Reviews

There's quite a bit I don't agree or like about this author and while I anticipated a different angle, perhaps more motivational in nature- the tale nonetheless resonates with profound significance.

This gripping narrative delves into the harrowing experiences of a survivor, evoking raw emotions that left me "ugly crying" throughout the initial chapters.

As I turned the pages, I found myself overwhelmed by the sheer intensity of Edith's journey and the atrocities she endured, the people she remembered and how she remembered them.

thepennotthesword's review against another edition

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5.0

What an incredible woman. Her life story, from Auschwitz, to death camps, hard labour and near death experiences, to a doctor of psychology, Dr Edith Eger has completely transformed my thinking and my mindset in regards to the trials and tribulations of life and how in life, every step is a choice you can make, a mindset you can employ.

A firsthand account of a young girl who was sent to Auschwitz, suffering unspeakable horrors at the hands of the Nazis, lost her mother and father to the gas chambers, surviving alongside her sister against all odds (found with a broken back), with a faith truly unlike any I have seen. However, the suffering has not ended for Edith Eger, who faced further harassment at the hands of the Communists when she married, travelling to America penniless. In spite of everything, she became a world-renowned doctor of psychology, helping others through traumatic experiences.

Edith Eger shares throughout this book her persecution due to her religion, meeting the Angel of Death, returning to Auschwitz after the war, as well as her own post-traumatic stress and the impact of this on her life, her marriage and her parenting. She then explores patients she has encountered during her career, and through these accounts, demonstrates how grief, anger and the past need to be worked through, not run from.

This book is incredibly difficult to review, due to the subject and the fact that this is a firsthand account, but this is a book that you need to read at least once in your life. My way of thinking, as well as the way I approach difficult times and events, have forever been changed through the wisdom and advice shared within these pages.

jennnafziger's review against another edition

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5.0

Every time I read an account of the Holocaust and its aftermath, I am stricken by grief and horror. How could anyone be so deluded to believe they were doing something right?! Dr. Eger’s memoir is haunting and beautiful… triumph of resilience and courage that is astounding.

amberklootwyk's review against another edition

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informative inspiring

4.0

nicamas's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

This book is beautifully written and profound to read.
Following the story of Ediths life from her young family life, through the horrors and tribulation, and most horrendous suffering during the camps of WW2, through to her liberation and later life is incredibly sad and challenging. Further into the book understanding how those experiences shaped her later life, and seeing which choices she made is profound.
It inevitably leads to you reflecting on your own choices and is a must read book.

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