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The Ghost Tattoo
A powerful, profoundly moving Holocaust memoir from a rarely told perspective, this is the story of a family coming to terms with its long-hidden wartime secretsand—a son discovering the Faustian bargain his Jewish father made with the Nazis in order to survive.
Growing up, Tony Bernard knew that his father, Henry, had been in Nazi concentration camps during World War II. He was familiar with the tattoo bearing his Auschwitz number—B1224—and the faint scar resulting from a suicide attempt while in a camp in Blizyn. As an Australian boy growing up on Sydney’s sunny Northern Beaches where Henry was a well-respected doctor, Tony simply accepted these facts. Only as a young man, on a trip to Poland with his father, did he begin to uncover the secrets that filled Henry with regret, anguish, and guilt.
Henry’s experiences in the concentration camps were harrowing, and he survived through ingenuity, grit, and countless miracles of chance. Yet there was another, deeper story—of what happened before his deportation to the camps. In 1940, Henry was recruited into the Jewish Order Service in his Polish hometown—an organization set up by the Nazis to help maintain order among Jews. Like many other young recruits, Henry believed he would help protect his community. Instead, the ghetto police, as they became known, were forced to assist the Nazis in the subjugation and mistreatment of their own people. Faced daily with impossible choices, desperate to keep his loved ones alive, Henry was both victim and unwilling participant.
The Ghost Tattoo is a haunting, emotionally resonant memoir of war and its aftermath. It is also a singular account of resistance, resilience, and hope. Henry was eventually called to Germany to testify in a trial against Nazi murderers, where his evidence proved pivotal. After decades of silence, he seized the chance to bear witness—for history, for his family, and for all those who did not survive.
Growing up, Tony Bernard knew that his father, Henry, had been in Nazi concentration camps during World War II. He was familiar with the tattoo bearing his Auschwitz number—B1224—and the faint scar resulting from a suicide attempt while in a camp in Blizyn. As an Australian boy growing up on Sydney’s sunny Northern Beaches where Henry was a well-respected doctor, Tony simply accepted these facts. Only as a young man, on a trip to Poland with his father, did he begin to uncover the secrets that filled Henry with regret, anguish, and guilt.
Henry’s experiences in the concentration camps were harrowing, and he survived through ingenuity, grit, and countless miracles of chance. Yet there was another, deeper story—of what happened before his deportation to the camps. In 1940, Henry was recruited into the Jewish Order Service in his Polish hometown—an organization set up by the Nazis to help maintain order among Jews. Like many other young recruits, Henry believed he would help protect his community. Instead, the ghetto police, as they became known, were forced to assist the Nazis in the subjugation and mistreatment of their own people. Faced daily with impossible choices, desperate to keep his loved ones alive, Henry was both victim and unwilling participant.
The Ghost Tattoo is a haunting, emotionally resonant memoir of war and its aftermath. It is also a singular account of resistance, resilience, and hope. Henry was eventually called to Germany to testify in a trial against Nazi murderers, where his evidence proved pivotal. After decades of silence, he seized the chance to bear witness—for history, for his family, and for all those who did not survive.
336 pages, Hardcover
Published September 26, 2023
206 people are currently reading
3576 people want to read
About the author
Tony Bernard
6 books19 followersTony Bernard is an emergency doctor at Northern Beaches Hospital and Mona Vale Hospital in Sydney. His father Henry was his hero, and it was natural that he followed him into the medical profession. Yet it was one thing to idolise Henry and another to understand who he was and what he had gone through. Over decades and during multiple trips to Europe, Tony found himself on a path of discovery, eventually writing his father's memoirs shortly before his death in 2016. What began as a journey to understand his father became the uncovering of an extraordinary holocaust survival story.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 78 reviews
April 17, 2022
Holocaust stories, books, movies, memoirs are not uncommon, and nor should they be.
We know about the horror, the appalling stain on history and how we can gain some ‘understanding’ from the personal accounts of holocaust survivors.
What places this book apart is that it comes from a survivor, Henry, who spent his ‘surviving’ in Australia. There could be others, but it’s the first one I’ve read.
And moreover, it flips the coin on some of the other portrayals of ‘us and them’, and gives us an insight into one of the ‘them’ – a survivor who admits he became part of the machine.
Cruel fate helped land Henry some protection in his role with the ghetto police. Could he ever forgive himself? Such internal conflict comes through loud and clear from the pages.
This is Henry’s biography told by his son, Tony, who strived to understand the internal struggles of his father, a Polish Jew during WWII.
Tony shows us how his father’s story slowly emerges. Tony himself only learned much of it as the years passed. He wanted to understand what ‘shaped’ his father. It is told through trips back to Europe and interviews, information gathering and questioning.
It’s in the second half of the book that Henry’s ‘guilt’ is fully realised, and how he was obsessed with ‘paying off his debt’. Survivor guilt must be a powerful, often destructive emotion.
This book is an effective ‘PLEASE WALK A MILE IN MY SHOES BEFORE YOU JUDGE ME’ account. Which I did, willingly and with compassion.
Henry knew he was lucky. He knew innocent people, including his loved ones, did not deserve to die in the manner described. From one of his interviews: “The Holocaust taught me that you just do not know how a person will react until they face the kind of situations we faced. Some people will give you the shirt off their back while others would steal food from a baby.”
I’m not sure it was the right time to read such a book during the Ukraine invasion and I look forward to returning to this review one and day, and hopefully soon, to add an amendment that will read, “Ukraine prevailed against such odds”.
I thought of ‘suspending’ the book twice, and turning to something less tragic, but happy I persevered, just like Henry did.
The book does not provide all the answers, but the overall message of perseverance and ultimate survival is not totally overshadowed by Henry’s heart-breaking self-recriminations.
I appreciate the personal journey described by the author and his family disclosures that were brave and meaningful.
I also thank Allen & Unwin AU for the opportunity to win this ‘giveaway’ on Goodreads.
We know about the horror, the appalling stain on history and how we can gain some ‘understanding’ from the personal accounts of holocaust survivors.
What places this book apart is that it comes from a survivor, Henry, who spent his ‘surviving’ in Australia. There could be others, but it’s the first one I’ve read.
And moreover, it flips the coin on some of the other portrayals of ‘us and them’, and gives us an insight into one of the ‘them’ – a survivor who admits he became part of the machine.
Cruel fate helped land Henry some protection in his role with the ghetto police. Could he ever forgive himself? Such internal conflict comes through loud and clear from the pages.
This is Henry’s biography told by his son, Tony, who strived to understand the internal struggles of his father, a Polish Jew during WWII.
Tony shows us how his father’s story slowly emerges. Tony himself only learned much of it as the years passed. He wanted to understand what ‘shaped’ his father. It is told through trips back to Europe and interviews, information gathering and questioning.
It’s in the second half of the book that Henry’s ‘guilt’ is fully realised, and how he was obsessed with ‘paying off his debt’. Survivor guilt must be a powerful, often destructive emotion.
This book is an effective ‘PLEASE WALK A MILE IN MY SHOES BEFORE YOU JUDGE ME’ account. Which I did, willingly and with compassion.
Henry knew he was lucky. He knew innocent people, including his loved ones, did not deserve to die in the manner described. From one of his interviews: “The Holocaust taught me that you just do not know how a person will react until they face the kind of situations we faced. Some people will give you the shirt off their back while others would steal food from a baby.”
I’m not sure it was the right time to read such a book during the Ukraine invasion and I look forward to returning to this review one and day, and hopefully soon, to add an amendment that will read, “Ukraine prevailed against such odds”.
I thought of ‘suspending’ the book twice, and turning to something less tragic, but happy I persevered, just like Henry did.
