Heather Morris’ books about concentration camp survivors have sold more than 15 million copies in print alone. The novels have boosted the popularity of Holocaust literature.
– The world needs to hear about these brave, young people who miraculously survived the concentration camps. They are true heroes.
Morris’s devout wish has come true. The stories of his novels have interested readers, as three novels have sold 15 million copies in print alone.
Holocaust literature is of interest, as new books on the subject are constantly being published. The rise of the extreme right, polarization and Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine have further increased people’s interest in the darkest period of our history. The rate of publication and sales figures of Holocaust literature tell us about this.
And the interest is not only limited to literature, because there are plenty of films, documentaries and TV series related to the Nazi era and concentration camps.
The novels are based on real life stories
Heather Morris was working in the health care industry in the early 2000s when she happened to hear about an old gentleman who might have an \”interesting story\” to tell.
Morris slowly befriended Sokolov and got to hear an incredible story of survival.
Sokolov’s job in Auschwitz was to tattoo sets of numbers on the arms of other prisoners. In that mission, he also met his future wife, Gita. is, despite all its horror, also a love story.
Coincidence led to the siblings
– As soon as Livia saw the cover, she had said that it must be about Lale and Gita. He knew Gita from school days and was in the same cattle car when the girls were transported to Auschwitz.
Morris was on vacation in South Africa when he got a call from Livia.
– He asked me to come and meet him in Israel. He didn’t want to talk on the phone. I thought for a while and decided to fly to Israel.
Morris wrote the novel based on Livia and Magda’s memories. In addition, he got to see diaries and other documents. Since it is a novel, Morris naturally supplemented the story with fictional pieces.
Evil cannot be explained
While writing novels, Morris has had to think about a lot of evil. He still hasn’t found an answer to the question of what makes a person behave as cruelly as the Nazis did. And he doesn’t really even want to find an answer.
– It is something that cannot be explained. But we must continue to question evil. We must never give in to evil.
Morris believes that the search for reasons and the attempt to understand the events of history make people interested again and again in Holocaust literature and the Nazi era.
– People have a great desire to understand things, even though sometimes it is impossible.
The siblings saw unspeakable cruelty every day
tells how three young Jewish girls miraculously survive the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. Livia and Cibi had to live in the midst of death for three years. The middle of the siblings, Magda, managed to hide in the hospital and with a friendly neighbor. He was sent to Auschwitz with his mother and grandfather only later.
The girls had to witness atrocities every day. They watched as the prisoners were stripped and taken to the gas chambers. They smelled the sickening smoke of the crematorium every day. People were being shot and tortured in front of their eyes.
How on earth did the young girls survive all this in their right mind?
– Yes, they suffer mentally for a long time. When I interviewed Liv, she said that she had cried herself to sleep for ten years after her release. The crying only stopped when she became a mother, Morris says.
Australia also has a large Jewish community and many Holocaust survivors live there. Through his books, Morris has met a lot of them.
– I can say that I have also met a lot of them who have not survived mentally. Their lives have been ruined by that horrific experience.
Strength from stories of survival
Livia, Magda and Cibi were young and innocent girls when they were sent to Auschwitz. Consultation and cooperation saved them from death many times.
– Their survival was influenced by the fact that they were together. In their childhood, they had promised their father that they would always take care of each other. It saved them.
Heather Morris \”specializes\” in writing about concentration camp survivors. However, he has not found the subject difficult, on the contrary. She says she draws strength from the stories of survivors.
– I have been able to meet these brave people. The greatest joy is to see their descendants in several generations.
Morris plans to continue with World War II, but next sets his sights on the Pacific War. He has already reached three surviving women who were involved in the war as nurses. He has already arranged a meeting with a woman living in London who has experienced the war.
Before that, however, at the end of his European tour, Morris heads to Israel to meet Liv, who will turn 97 in the next few weeks.