by Lily Ebert
First published 2022
Lily Ebert lives happily with her family in Hungary until 1944, when Nazi forces deport them to Auschwitz-Birkenau. Guards murder her mother, brother, and sister immediately upon arrival. Lily fights to keep herself and her two remaining sisters alive in the concentration camp. The three girls are transferred to work as forced laborers in a munitions factory near Leipzig. They endure a death march as the war ends but survive when American soldiers rescue them. Decades later, Lily's great-grandson discovers a banknote containing a message from the soldier who freed his great-grandmother. Through social media, the family connects with the soldier's descendants. Lily dedicates her life to Holocaust education, ensuring future generations remember the horrors she witnessed. She receives a British Empire Medal for her contributions to Holocaust awareness and teaching.
Genres: holocaust, historical-fiction, 20th-century, memoir, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, survival
Setting: Hungary, Auschwitz-Birkenau, Leipzig, United Kingdom
Period: 1944, Decades Later
304 pages · Paperback · Luitingh-Sijthoff
Content warnings: death, violence