The book does not provide all the answers, but the overall message of perseverance and ultimate survival is not totally overshadowed by Henry’s heart-breaking self-recriminations.
I appreciate the personal journey described by the author and his family disclosures that were brave and meaningful.
I also thank Allen & Unwin AU for the opportunity to win this ‘giveaway’ on Goodreads.
March 15, 2022
Henryk Bierzynskis Bernard was a well-loved and extremely successful doctor in Sydney when he passed his practices down to his youngest son, Nick. The family had lived in Narrabeen close to where those practices were for a long time. Tony was Henry’s eldest son and for forty years, Tony accompanied his father as they returned to Europe, to his hometown of Tomaszow and the places where Henry had suffered the worst privations and hardships of his life. It took some time for Tony to fully understand what made his father tick, and many more years for Henry to release the deepest heartache and shame he had been holding inside since the war.
Henry’s Jewish ancestry meant his arrival in Auschwitz was a given – his survival after many brushes with death not so. His young wife, Halina, the woman he’d loved so deeply, and married just before the war; his parents and many more relatives and friends – lost to the brutality of the Nazis. Henry’s personality had been affected by the dreadful events of WWII, breaking his marriage to Tony and his siblings’ mother; his obsessive determination to keep his family safe, among other things - Tony felt a deep need to connect to his beloved Henry.
The Ghost Tattoo is an exceptional, deeply moving portrayal of one of the few Jewish survivors of the Holocaust, written by his son, Australian Tony Bernard. The heartbreak and torment over a past he had no control over would continue to haunt Henry. But with his story told, would Henry find peace? Would he allow himself to feel peace? Henry passed away at 95 in 2016, just a short time before his 96th birthday. Highly recommended.
With thanks to Allen & Unwin AU for my uncorrected proof ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.
Henry’s Jewish ancestry meant his arrival in Auschwitz was a given – his survival after many brushes with death not so. His young wife, Halina, the woman he’d loved so deeply, and married just before the war; his parents and many more relatives and friends – lost to the brutality of the Nazis. Henry’s personality had been affected by the dreadful events of WWII, breaking his marriage to Tony and his siblings’ mother; his obsessive determination to keep his family safe, among other things - Tony felt a deep need to connect to his beloved Henry.
The Ghost Tattoo is an exceptional, deeply moving portrayal of one of the few Jewish survivors of the Holocaust, written by his son, Australian Tony Bernard. The heartbreak and torment over a past he had no control over would continue to haunt Henry. But with his story told, would Henry find peace? Would he allow himself to feel peace? Henry passed away at 95 in 2016, just a short time before his 96th birthday. Highly recommended.
With thanks to Allen & Unwin AU for my uncorrected proof ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.
July 26, 2023
'Fate is vile and brutal...its double-edged sword is terrible. I would never believe that freedom could be so tragic'.
Living on Sydney's northern beaches, running a successful medical practice, and raising a family, you would presume that Henry Bernard had finally escaped the torment of WWII. But, he wears a blue tattoo from Auschwitz, he bears a white scar from an attempt to end his own life on his terms, and his conscience is burdened with a ghost tattoo that only Henry can eternally see and feel. As Henry's son, Tony, grew up, he saw the physical evidence of Henry's time as a Polish Jew during WWII but he never knew his father's story. As time percolated, however, Henry ever so slowly drip-fed his tale. What made Henry's account unique amongst a myriad of holocaust memoirs, is the fact that Henry spent much of the war as a member of the Jewish Order Service (ghetto police) in his Polish hometown. At first, lulled into the belief that he may be able to help his people, it quickly became a daily moral dilemma, 'What a burden to carry: to feel you had inadvertently assisted the Nazis in their oppression and murder of your community'. Indeed, how do you balance your innate sense of survival with your sense of humanity? This is Henry Bernard's journey.
Every time I read a WWII holocaust biography or memoir, my ignorance and lack of any real comprehension are punctuated. I'm aware of literal facts. I've read about horrible atrocities, and I've been surprised and humbled by heroic endeavours and the indomitable human spirit, but I will never truly fathom the magnitude, the terror, and the abject cruelty that pervaded people's lives daily, for years during WWII.
This book is a definite read, as we always need to learn more, understand more, and remember more.
Living on Sydney's northern beaches, running a successful medical practice, and raising a family, you would presume that Henry Bernard had finally escaped the torment of WWII. But, he wears a blue tattoo from Auschwitz, he bears a white scar from an attempt to end his own life on his terms, and his conscience is burdened with a ghost tattoo that only Henry can eternally see and feel. As Henry's son, Tony, grew up, he saw the physical evidence of Henry's time as a Polish Jew during WWII but he never knew his father's story. As time percolated, however, Henry ever so slowly drip-fed his tale. What made Henry's account unique amongst a myriad of holocaust memoirs, is the fact that Henry spent much of the war as a member of the Jewish Order Service (ghetto police) in his Polish hometown. At first, lulled into the belief that he may be able to help his people, it quickly became a daily moral dilemma, 'What a burden to carry: to feel you had inadvertently assisted the Nazis in their oppression and murder of your community'. Indeed, how do you balance your innate sense of survival with your sense of humanity? This is Henry Bernard's journey.
Every time I read a WWII holocaust biography or memoir, my ignorance and lack of any real comprehension are punctuated. I'm aware of literal facts. I've read about horrible atrocities, and I've been surprised and humbled by heroic endeavours and the indomitable human spirit, but I will never truly fathom the magnitude, the terror, and the abject cruelty that pervaded people's lives daily, for years during WWII.
This book is a definite read, as we always need to learn more, understand more, and remember more.
March 16, 2022
The Ghost Tattoo by Tony Bernard
Synopsis /
To the outside world, Henry Bernard was a hard-working doctor on Sydney’s northern beaches. Yet he was a Holocaust survivor whose life was profoundly affected by the experiences of his past. He took extreme steps for his family’s security, keeping a rifle in his bedroom and covering up their Jewish origin. He was obsessed with paying off debt - the German word for debt being the same as the word for ‘guilt’. He kept his striped Auschwitz uniform by his bed along with a picture of his mother. These obsessions destroyed his marriage and restricted any hope he had of conventional domestic happiness.
But Henry had a bigger secret and a deeper shame about what he had done during the war. He suffered privately until he began returning to Germany and Poland to confront his past and come to terms with the deaths of his parents and of Halina, the love of his life.
My Thoughts /
First and foremost, a huge thank you to Allen & Unwin for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review.
Humans have marked their bodies with tattoos for thousands of years. These permanent designs—sometimes plain, sometimes elaborate, always personal—have served as amulets, status symbols, declarations of love, signs of religious beliefs, adornments and even forms of punishment. The oldest evidence of human tattoos is believed to be from between 3370 BC and 3100 BC.
Dr Henry Bierzynski Bernard has a tattoo; it is located on the inside of his lower left forearm and reads 'B-1224'. It is not a declaration of love. Nor is it a personal adornment. These shaky blurry blue lines are an indelible image and one of the most recognisable symbols of the Holocaust. Only prisoners at Auschwitz and its sub-camps, Birkenau and Monowitz, were tattooed. This practice began in autumn 1941 and by the spring of 1943, all prisoners were tattooed. Henry Bernard is a Holocaust survivor and his tattoo is a testament to his resilience and this is his story.
The Ghost Tattoo by Tony Bernard is based on his father's oral and written recollections, as well as on archival records found in Europe, of his [Henry] time spent in concentration and labour camps. The story he told is what you will read on the pages of this book. Henry Bierzynski Bernard felt it was his 'duty' as a Holocaust survivor to tell future generations what he had witnessed. And his son, Tony Bernard has written it all down. Why? Because that's the best way to preserve a story.
