The Daughter of Auschwitz: My Story of Resilience, Survival and Hope

 Tova Friedman was four years old when her family was moved to a Jewish Ghetto in Poland and just six when they were forced into a cattle car bound for Auschwitz concentration camp. Tova is one of the youngest survivors of the horrendous death camp.  As time passes and the survivors of the Holocaust atrocities are fewer and fewer Tova feels it is her obligation to tell her story.  She must keep sharing her experiences so that the world will not forget what happened in World War II Germany and Poland. 

The story is told from Tova’s perspective with the help of author Malcom Brabant, a war reporter, whose detailed research helped Tova remember her experiences with meticulous detail.

Tova tells the story from the perspective of a young girl of twelve talking to a classmate.  This makes the story easier for young readers to understand and relate to the details.  We meet Tova when she comes to New York City and is starting her new life in America.  It is difficult at first adjusting to a new language and trying to fit into school.  She has never played with other children or had any friends before.  She dresses very differently and the school counselor even suggests she cut her long hair to look more American.

Tova Friedman was an incredibly lucky person.  She explains the many times she was saved by ingenuity, or just good luck from the jaws of death.  Her mother had many clever and good sense advice and ideas that helped them both live through the many horrible situations they faced. Her father also survived and they found each other after the war, traveling to the United States together.

Now Tova is in her eighties and has four children and eight grandchildren  She travels around the country telling her story and talking to young people about prejudice and anti-semitism.  She and her grandson Aron have a TikTok channel to reach a larger audience.  

This book has a strong message about being Jewish even in the face of adversity. The Jewish holidays are mentioned and food laws of kashrut. Judaism is integral to the story.  This is not a book that would exist without the Jewish component.  It is a great book for all young people to read, Jewish and non Jewish to understand the horrible consequences of hatred and prejudice.

This is an important memoir that will continue to honor the victims of the Holocaust and keep the atrocities that happened there fresh in our minds so that they will never be repeated again.