a mágoa de Olga por ter feito a pior coisa que uma mãe pode fazer, mesmo inconscientemente, condenar os filhos à morte.

[Anastaciaknits · Rating 4 out of 5]

I sat here for several minutes, not knowing where to begin writing this review. It's a serious book & deserves a serious review, but that's not my review or blogging style. I write like I talk - casual, chatty, and a little bit of babble. This book is about how one woman survived Hell - Auschwitz & Birkenau. I read history because history is more interesting then fiction half the time, and how does that old quote go? Something about learning about the past so you aren't doomed to repeat it? I read history for that reason, too.

Anyways, it's a tough book to read, and another one of those books that I read in short bits at a time in order to think about what I actually read. Your stomach churns at reading most of it. Lengyel writes very dispassionately, I think perhaps as her way of coping with the horrors? But the dispassionate doesn't take away any part of learning about her experience; in fact, I think you really feel it all the more for her calm way of explaining what happened to her.

This book is worth reading, but I wouldn't make it my number one suggestion, either.

[Tom Davitt · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bittersweet ending to what was an excellent and harrowing account.

The reason I took away 3 stars was because of a completely uncalled for homophobic rant by the author around 190 pages into the book. I find this to be depressingly ironic. Despite all the ruminating the author has made throughout the book about the idiocy of being sentenced to death simply for being Jewish and justifiably lamenting the atrocities put on these people because of ridiculous prejudices, she then goes on a 4 page homophobic rant against gay people, calling them 'perverts'. How could one not despair if after living through one of the worst examples of human prejudice in human history, that she still is no emphathy than those who did the same to her!

I don't know how on earth it managed to get by the publishers - shame on them and the author

[Lindsay Nixon · Rating 2 out of 5]

It feels wrong to give a poor rating to any memoir, especially when its a holocaust survivor, but this book is in desperate need of an editor. The story is hard... harrowing... but above all: historic. If you're a history buff or someone be who reads a lot on this subject, this is another account to read. If you're looking to read a historical account for the first time, you may want to consider the contenders if you have trouble with poor writing.

[Pedro Fernández · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro duro, lleno de historia violenta, una memoria de los peores momentos de la humanidad, un texto que debe leerse siempre.

[Veronica Amador · Rating 5 out of 5]

He leído muchos libros sobre la segunda Guerra mundial y éste me impactó muchísimo. Las atrocidades que cometían los alemanes no tenían límites. Cada página y cada situación me hacía sentir un profundo dolor, imaginarme a tantas personas sufrir no solo de hambre si no agresiones y maltratos que me resultan difíciles de procesar. Olga fue una mujer fuerte y con ganas de sobrevivir, hoy doy gracias por su fuerza para contarnos todo lo que le tocó vivir y no ser indiferente a una época horrible del ser humano.

[Elena Papadopol · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fost prima mea lectura cu tematica Holocaustului - si a avut un imens impact asupra mea (cred ca aveam pana in 14 ani cand am citit-o).
A fost si prima data cand am constientizat ca istoria nu este ceva abstract - cate destine, cate vieti distruse si calcate in picioare in numele unei ideologii absurde.
M-a socat lipsa de empatie si cruzimea, m-a frustrat neputinta in fata razboiului si m-a ingrozit ideea de discriminare.

[Rita Costa (Lusitania Geek) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Que livro tão duro e cru, uma obra que foi escrita por uma sobrevivente do campo concentração de Auschwitz-Birkenau, Olga Lengyel.

A autora descreve os horrores, as consequências das suas ações, os encontros de certas figuras que marcaram o seu aprisionamento e as saudades da sua família que teve que suportar daquela dura realidade. O objetivo deste livro foi assegurar que não haja um novo Hitler num futuro próximo, descrevendo assim o regime hitelariana, a maldade perante a raça humana e o odio e perseguição constante pelos judeus dentro de um muro farpado sem qualquer empatia e esperança.