Before he died in 2016, two months short of his 96th birthday, Henry was able to read an early draft of the book based on video recordings he had asked Tony to make. His only comment? It's all true.
After emigrating from Poland and settling in Narrabeen, a beachside suburb in northern Sydney, Henry Bernard lived and worked as a family GP. There was a lot to like about Henry Bernard. The Northern Beaches families who regularly saw him for their medical problems saw a Dr Bernard who was a hard-working and beloved family practice doctor. But the human psyche is a complex thing. Can we ever really say we 'know' someone completely? As Henry's son tells us 'As I grew up I became aware that my dad was a bit different from my friends' fathers…I knew some, but not a lot about Henry's youth….we knew that he had been in a prison camp during the war, but we did not know why. What happened to Henry in his youth, had to have contributed to how behaved as an adult - how could it have not? Tony remembers of his father, he was obsessed with paying off debt and took extreme steps for his family's security, even buying a rifle.
The book is not written in a conventional beginning to end fashion. It's written like you are having a conversation with someone. Bits and pieces in time appear, as the memories of that time bubble their way to the surface. Some memories that were pushed so far down one hoped they would never resurface. Like the prison camps. There was no selection for workers on arrival; people were taken there in trains and trucks and put to death by the thousands. In Treblinka, an estimated 700,000 to 900,000 were murdered between 1942 and 1943. Throughout the book Henry ruminates constantly, Auschwitz was not the worst part of this war.
The meticulous detail Tony has lavished on his father's memories should be acknowledged for what they are: remarkable, extraordinary, powerful, and, important. Beginning with his father’s experience before the war as a medical student; then filling us in on his daily life in the Tomaszow ghetto with his family under Nazi occupation; to his (inevitable) incarceration in various camps (including Auschwitz); which includes the trauma of witnessing the barbarity of the contrived extermination of the Jewish population. One little-known fact about Nazi Germany is that guillotining was the judicial form of execution.
Don't think that if you read this book it's all going to be gloom and doom. Life for Henry once he relocated to Australia wasn't all bad. He lived a good life in Narrabeen. He loved his job. He raised a family and lived a full life.
To say this is a fascinating story, I believe, doesn't do this book justice. Because for some the word 'story' implies something fictitious, designed to interest, amuse, or instruct the reader.
I'd like to say, this is a truly fascinating memoir.
Synopsis /
To the outside world, Henry Bernard was a hard-working doctor on Sydney’s northern beaches. Yet he was a Holocaust survivor whose life was profoundly affected by the experiences of his past. He took extreme steps for his family’s security, keeping a rifle in his bedroom and covering up their Jewish origin. He was obsessed with paying off debt - the German word for debt being the same as the word for ‘guilt’. He kept his striped Auschwitz uniform by his bed along with a picture of his mother. These obsessions destroyed his marriage and restricted any hope he had of conventional domestic happiness.
But Henry had a bigger secret and a deeper shame about what he had done during the war. He suffered privately until he began returning to Germany and Poland to confront his past and come to terms with the deaths of his parents and of Halina, the love of his life.
My Thoughts /
First and foremost, a huge thank you to Allen & Unwin for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review.
Humans have marked their bodies with tattoos for thousands of years. These permanent designs—sometimes plain, sometimes elaborate, always personal—have served as amulets, status symbols, declarations of love, signs of religious beliefs, adornments and even forms of punishment. The oldest evidence of human tattoos is believed to be from between 3370 BC and 3100 BC.
Dr Henry Bierzynski Bernard has a tattoo; it is located on the inside of his lower left forearm and reads 'B-1224'. It is not a declaration of love. Nor is it a personal adornment. These shaky blurry blue lines are an indelible image and one of the most recognisable symbols of the Holocaust. Only prisoners at Auschwitz and its sub-camps, Birkenau and Monowitz, were tattooed. This practice began in autumn 1941 and by the spring of 1943, all prisoners were tattooed. Henry Bernard is a Holocaust survivor and his tattoo is a testament to his resilience and this is his story.
The Ghost Tattoo by Tony Bernard is based on his father's oral and written recollections, as well as on archival records found in Europe, of his [Henry] time spent in concentration and labour camps. The story he told is what you will read on the pages of this book. Henry Bierzynski Bernard felt it was his 'duty' as a Holocaust survivor to tell future generations what he had witnessed. And his son, Tony Bernard has written it all down. Why? Because that's the best way to preserve a story.
Before he died in 2016, two months short of his 96th birthday, Henry was able to read an early draft of the book based on video recordings he had asked Tony to make. His only comment? It's all true.
After emigrating from Poland and settling in Narrabeen, a beachside suburb in northern Sydney, Henry Bernard lived and worked as a family GP. There was a lot to like about Henry Bernard. The Northern Beaches families who regularly saw him for their medical problems saw a Dr Bernard who was a hard-working and beloved family practice doctor. But the human psyche is a complex thing. Can we ever really say we 'know' someone completely? As Henry's son tells us 'As I grew up I became aware that my dad was a bit different from my friends' fathers…I knew some, but not a lot about Henry's youth….we knew that he had been in a prison camp during the war, but we did not know why. What happened to Henry in his youth, had to have contributed to how behaved as an adult - how could it have not? Tony remembers of his father, he was obsessed with paying off debt and took extreme steps for his family's security, even buying a rifle.
The book is not written in a conventional beginning to end fashion. It's written like you are having a conversation with someone. Bits and pieces in time appear, as the memories of that time bubble their way to the surface. Some memories that were pushed so far down one hoped they would never resurface. Like the prison camps. There was no selection for workers on arrival; people were taken there in trains and trucks and put to death by the thousands. In Treblinka, an estimated 700,000 to 900,000 were murdered between 1942 and 1943. Throughout the book Henry ruminates constantly, Auschwitz was not the worst part of this war.
The meticulous detail Tony has lavished on his father's memories should be acknowledged for what they are: remarkable, extraordinary, powerful, and, important. Beginning with his father’s experience before the war as a medical student; then filling us in on his daily life in the Tomaszow ghetto with his family under Nazi occupation; to his (inevitable) incarceration in various camps (including Auschwitz); which includes the trauma of witnessing the barbarity of the contrived extermination of the Jewish population. One little-known fact about Nazi Germany is that guillotining was the judicial form of execution.
Don't think that if you read this book it's all going to be gloom and doom. Life for Henry once he relocated to Australia wasn't all bad. He lived a good life in Narrabeen. He loved his job. He raised a family and lived a full life.
To say this is a fascinating story, I believe, doesn't do this book justice. Because for some the word 'story' implies something fictitious, designed to interest, amuse, or instruct the reader.
I'd like to say, this is a truly fascinating memoir.
March 7, 2022
This is one of those books I had to read for work and it horrifies me that I may not have come upon it otherwise because it was good! It reminded me that there are people walking amongst us that have the most extraordinary tales to tell. And of course I loved that the author grew up on Sydney’s northern beaches like me, a little bonus.
This is a biography written by sydney doctor Tony Bernard about his father Henry, a loved family GP who brought up his family in the laid-back northern beaches of the 1960s. But he hid a past that was anything but laid back. Henry’s children knew their Polish father had suffered through World War 2 and they even knew he’d spent time in Auschwitz. But it wasn’t until they were adults themselves that their father started to tell stories of his near-death experiences in the concentration camps of Blitzen, Auschwitz and Kaufering and more horrifyingly, his time in the Jewish Ghetto in his hometown of Tomaszow. Henry travelled back to Europe in 1970 to give evidence at a war crimes trial and, with Tony, returned to Poland and Germany three more times, retracing the horrifying steps of his past.
I loved the way Tony painted the picture of the two worlds - Sydney’s laidback beachside suburbs with war torn Poland - and the way he revealed his father’s story piece by intriguing piece.
