The Tattooist of Auschwitz

The Tattooist of Auschwitz
AuthorHeather Morris
LanguageEnglish
GenreHistorical
PublisherBonnier Books UK Limited
Publication date
11 January 2018
Publication placeNew Zealand

The Tattooist of Auschwitz is a 2018 Holocaust novel by New Zealand novelist Heather Morris. The book tells the story of how Slovakian Jew Lale Sokolov, who was imprisoned at Auschwitz in 1942, fell in love with a girl he was tattooing at the concentration camp.[1] The story is based on the real lives of Sokolov and his wife, Gita Furman. There has been mixed criticism of the book, with some complimenting the novel’s compelling story based on real-life events,[2] while claims of factual inaccuracies that may lead to miseducation around historical events have been made by the Auschwitz Memorial Research Center.[3][4][5]

As of October 2019, the novel had sold more than three million copies around the world;[6] 61,391 copies of The Tattooist of Auschwitz were sold in 2018 in Ireland.[7] In 2018, it was the #1 New York Times Bestseller and #1 International Bestseller.[8]

  1. ^ Barr, Sabrina (9 January 2018). "The tattooist of Auschwitz - who fell in love as he inked a number on a prisoner's arm". The Independent. Archived from the original on 20 June 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  2. ^ Flood, Alison (3 October 2019). "Sequel to The Tattooist of Auschwitz branded 'lurid and titillating' by survivor's stepson". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  3. ^ Witek-Malicka, Wanda (2018). "Memoria [EN] No. 14 (11/2018)". view.joomag.com. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  4. ^ "Highlight: How 4 million books were sold on fabrications". Apple Podcasts. 16 January 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  5. ^ Kenneally, Christine (1 February 2020). "The fabulist of Auschwitz". The Monthly. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  6. ^ Hirsh, Anna; Láníček, Jan; Mitschke, Samantha; Shields, Kirril (2020). "The Tattooist of Auschwitz and the Trivialisation of the Holocaust: A Roundtable Discussion" (PDF). Australian Journal of Jewish Studies. 32.
  7. ^ Canavan, T (2019). Books Ireland. pp. 8–14.
  8. ^ Rowland, Michael (22 September 2019). "Tattooist of Auschwitz author feuds with museum over accuracy on eve of sequel". ABC News (Australia). Retrieved 18 May 2020.