Kevin Mahoney

Reading Guide to The Tattooist of Auschwitz By Heather Morris (Unauthorized) Kevin Mahoney

This is an illustrated reading guide to Heather Morris's bestselling novel The Tattooist of Auschwitz. Although presented as a novel, Lale Sokolov's story contains important eyewitness testimony that has previously not been documented in other histories of Auschwitz. There have been criticisms about the novel's historical accuracy, and Kevin Mahoney does indeed point out the factual errors in the book. Kevin argues that such errors are inevitable in a narrative of this length, derived from an oral testimony that related events that occurred many decades previously. (Lale delayed telling his story for fear of being accused of being a Nazi collaborator during Gita's lifetime.) However, there is no dispute that Lale was a tattooist of Auschwitz, for there is documentary evidence of this. Kevin Mahoney explores the various controversies surrounding the novel, and explains the historical context around Heather Morris's depiction of Lale and Gita's tumultuous bid to survive the horrors of Auschwitz. This is an essential guide for any reading club exploring Lale and Gita's epic love story.