It’s exceptionally well-researched and is a story that had to be told. A unique, yet sadly too common, story of one man’s survival against the odds.
This is a biography written by sydney doctor Tony Bernard about his father Henry, a loved family GP who brought up his family in the laid-back northern beaches of the 1960s. But he hid a past that was anything but laid back. Henry’s children knew their Polish father had suffered through World War 2 and they even knew he’d spent time in Auschwitz. But it wasn’t until they were adults themselves that their father started to tell stories of his near-death experiences in the concentration camps of Blitzen, Auschwitz and Kaufering and more horrifyingly, his time in the Jewish Ghetto in his hometown of Tomaszow. Henry travelled back to Europe in 1970 to give evidence at a war crimes trial and, with Tony, returned to Poland and Germany three more times, retracing the horrifying steps of his past.
I loved the way Tony painted the picture of the two worlds - Sydney’s laidback beachside suburbs with war torn Poland - and the way he revealed his father’s story piece by intriguing piece.
It’s exceptionally well-researched and is a story that had to be told. A unique, yet sadly too common, story of one man’s survival against the odds.
May 10, 2022
I have read a few holocaust memoirs , all are appalling in their truth telling and all are stories we all should make ourselves read rather than turn away because it is “too hard” or “too dark”.
That are all that, hard and dark, but we are only hearing about it not living it as the storytellers are.
If you are like me your mind fights to comprehend just how cruel and appalling fellow human being can be.
This history must be heard and read and underpass best we can to try, try, try to make sure nothing like this happens again.
That are all that, hard and dark, but we are only hearing about it not living it as the storytellers are.
If you are like me your mind fights to comprehend just how cruel and appalling fellow human being can be.
This history must be heard and read and underpass best we can to try, try, try to make sure nothing like this happens again.
March 19, 2022
In writing this harrowing story,Tony Bernard has honoured his father’s survival of experiencing the full spectrum of the horrors of the Holocaust. There were descriptions of Germans murdering men, women & especially children that were so horrifying that I could hardly keep reading.Young Henry Bernard had been selected by the Jewish Security Service [OD] to act as a ghetto policeman. He witnessed at close hand monstrous acts of cruelty so evil that the memories haunted him for the rest of his life. There is so much love contained in this book especially the obvious love Tony Bernard had for his father. Painful though reading this was, it is utterly essential that such memories are kept safe to preserve us from future terrors.
April 2, 2023
Very moving memoires of a Holocaust survivor written by his son.
September 29, 2023
The Ghost Tattoo is a fascinating and gut wrenching memoir written about Henry Bierzynski Bernard's life with a focus on WWII. Author Tony Bernard, his son, accompanied his father on several trips back to Eastern Europe later and wrote about Henry's experiences at killing camps to gain a better understanding of his tormented hidden world..
Before the war Henry was a beloved doctor who became a police officer in a Polish ghetto in the early 1940s, something he had to do to save his life. His position afforded him comparative luxuries. But he was taken to Aushwitz and Blizyn where he existed through horror after horror with death as his constant shadow, including an attempt at his own life. I have read many, many books on the Holocaust but this is different in that Henry's story includes his perspectives on actions he regretted but felt he had no choice but to collaborate with Nazis. He also testified at trials to bring these killers to justice. But it is galling so many Nazis got away with murder. In order to get as far away from Poland as possible, Henry emigrated to Australia where he continued practicing medicine until health issues forced retirement.
If you are intrigued to learn more about the Holocaust, do add this one to your list. I am grateful Holocaust survivors such as Henry have told their stories. Everyone should be occasionally rattled into remembering these crimes to prevent a repeat.
My sincere thank you to Kensington Books and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this mesmerizing book.
Before the war Henry was a beloved doctor who became a police officer in a Polish ghetto in the early 1940s, something he had to do to save his life. His position afforded him comparative luxuries. But he was taken to Aushwitz and Blizyn where he existed through horror after horror with death as his constant shadow, including an attempt at his own life. I have read many, many books on the Holocaust but this is different in that Henry's story includes his perspectives on actions he regretted but felt he had no choice but to collaborate with Nazis. He also testified at trials to bring these killers to justice. But it is galling so many Nazis got away with murder. In order to get as far away from Poland as possible, Henry emigrated to Australia where he continued practicing medicine until health issues forced retirement.
If you are intrigued to learn more about the Holocaust, do add this one to your list. I am grateful Holocaust survivors such as Henry have told their stories. Everyone should be occasionally rattled into remembering these crimes to prevent a repeat.
My sincere thank you to Kensington Books and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this mesmerizing book.
November 18, 2022
Henry, a survivor of Nazi Germany has never fully opened up about his experiences of the war to his son, and now in his declining years, he realises that if he doesn't speak up now, his experiences and personal history will be lost forever.
Henry's story of horror and survival during one of the darkest periods in history makes for riveting reading.
The atrocities committed by the Nazis must never be forgotten, and this record will help keep the memories alive.
Henry's story of horror and survival during one of the darkest periods in history makes for riveting reading.
The atrocities committed by the Nazis must never be forgotten, and this record will help keep the memories alive.
March 15, 2022
What a remarkable book. As a Holocaust memoir, there is a lot of grief and immeasurable sadness. The story of Henry Bernard is brilliantly told exposing his experiences from the past. A book that I will remember probably forever. Highly, highly recommended.
December 18, 2023
Sadly graphic account of a Holocaust survivor and what he went through. Also telling is that so few "civilians" were convicted of crimes and, as the author says, really only a few at the bottom of the chain, and even then they received only token sentences. This despite the massive cost of show trials and possibly because so many of the general population were guilty of crimes. Well worth reading.
December 8, 2023
A detailed and brutally honest account of a little-known facet of the Holocaust. We hear so much about the concentration camps, but not very much about the clearing of the Polish ghettos for instance. What this man endured, actually working for the Nazis in order to survive, is unfathomable.
I received a copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review.
I received a copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review.
February 12, 2023
This is a fantastic book and should be on the book shelves of every school in Australia even the world. So beautifully written and told, the story of one Man’s incredible struggle and fight for survival during the biggest atrocity in the history of the world and the most unspeakable evil committed by one group of humans against another. There are over six million of these stories and every one is as important as the other. I give huge praise to Dr Tony Bernard for sharing with us his Father’s story and of course To Dr Henry Bernard for telling his story, a great story that everyone should know. Lest history repeat itself.
November 2, 2023
I found this book to be enlightening. A lot of the books I've read about the Holocaust address the experiences of women and children, most of whom had limited power relative to some of the other victims. This book stood out for me in that it covered a very different perspective on the impossible life or death choices European Jews were forced to make under the Nazi regime and the lifetime toll they took on those who survived. Must read.
March 19, 2025
Every single personal story of survivors of the Holocaust is unique.
P. 309
"Not only is Henry one of the few Polish Jews to survive the Holocaust but, when he was able to give evidence against one of his oppressors, he was believed. He became that rarest of birds: a Holocaust survivor who manages to convict a Nazi murderer of his crimes."
p. 291
"They all knew that Jews were essentially enslaved and the only way to survive was to do what you were told and to remain indispensable to the Nazis. Whether it was being a member of a Jewish council or police, sewing uniforms for the Nazis, working in a concentration camp or factory, everyone was just trying to live."
p. 292
"It was a masterful scheme for the Germans to issue all their orders through the Jewish council, comprised of Jewish community leaders with Jewish law enforcement officers, so that the face of those orders was Jewish, and if people complained about what they were being told to do they often blamed the Jewish messengers for the German orders."
