Victoria, a young 18
year-old Polish Catholic woman is looking forward to going off to college. Her
bags are packed, but the Nazis invade Poland, destroying her plans for the
future, instead putting her to work as a slave in a sewing factory. When she
and her friend Sylvia decide to go to a secret resistance movement, they are
caught and shipped out of Poland to be slaves in Germany. On the way, stuffed
into box cars we meet the formidable (and lovable) Mrs. Kosa. She takes
Victoria under her wing and instills in her courage. She does this throughout
the story, making her an unforgettable character for me.
In this story, we also meet
Etta, a young German artist, who is deaf and mute. In her opening scene we are
with her and her hideous mother, at a hospital to endure forced sterilization
under the Furher’s command. Her mother, unconceivably, agrees to this and being
the good Nazi that she is, helps restrain her resistant daughter. Etta is being
forced to endure this under Nazi law that all disabled people be sterilized, in
the much popular eugenics program of that country. She protests much to her
mother’s horror because as most young women, she dreams of having a family one
day. This storyline intertwines with that of Victoria as Etta’s family “buys” Victoria
to be a slave to their bakery business and family.
As the story progresses,
we hear of tremendous atrocities, such as forced prostitution, forced labor,
starvation rations, dislocation from one’s family and country, and other
brutalities. It never ceases to amaze me how cruel humans can be to one
another, but when that cruelty is state-sanctioned, it is a living nightmare.
Although this story was
fictional, it did make me think about the lesser known stories of the populations
who were also controlled and destroyed by the Nazi party such as the ethnic
Poles, the Catholics (particularly priests and nuns), the disabled, any woman,
and even their own citizens. This story was sad, but also hopeful, as it showed
how such things as small gestures of kindness can be the best way to be subversive
to those in power, and of great help to those in need.
Many
thanks to Netgalley, ListenUp Audiobooks, and the author for making this
audiobook available pre-publication for review!