Já li livros relacionados com Holocausto e de campos de concentração, mas depois ter lido este livro, provavelmente seja o livro mais realista sobre a dor, a miséria e os abusos que a raça humana teve que testemunhar e enfrentar durante o Holocausto.

Recomendo ler este livro desta sobrevivente que corajosamente relevou a parte mais negra da história da humanidade e da sua vida e teve a devida atenção de um génio, o Albert Einstein depois de ter lido a sua história, dizendo:

“A senhora prestou um verdadeiro serviço dando voz aqueles que estão agor remeditos ao silêncio e praticamente esquecidos.”

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[I. Mónica del P Pinzon Verano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crudo, demencial, bestial, cruel, pesado, descarnado, terrorífico, angustioso, son adjetivos que resultan en eufemismos para rotular este libro y describir ese episodio tan vergonzoso de la humanidad como es el de la segunda guerra mundial. Eufemismos de la misma talla de cuando se habla de “humanización de la guerra” ¿cómo se puede humanizar la muerte y la barbarie?
En estas páginas está consignado el testimonio honesto de Olga Lengyel, quien fue presa en los campos de concentración nazi “más famosos”. Pero este libro me resultó distinto a los demás escritos. De un lado, se relata como la sociedad recibía con incredulidad ingenua la segunda guerra mundial y también la “estructura” social que se formó en los campos de concentración. Y es en este último, donde la autora describe por aspectos las diferentes formas de tortura, de despojo humano y de muerte que emplearon los nazis, pero no de cualquier forma, sino de una muy descriptiva, detallada y descarnada. Y lo peor aún, es saber que pese a las circunstancias contadas al detalle, sentir que todo es un resumen de lo sucedido, saber que los hechos fueron peores (y es que la autora a veces guarda silencio o se reserva parte de las escenas) y que ni siquiera podemos imaginarlos, personalmente andaba horrorizada y mi imaginación, bien grande por cierto, no dio para más…pero sí llegué a sentir sed, ahogo, angustia y hasta percibir olores desagradables, el libro toca cada fibra sensible del cuerpo y de la emocionalidad. Lo contado en el libro supera con creces otros libros, reportajes y films que tratan este episodio de la humanidad.
De otro lado, es muy clara la intención de denuncia y es que ella lo hace y lo logra! En el libro se nos muestran datos, se ven desfilar con nombre propios y sus acciones a los más reconocidos genios de la SS y de multinacionales alemanas…se nos argumenta porqué los nazis eran tan eficientes.
En cuanto a los tópicos me parece que la autora revela los otros rostros de la guerra. Si bien ella nos habla del “trato preferencial” que tenían los judíos, también le da rostro y voz a las otras víctimas como son figuras eclesiásticas, cristianos, civiles, prisioneros alemanes, gitanos, prisioneros de guerra, etc. y me parece que es necesario darle oportunidad a estas historias, ya que la historia no les ha dado muchas páginas.
Aunque no se ven muchos nazis decentes el libro deja esperanza, toca ver como muchos prisioneros dieron lecciones de principios y moralidad dando su propia vida. Hay que ver también, como para esta valiente mujer se volvió motivo de vida salir del campo y contarnos lo que sucedió allí. Entre tanto, el retrato que la autora hace de ella misma en los campos de concentración es sumamente honesto, una mujer realmente valiente!
Se siente extrañeza, decepción y tristeza, pensar y sentir que el libro es bueno y de lectura necesaria, pero es justo e indispensable decirlo. Por ahora, solo puedo decir que el libro me contó muchas cosas que no sabía y que ese infierno fue más que dantesco, pero quiero pensar y recordar en aquellos que tuvieron una moral excepcional.

[Ricardo Berumen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un verdadero sin fin de emociones.
Es imposible leerlo y no terminar dando gracias a la vida por no haber sido una de esas tantas personas que conoció el verdadero infierno.