Why were so many of Poland's Jews passive in the face of genocide?
p. 293
"In retrospect if seems obvious that genocide was coming. But at the time none of us in Poland could possibly believe that a modern, cultured country like Germany could behave the way it did. We just could not imagine what was coming. The Nazis were clever: they repressed us slowly, one step at a time, until we found ourselves in the gas chamber."
p. 298
"Although most people are generally familiar with the fact that the Nazis murdered six million Jews in the Holocaust, there is less understanding of how the Nazis physically and mentally tortured these people for years, achieving total control and domination over the Jewish population before moving on to the process of extermination."
p. 299
"Many German police forces in the 1050s, 1960s and 1970s contained ex-Nazi police and SS murderers. If they really wanted to round up and imprison al their war criminals, they would have had to lock up a lot of people. The court dismissed the evidence of the 50 eyewitnesses to the vast majority of the charges for the most trivial reasons. But when you read the dispassionate case summaries, you must know that no one inventing these crimes."
The author states that "no one today can truly imagine what it must have been like to live under Nazi rule."
P. 309
"Not only is Henry one of the few Polish Jews to survive the Holocaust but, when he was able to give evidence against one of his oppressors, he was believed. He became that rarest of birds: a Holocaust survivor who manages to convict a Nazi murderer of his crimes."
p. 291
"They all knew that Jews were essentially enslaved and the only way to survive was to do what you were told and to remain indispensable to the Nazis. Whether it was being a member of a Jewish council or police, sewing uniforms for the Nazis, working in a concentration camp or factory, everyone was just trying to live."
p. 292
"It was a masterful scheme for the Germans to issue all their orders through the Jewish council, comprised of Jewish community leaders with Jewish law enforcement officers, so that the face of those orders was Jewish, and if people complained about what they were being told to do they often blamed the Jewish messengers for the German orders."
Why were so many of Poland's Jews passive in the face of genocide?
p. 293
"In retrospect if seems obvious that genocide was coming. But at the time none of us in Poland could possibly believe that a modern, cultured country like Germany could behave the way it did. We just could not imagine what was coming. The Nazis were clever: they repressed us slowly, one step at a time, until we found ourselves in the gas chamber."
p. 298
"Although most people are generally familiar with the fact that the Nazis murdered six million Jews in the Holocaust, there is less understanding of how the Nazis physically and mentally tortured these people for years, achieving total control and domination over the Jewish population before moving on to the process of extermination."
p. 299
"Many German police forces in the 1050s, 1960s and 1970s contained ex-Nazi police and SS murderers. If they really wanted to round up and imprison al their war criminals, they would have had to lock up a lot of people. The court dismissed the evidence of the 50 eyewitnesses to the vast majority of the charges for the most trivial reasons. But when you read the dispassionate case summaries, you must know that no one inventing these crimes."
The author states that "no one today can truly imagine what it must have been like to live under Nazi rule."
Read
March 7, 2022(I choose not to rate the literary value of a Holocaust memoir)
Tony Bernard shares with readers the physical and emotional journey with his father, Holocaust survivor Henry Bernard, to unlock the secrets that had tormented Henry since the war – secrets he could never talk about or share with his loved ones. “{Behind Henry’s} Auschwitz tattoo he had another invisible mark on his conscience, a ghost tattoo that only Henry could see and feel.” And, this hidden stain, once revealed, explained to his eldest son the dark moods and spurts of anger, the gun he kept in the house, the distance he maintained from Judaism and its traditions, and the constant reminder Henry gave his son in his youth to listen to what his father told him to do. The mystery associated with the secret that plagued Henry is kept from the reader until the last sections of the memoir, when Tony acknowledges that he is “circling around the heart of Henry’s story…a reflection of Henry’s own reticence.”
Bernard shares the meticulous details of his father’s experience before the war as a medical student, his daily life in the Tomaszow ghetto with his family under Nazi occupation, his incarceration in various camps (including Auschwitz), and the trauma of witnessing the barbarity of the systemised extermination of the Jewish population. However, where this memoir differs from others I’ve read is the focus on Henry’s experience as a member of the Jewish ghetto police, under the auspices of the Jewish Council, and the impact this had on his life forever after.
Tony travelled with his father back to Poland several times, Henry distinguishing himself as a noted witness at the Darmstadt trial, at which “he was believed. He became that rarest of birds: a Holocaust survivor who manages to convict a Nazi murderer of his crimes.” Bernard writes that the visits back to Poland were, for his father, “descents into silence, misery and profound unresolved grief.” His record of his father’s experience certainly allows the reader to connect with the weight of Henry’s misery and guilt, probing the most sensitive of questions regarding the individual burdens survivors carry from their experience.
Tony Bernard shares with readers the physical and emotional journey with his father, Holocaust survivor Henry Bernard, to unlock the secrets that had tormented Henry since the war – secrets he could never talk about or share with his loved ones. “{Behind Henry’s} Auschwitz tattoo he had another invisible mark on his conscience, a ghost tattoo that only Henry could see and feel.” And, this hidden stain, once revealed, explained to his eldest son the dark moods and spurts of anger, the gun he kept in the house, the distance he maintained from Judaism and its traditions, and the constant reminder Henry gave his son in his youth to listen to what his father told him to do. The mystery associated with the secret that plagued Henry is kept from the reader until the last sections of the memoir, when Tony acknowledges that he is “circling around the heart of Henry’s story…a reflection of Henry’s own reticence.”
Bernard shares the meticulous details of his father’s experience before the war as a medical student, his daily life in the Tomaszow ghetto with his family under Nazi occupation, his incarceration in various camps (including Auschwitz), and the trauma of witnessing the barbarity of the systemised extermination of the Jewish population. However, where this memoir differs from others I’ve read is the focus on Henry’s experience as a member of the Jewish ghetto police, under the auspices of the Jewish Council, and the impact this had on his life forever after.
Tony travelled with his father back to Poland several times, Henry distinguishing himself as a noted witness at the Darmstadt trial, at which “he was believed. He became that rarest of birds: a Holocaust survivor who manages to convict a Nazi murderer of his crimes.” Bernard writes that the visits back to Poland were, for his father, “descents into silence, misery and profound unresolved grief.” His record of his father’s experience certainly allows the reader to connect with the weight of Henry’s misery and guilt, probing the most sensitive of questions regarding the individual burdens survivors carry from their experience.
September 2, 2022
‘To the outside world, Henry Bernard was a hard-working doctor on Sydney’s northern beaches. Yet he was a Holocaust survivor whose life was profoundly affected by the experiences of his past. He took extreme steps for his family’s security, keeping a rifle in his bedroom and covering up their Jewish origin. He was obsessed with paying off debt – the German word for debt being the same as the word for ‘guilt’. He kept his striped Auschwitz uniform by his bed along with a picture of his mother. These obsessions destroyed his marriage and restricted any hope he had of conventional domestic happiness.
But Henry had a bigger secret and a deeper shame about what he had done during the war. He suffered privately until he began returning to Germany and Poland to confront his past and come to terms with the deaths of his parents and of Halina, the love of his life.
The Ghost Tattoo is the story of how Tony Bernard went on a 40-year journey with his father Henry to solve the mystery of why Henry was the way he was, and how he finally came to understand the desperate choices Henry made in the ghetto to try to keep himself and his family alive.’
This book was wonderful.
As soon as I read the synopsis of this book I knew that I had to read it. I am happy to say that this book definitely lived up to my high hopes.
As with most books that explore people’s experiences during the Holocaust, this book was an emotional roller coaster. Hearing about Henry’s journey; through his own words, and hearing the impact Henry’s experiences had on his son Tony; told through Tony’s words, was both heartbreaking and heartwarming.
Tony Bernard has done an amazing job with this book. The way he captured his father’s story was truly beautiful. As frustrating as it was for me to read at times, once I finished reading it I really appreciated that Tony told this story the way in which it was told to him.
