The Nazis spared their lives because they were twins.
In the summer of 1944, Eva Mozes Kor and her family arrived at Auschwitz.
Within thirty minutes, they were separated. Her parents and two older sisters were taken to the gas chambers, while Eva and her twin, Miriam, were herded into the care of the man who became known as the Angel of Death: Dr. Josef Mengele. They were 10 years old.
While twins at Auschwitz were granted the ‘privileges’ of keeping their own clothes and hair, they were also subjected to Mengele’s sadistic medical experiments. They were forced to fight daily for their own survival and many died as a result of the experiments, or from the disease and hunger rife in the concentration camp.
In a narrative told simply, with emotion and astonishing restraint, The Twins of Auschwitz shares the inspirational story of a child’s endurance and survival in the face of truly extraordinary evil.
Also included is an epilogue on Eva’s incredible recovery and her remarkable decision to publicly forgive the Nazis. Through her museum and her lectures, she dedicated her life to giving testimony on the Holocaust, providing a message of hope for people who have suffered, and worked toward goals of forgiveness, peace, and the elimination of hatred and prejudice in the world.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
EVA MOZES KOR was a resident of Terre Haute, Indiana. Following her survival of Auschwitz, she became a recognised speaker, both nationally and internationally, on topics related to the Holocaust and social justice. Eva created the CANDLES organisation in 1985 to locate other Mengele twins and found 122 twins across the world. Ten years later, she opened the CANDLES Holocaust Museum to educate the public about the historic event she survived. A community leader, champion of human rights, and tireless educator, Eva has been covered in numerous media outlets and is the subject of a documentary, Forgiving Dr. Mengele. She passed away in 2019.
My Review:
Firstly my thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for the invitation and opportunity to read this book.
I have read quite a few books recently based on true stories of the atrocities of the Holocaust, from the Librarian to the Tattooist, and whilst they are both incredibly moving accounts and stories there was something more pure and innocent about The Twins and it is written exactly how I would imagine a 10 year old terrified little girl and her twin sister would feel.
Eva and Miriam are 10 year old identical twins from a jewish family in Romania when the Nazi’s took them to Auschwitz. Separated from their parents and older siblings, the twins are sent to Dr Mengele to be subjected to several horrific and unimaginable medical experiments.
Eva’s young voice whilst narrating her story has such strength that it’s incredulous to the reader where she gets her courage and determination from. Her desire to live and survive is so inspiring and when you finish the book and then read the epilogue following Eva’s journey you soon realise that Eva was an incredibly selfless, strong and brave human being and I hope that the younger generation listen and follow her wise words.