[teleri · Rating 1 out of 5]

Originally I was going to give this a three-star review, yet my mind was changed because the author called gay, lesbian and bisexuals perverts. This is coming from a woman who was fighting for her life and saw hundreds of thousands die because of things they could not help. Yet this wasn't enough to stop her name calling people of a different sexuality than her? For that, I'm giving it a one-star rating because it just flipped my stomach and made me so uncomfortable. I want nothing to do with this book anymore. Unfair? Maybe, but she can go preach her homophobia elsewhere as I'm not interested.

The rest of the book is pretty good, it goes into detail about her time in Auschwitz but the ending was a little boring and rushed. However, after reading her call innocent people names just because of their sexuality I was grateful the ending wasn't dragged out and wrote with the same amount of detail as the rest of the book. For her to say "Birkenau had its perverts." and then detail the three types of lesbians/bisexuals found in the concentration camps made me so angry.

Some could argue that this was how many talked back in the 40's, but for her to be allowed to call LGBT+ members names by today's standards, and then have it published in a book is gross and a shame on her, the publishers and the editors. Because they clearly can't spot a mistake when they see one. Someone might want to fire them or something?

I really have no interest in talking about the rest of the book, because this has just upset me so much. She literally experienced the worst thing a human could, and then she goes and name calls others for something they cannot change? I'm disgusted.

[Lee Imagina Sueña · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una crónica escalofriante de las cosas inhumanas que hicieron los nazis a todos los que llegaban a Auschwitz Birkenau, realmente es muy cruda la descripción, pero creo que sea necesaria para que no se olviden estas atrocidades y no se vuelvan a repetir.

[Nitya · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found an old copy of this book from 1947 at a local thrift store. Picked it up because the title made me curious. It was very, very difficult to read a first hand account of the horrors of Auschwitz written by a woman who survived the camps, and written so soon after the experience. My heart ached and my mind reeled as the author described the depravity of the Nazis and the horrible, horrible suffering inflicted upon all who went to the camps- Jews, homosexuals, gypsies, communists. Olga Lengyel was not Jewish, but her husband , a doctor, in a Nazi occupied country, was vocal in his dislike of the Nazis. When he is told he must be shipped to Germany within the hour, Olga makes the worst mistake of her life in convincing the Nazis to allow her children, her parents, and herself to accompany him. In short order they are all loaded onto one of the now infamous cattle cars and on their way to Auschwitz. Her parents and her two sons are sent to the gas chambers immediately on arrival to the camp. She and her husband are separated, and she sees him briefly, once more, but he does not survive either. The author's purpose in writing this story is that the world remember what happened, so that it never happen again. I was compelled to read this book, as if not doing so would be to disregard this story.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some spoilers -

This novel should be read by anyone who is currently breathing, not only to remind us of these things, but to ensure that we never hate another person to this level again. It is a poignant story of a well educated young woman confined to Auschwitz. She also describes what it was like for the other people in the camp and shares examples of incredible humanity in the midst of the horror. Along with the stories of true humanity are examples of loss of humanity because of the desparation. While I was reading this novel, I was reminded of how amazing humankind is, but also how awful it can be. In very few instances can we see these facts acted out side by side.

At times it is rather explicit and stomach churning, but I appreciated the realism. It seems to me glossing over a massive genocide to make people more comfortable would be wrong and disrespectful. As the author is in the medical field, she does discuss Menegele and his experiements in addition to the medical treatment of the prisoners. This is perhaps the most disturbing part. There are other forms of violence and sexuality discussed as well. However, as I mentioned above, I appreciated the honest portrayal of this horrendous time.
I have read quite a bit on the concentration camps and World War 2. I found this one to be one of the better ones when it came to not glossing over the facts.

[Tania ..ck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excelente libro. Me ha gustado todo de el. Una muy buena explicación de lo que la gente vivió y padeció en esa época.

[Alejandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un libro durísimo que relata las experiencias de la autora en un campo de exterminio. Duele ver cómo seres humanos fueron degradados y humillados por otros de tal forma, pero es una realidad que debemos conocer. Sin embargo, la estructura del libro no me gustó. Bastante desordenado, con lo cual costaba seguir el hilo, desde mi punto de vista.