I am confident in saying that this is one of those books that will stay with me for a long time.
The Ghost Tattoo by Tony Bernard is a must-read for everyone.
Geramie Kate Barker
gemsbooknook.wordpress.com
But Henry had a bigger secret and a deeper shame about what he had done during the war. He suffered privately until he began returning to Germany and Poland to confront his past and come to terms with the deaths of his parents and of Halina, the love of his life.
The Ghost Tattoo is the story of how Tony Bernard went on a 40-year journey with his father Henry to solve the mystery of why Henry was the way he was, and how he finally came to understand the desperate choices Henry made in the ghetto to try to keep himself and his family alive.’
This book was wonderful.
As soon as I read the synopsis of this book I knew that I had to read it. I am happy to say that this book definitely lived up to my high hopes.
As with most books that explore people’s experiences during the Holocaust, this book was an emotional roller coaster. Hearing about Henry’s journey; through his own words, and hearing the impact Henry’s experiences had on his son Tony; told through Tony’s words, was both heartbreaking and heartwarming.
Tony Bernard has done an amazing job with this book. The way he captured his father’s story was truly beautiful. As frustrating as it was for me to read at times, once I finished reading it I really appreciated that Tony told this story the way in which it was told to him.
I am confident in saying that this is one of those books that will stay with me for a long time.
The Ghost Tattoo by Tony Bernard is a must-read for everyone.
Geramie Kate Barker
gemsbooknook.wordpress.com
October 8, 2023
The Ghost Tattoo. Tony Bernard. Citadel, 2023. 336 pages.
Tony Bernard and his siblings grew up as typical Australian beach bums. Tony was an adult before he met somebody for whom surfing, sailing, and the ocean weren't all that important. They knew things about their father growing up, too. They knew that he was a successful and popular doctor and that he was a Holocaust survivor; he carried the tattooed number on his arm. They also knew that their mother divorced their father and had no contact with them for a decade. What they didn't know was that their father's Holocaust experiences were at the center of the failed marriage, and they didn't know just how deeply and profoundly his experiences had damaged him. He was that good at shielding his children, but the shields failed when it came to himself and his marriage.
Then, cracks in the shield started developing in 1970 when he, and Tony, flew to West Germany so that he could testify in the trial of a Holocaust murder case. Later, in the 1970s, Tony accompanied him to his Polish hometown, and he learned more of the story. Still, it took another few decades to pull the story out in its entirety. Henry, Tony's father, had not only seen most of his family killed while he himself survived concentration camps, but he had lived through another whole tragedy before being deported to the camps - the source of the majority of the anguish and torment that plagued the rest of his life. He had been a member of the Jewish Order Service in his hometown. Just as the name suggests, the JOS was created to serve the German occupiers by enforcing order among the Jewish population. Henry soon found himself facing seemingly impossible dilemmas and being forced to do terrible things in order to keep himself and his loved ones alive. As Tony Bernard writes in an upcoming 7 Questions with Histocrats (to be published October 13th), this story forces the reader to ask himself what he would have done.
This book is a unique twist on the usual Holocaust story and worth a read.
#histocratsbookshelf #histocratsbotd #bookstagram #histocratsread #theghosttattoo #tonybernard #holocaust #citadelpress #kensingtonbooks
Tony Bernard and his siblings grew up as typical Australian beach bums. Tony was an adult before he met somebody for whom surfing, sailing, and the ocean weren't all that important. They knew things about their father growing up, too. They knew that he was a successful and popular doctor and that he was a Holocaust survivor; he carried the tattooed number on his arm. They also knew that their mother divorced their father and had no contact with them for a decade. What they didn't know was that their father's Holocaust experiences were at the center of the failed marriage, and they didn't know just how deeply and profoundly his experiences had damaged him. He was that good at shielding his children, but the shields failed when it came to himself and his marriage.
Then, cracks in the shield started developing in 1970 when he, and Tony, flew to West Germany so that he could testify in the trial of a Holocaust murder case. Later, in the 1970s, Tony accompanied him to his Polish hometown, and he learned more of the story. Still, it took another few decades to pull the story out in its entirety. Henry, Tony's father, had not only seen most of his family killed while he himself survived concentration camps, but he had lived through another whole tragedy before being deported to the camps - the source of the majority of the anguish and torment that plagued the rest of his life. He had been a member of the Jewish Order Service in his hometown. Just as the name suggests, the JOS was created to serve the German occupiers by enforcing order among the Jewish population. Henry soon found himself facing seemingly impossible dilemmas and being forced to do terrible things in order to keep himself and his loved ones alive. As Tony Bernard writes in an upcoming 7 Questions with Histocrats (to be published October 13th), this story forces the reader to ask himself what he would have done.
This book is a unique twist on the usual Holocaust story and worth a read.
#histocratsbookshelf #histocratsbotd #bookstagram #histocratsread #theghosttattoo #tonybernard #holocaust #citadelpress #kensingtonbooks
February 9, 2025
...this is THE most remarkable book. seriously. i actually bought this bk on kindle which i try to never do..prefer getting thro LIBBY for free. i initially was let down as it started a little boring... oh no....I thot... as it was written by his son TONY BARNARD. but in every way this an was AMAZING story related in great and verified detail. as all becomes revealed over time. divided in 3 sections it begins w/ tony not understanding what his henry was holding back. he knew his past... that he had been in concentration camps but just couldn't understand what was going on w/ his sometimes unusual behavior at the time his father had been an extremely successful highly loved and driven physician in australia specializing in obstetrics AFTER being released from all the camps and emigrating to australia. henry survived because he was lucky and (brilliant). tony himself was struggling to get his own education to become physician. but he knew his dad was hiding some things. he made many trips together with his father back to poland to the camps over and over and visited the 4 he had been in...(actually only a few months in auschwitz but most in in addition finally to the ghetto where he had been a teenager...and finally in section 3 as henry ages he becomes more and more driven to reveal his time spent in the ghetto before deportation. what is remarkable about henry was how astonishing his memory was proven to be after all those years. henry went to the darmstadt trials in 1970 (w/0 tony. at the end those who interviewed him were amazed at his remarkable and certifiable memory by others who witnessed that time (i happened to be very near darmstadt in '70 w/o knowing what was happening a short distance away at the trials ...which gave me a weird feeling) i can't begin to describe all that happened to henry over the horrid time spent in camps until he finally emigrated to australia . he died at 96 so he became more and more driven to reveal his time in the ghetto. i was interrupted by life before finishing this review so was "told" it was erased? so here i am again trying to finish?
August 22, 2025
The Ghost Tattoo is a deeply moving and insightful biography that brings to life the horrors of the Holocaust through the story of Henry Bernard, a survivor from the Polish town of Tomaszów. Even after reading many accounts of the Nazi occupation of Poland, it remains almost impossible to fathom the daily terrors endured by Jewish communities - and Bernard’s testimony adds yet another devastating layer to our understanding.
What makes this book particularly striking is its focus on Henry’s coerced role in the Ordnungsdienst, the Jewish police forced to oversee their own people under Nazi orders. The narrative grapples with the complexities of guilt, innocence, and survival. It is clear the family is eager to stress Henry’s essential decency - that he was a pawn in a monstrous system, that many of those under his watch still regarded him as a friend even after the war. Yet the book does not shy away from the unbearable weight he carried: the haunting memory of his failure to save his mother, the loss of his wife in a camp, and the lifelong scars these events left behind.
Eventually imprisoned himself and then liberated, Henry’s journey to Australia marks a new chapter - one of resilience and rebuilding. He became an extraordinary member of his adopted community, but his life was forever shadowed by the ghosts of his past, the tattoo of survival etched deep within.
