The ‘Three Sisters’ is the final instalment in the Tattooist of Auschwitz Trilogy (Tattooist of Auschwitz – 2018, Cilka’s Journey – 2019) all of which are based on the heart wrenching true stories of holocaust survivors, written by Heather Morris.
As children, Cibi, Magda and Livia make a promise to their Father to always stay together and to protect one another. This promise leads Cibi to joining her sister Livia, who at only 15 years old, is instructed to leave the family home to “work for the Nazis” whilst Magda is hidden in hospital recovering from a fever. Distraught and guilt-ridden to be breaking her promise and separated from her sisters, Magda is desperate to follow however is begged by her Mother and Grandfather to remain safe at home hiding from the weekly visits of the Nazi militia either in the forest, or a neighbours attic space. The trio are sadly reunited some time later at Auschwitz-Birkenau where their passionate love for each other, strength, determination and courage aid them in their survival.
It feels wrong to say I have enjoyed reading the Three Sisters (or the previous two books) however their story is one that needed to be told. I was astounded by the resilience and strength that all three sisters demonstrated however Cibi’s courage and determination to protect her younger sister, is what caught me the most. Unlike other WW2/Holocaust novels, I was pleased to find that we were going to be told “what happened next” and how the girls journeys continued after they escaped the death march. This was actually my favourite part of the book and although they remained haunted by their experiences and memories, I was overwhelmed to learn about their lives together with partners and children in a new world.
Advanced Reader Copy provided via NetGalley
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