The Ghost Tattoo is not an easy read, but it is an essential one. It reminds us that history is not made up of abstract numbers, but of lives lived and broken, of impossible choices and unbearable consequences. It is a haunting testament to memory, trauma, and the persistence of humanity in the face of inhumanity.
What makes this book particularly striking is its focus on Henry’s coerced role in the Ordnungsdienst, the Jewish police forced to oversee their own people under Nazi orders. The narrative grapples with the complexities of guilt, innocence, and survival. It is clear the family is eager to stress Henry’s essential decency - that he was a pawn in a monstrous system, that many of those under his watch still regarded him as a friend even after the war. Yet the book does not shy away from the unbearable weight he carried: the haunting memory of his failure to save his mother, the loss of his wife in a camp, and the lifelong scars these events left behind.
Eventually imprisoned himself and then liberated, Henry’s journey to Australia marks a new chapter - one of resilience and rebuilding. He became an extraordinary member of his adopted community, but his life was forever shadowed by the ghosts of his past, the tattoo of survival etched deep within.
The Ghost Tattoo is not an easy read, but it is an essential one. It reminds us that history is not made up of abstract numbers, but of lives lived and broken, of impossible choices and unbearable consequences. It is a haunting testament to memory, trauma, and the persistence of humanity in the face of inhumanity.
October 31, 2023
The Ghost Tattoo
By: Tony Bernard
Review Score: 3 1/2 Stars
Boogie’s Bulletpoints
•This is a powerful, but very sad, recollection of a man’s experience surviving the Holocaust.
•It was interesting to hear how Henry had ended up in Australia after the war was over.
•It was heartbreaking to hear about Henry’s time in the Ghetto as well as in Auschwitz.
•The story is told by the son of his Dad’s experience, and that made it hard to follow at times.
——
The Ghost Tattoo was kindly provided as an ARC by Netgalley and Kensington Books. Thank you for allowing me to read this wonderful book!
Release Date Out Now!
The Ghost Tattoo tells the story of a man who survives the Holocaust. Henry survives incredibly sad events, and also provides testimony for trials against War Criminals.
This is not a bad book, by any means. The events told are incredibly moving. The reason I gave this book 3 1/2 stars is because of how the story is told. Basically, the son tells his dad’s story. This perspective is confusing and hard to follow at times, and so it took away from the story a bit.
Otherwise, it’s a very powerful recollection of a horrible event, and is an important reminder of an awful time in our history.
Have you read any Holocaust memoirs? We read Night by Elie Wiesel when I was in high school, I think that’s what started my desire to read more about it.
#bookstagram #books #readingnow #boogiereadsbooks #fivekeyfeels #audiobooks #audiobook #arcreview #nonfiction #netgalley #boogiesbulletpoints #kensingtonbooks #theghosttattoo
By: Tony Bernard
Review Score: 3 1/2 Stars
Boogie’s Bulletpoints
•This is a powerful, but very sad, recollection of a man’s experience surviving the Holocaust.
•It was interesting to hear how Henry had ended up in Australia after the war was over.
•It was heartbreaking to hear about Henry’s time in the Ghetto as well as in Auschwitz.
•The story is told by the son of his Dad’s experience, and that made it hard to follow at times.
——
The Ghost Tattoo was kindly provided as an ARC by Netgalley and Kensington Books. Thank you for allowing me to read this wonderful book!
Release Date Out Now!
The Ghost Tattoo tells the story of a man who survives the Holocaust. Henry survives incredibly sad events, and also provides testimony for trials against War Criminals.
This is not a bad book, by any means. The events told are incredibly moving. The reason I gave this book 3 1/2 stars is because of how the story is told. Basically, the son tells his dad’s story. This perspective is confusing and hard to follow at times, and so it took away from the story a bit.
Otherwise, it’s a very powerful recollection of a horrible event, and is an important reminder of an awful time in our history.
Have you read any Holocaust memoirs? We read Night by Elie Wiesel when I was in high school, I think that’s what started my desire to read more about it.
#bookstagram #books #readingnow #boogiereadsbooks #fivekeyfeels #audiobooks #audiobook #arcreview #nonfiction #netgalley #boogiesbulletpoints #kensingtonbooks #theghosttattoo
January 19, 2024
This book was heavy. An interesting perspective on a topic I have read a lot about (WWII). The author's father, Henry, was a Polish Jew during WWII and was known to have quite miraculously survived the terrible concentration camps. But the author discovers, as his father gets older, that there was so much more that he survived, before his deportation to the camps.
Henry worked with the Polish Ghetto Police and essentially did the bidding of the Nazis in his own neighborhood. He thought he could protect his family & friends by serving, but as the war raged on, it became clear that no one was safe.
As I mentioned, I have read lots of books, both historical fiction and nonfiction on the subjects covered in this book, and I have to say, some of the descriptions of what the Ghetto Police did and witnessed made me gasp out loud. The atrocities were unfathomable. Henry's guilt and shame were so deeply a part of who he was as a person for the rest of his life. A fascinating memoir that is equal parts heartbreaking and infuriating.
One thing I have learned between this book and Jews in the Garden is that there were a lot of Polish citizens who turned their backs on their fellow countrymen because they were Jews.
Henry worked with the Polish Ghetto Police and essentially did the bidding of the Nazis in his own neighborhood. He thought he could protect his family & friends by serving, but as the war raged on, it became clear that no one was safe.
As I mentioned, I have read lots of books, both historical fiction and nonfiction on the subjects covered in this book, and I have to say, some of the descriptions of what the Ghetto Police did and witnessed made me gasp out loud. The atrocities were unfathomable. Henry's guilt and shame were so deeply a part of who he was as a person for the rest of his life. A fascinating memoir that is equal parts heartbreaking and infuriating.
One thing I have learned between this book and Jews in the Garden is that there were a lot of Polish citizens who turned their backs on their fellow countrymen because they were Jews.
November 21, 2023
Horrifically Sad!
This book is definitely worth reading. It is a rare and unique view of being a Jewish policeman in a Polish ghetto during WWII. What he survived, saw and had to do for the Gestapo is mind boggling in its sheer awfulness. He ended up in Australia as an MD and suffered PTSD and guilt during his whole long life afterwards. The story seemed quite mild in many ways during the first two thirds as the author worked backwards in time with the memoir of his father. The final tale of his experience in Tomaszow, his home town, helpless to save friends, neighbors and his mother are beyond tragic and upsetting. The Nazis were clever, organized and ruthless as they pulled the noose tighter and tighter towards their goal of complete extermination of European Jewry. He also survived more horrors in various concentration camps culminating with Auschwicz. The scary part from today's point of view is how quickly and subtly civilized Germany descended into the madness of the Holocaust and the possibilities of this happening with a demented right wing leader in the US. Enough said. I would have liked a bit less of the author/son's intrusion into the story.
This book is definitely worth reading. It is a rare and unique view of being a Jewish policeman in a Polish ghetto during WWII. What he survived, saw and had to do for the Gestapo is mind boggling in its sheer awfulness. He ended up in Australia as an MD and suffered PTSD and guilt during his whole long life afterwards. The story seemed quite mild in many ways during the first two thirds as the author worked backwards in time with the memoir of his father. The final tale of his experience in Tomaszow, his home town, helpless to save friends, neighbors and his mother are beyond tragic and upsetting. The Nazis were clever, organized and ruthless as they pulled the noose tighter and tighter towards their goal of complete extermination of European Jewry. He also survived more horrors in various concentration camps culminating with Auschwicz. The scary part from today's point of view is how quickly and subtly civilized Germany descended into the madness of the Holocaust and the possibilities of this happening with a demented right wing leader in the US. Enough said. I would have liked a bit less of the author/son's intrusion into the story.
April 18, 2022
I read this exceptionally moving, well-written memoir over two days and couldn't put it down. Tony Bernard has done an incredible job of combining the compelling threads of his father's story with hard documentary and testimonial evidence to create a riveting account of one man's Holocaust experience and the ripple effect across his Polish community and the generations that followed.
I became a patient at Dr Henry Bernard's general practice the year following his retirement, and would often see him around the practice, still taking an interest in all of his patients who he'd cared for over many decades. I had no idea that behind the gentle smile of this kind doctor lay a dreadful and heartbreaking history, forged during the horrors of the Holocaust.
Henry's courage in the face of unrelenting evil, personal heartbreak and physical hardship during the war, not to mention the mental and emotional fortitude it must have taken to start a new life in Australia and raise three children, will stay with me for a very long time.
I became a patient at Dr Henry Bernard's general practice the year following his retirement, and would often see him around the practice, still taking an interest in all of his patients who he'd cared for over many decades. I had no idea that behind the gentle smile of this kind doctor lay a dreadful and heartbreaking history, forged during the horrors of the Holocaust.
Henry's courage in the face of unrelenting evil, personal heartbreak and physical hardship during the war, not to mention the mental and emotional fortitude it must have taken to start a new life in Australia and raise three children, will stay with me for a very long time.
August 18, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley to allow me to read an advanced copy of The Ghost Tattoo. I'm always very interested in books dealing with the Holocaust and this was a memoir told from father to son.
Henry lived in a small town in Poland and he talks harrowingly of his time spent in work camps and in the infamous death camp, Aushwitz. Miraculously Henry survives the Holocaust but at a cost. He is forever a changed man due to the work he had to carry out to stay alive.
I did not particularly care for this book. It was written in various time periods which made for a very confusing and tedious read. The part I felt was most compelling was Henry's testimony in Damshadt, Germany in 1970. The evidence he provided was instrumental in finding a Nazi guilty of war crimes. It was an outrage that of the testimony given by thousands, very few Nazis were found guilty.
It was also horrendous to read that to this day Poles still think of Jews in a prejudicial manner.
Henry lived in a small town in Poland and he talks harrowingly of his time spent in work camps and in the infamous death camp, Aushwitz. Miraculously Henry survives the Holocaust but at a cost. He is forever a changed man due to the work he had to carry out to stay alive.
I did not particularly care for this book. It was written in various time periods which made for a very confusing and tedious read. The part I felt was most compelling was Henry's testimony in Damshadt, Germany in 1970. The evidence he provided was instrumental in finding a Nazi guilty of war crimes. It was an outrage that of the testimony given by thousands, very few Nazis were found guilty.
It was also horrendous to read that to this day Poles still think of Jews in a prejudicial manner.
August 18, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley to allow me to read an advanced copy of The Ghost Tattoo. I'm always very interested in books dealing with the Holocaust and this was a memoir told from father to son.
Henry lived in a small town in Poland and he talks harrowingly of his time spent in work camps and in the infamous death camp, Aushwitz. Miraculously Henry survives the Holocaust but at a cost. He is forever a changed man due to the work he had to carry out to stay alive.
I did not particularly care for this book. It was written in various time periods which made for a very confusing and tedious read. The part I felt was most compelling was Henry's testimony in Damshadt, Germany in 1970. The evidence he provided was instrumental in finding a Nazi guilty of war crimes. It was an outrage that of the testimony given by thousands, very few Nazis were found guilty.
It was also horrendous to read that to this day Poles still think of Jews in a prejudicial manner.
Henry lived in a small town in Poland and he talks harrowingly of his time spent in work camps and in the infamous death camp, Aushwitz. Miraculously Henry survives the Holocaust but at a cost. He is forever a changed man due to the work he had to carry out to stay alive.
I did not particularly care for this book. It was written in various time periods which made for a very confusing and tedious read. The part I felt was most compelling was Henry's testimony in Damshadt, Germany in 1970. The evidence he provided was instrumental in finding a Nazi guilty of war crimes. It was an outrage that of the testimony given by thousands, very few Nazis were found guilty.
It was also horrendous to read that to this day Poles still think of Jews in a prejudicial manner.
August 26, 2023
This book will sit with me for a long while. How can one rate a book about the Holocaust? I read many WWII books, both fiction and non-fiction. Some I love, some I don't.
This book reads as a conversation. The author compiled and wrote this book based on interviews, videos, visits to the actual places, research for confirmation of events, and conversations with his dad, Henry, whom this book is about.
I cringed, wept, and laughed while reading this book. The events that Henry went through and survived are incredible, both fantastic and horrible.
My dad was in the US Army during this time. Reading this, I could remember times when I asked him about his time in Europe and what he went through, saw, did, etc. which he never spoke of. I am so glad Henry eventually wanted to speak about it, and everything was documented.
What would you do to survive? We all live with ghosts of our past; some more so than others.
This book reads as a conversation. The author compiled and wrote this book based on interviews, videos, visits to the actual places, research for confirmation of events, and conversations with his dad, Henry, whom this book is about.
I cringed, wept, and laughed while reading this book. The events that Henry went through and survived are incredible, both fantastic and horrible.
My dad was in the US Army during this time. Reading this, I could remember times when I asked him about his time in Europe and what he went through, saw, did, etc. which he never spoke of. I am so glad Henry eventually wanted to speak about it, and everything was documented.
What would you do to survive? We all live with ghosts of our past; some more so than others.
December 15, 2023
This is a haunting story of a younger man telling the story of his father’s life. This is a true story. The story jumps around a bit timeline wise but you learn about his father, Henry’s, struggle to survive not only during World War II but pre and post war as well.
The story shares each time he comes close to death, often wanting it, but fate has another plan. I’ve read several holocaust books before but this shared a longer time span and had several situations where Henry had to do difficult things to save himself and his family.
He hides a dark secret that he’s carried with him over 70+ years. This is told with careful detail of all the decisions made that did or would have made a difference. As a lover of history, I felt like I learned more than I already knew, which was interesting. If this subject interests you and you can handle reading the horrific atrocities, it’s worth the time.
The story shares each time he comes close to death, often wanting it, but fate has another plan. I’ve read several holocaust books before but this shared a longer time span and had several situations where Henry had to do difficult things to save himself and his family.
He hides a dark secret that he’s carried with him over 70+ years. This is told with careful detail of all the decisions made that did or would have made a difference. As a lover of history, I felt like I learned more than I already knew, which was interesting. If this subject interests you and you can handle reading the horrific atrocities, it’s worth the time.
July 11, 2023
The Ghost Tattoo is a harrowing memoir of perseverance, resilience & the survival of Tony Bernard’s father forced into Nazi concentration camps between 1940 & 1943 & the atrocities he endured in order to survive.
At times I needed to put this memoir down to reflect on what I was reading & the emotions it brought out in me to immediately pick it up again to continue on. This memoir is unique in its own way & is highly recommended.
Side Note: From time to time I pick up a memoir of a Holocaust survivor. I’m not exactly sure why. It could be reading about the atrocities committed to innocent people is a reminder that there is such a thing as pure evil. Pure evil that should NOT exist in our world.
My sincere thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing Corp. & Tony Bernard for an ARC in return for an honest review
At times I needed to put this memoir down to reflect on what I was reading & the emotions it brought out in me to immediately pick it up again to continue on. This memoir is unique in its own way & is highly recommended.
Side Note: From time to time I pick up a memoir of a Holocaust survivor. I’m not exactly sure why. It could be reading about the atrocities committed to innocent people is a reminder that there is such a thing as pure evil. Pure evil that should NOT exist in our world.
My sincere thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing Corp. & Tony Bernard for an ARC in return for an honest review
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