Man- this is one of the books that will just hit you in the feels. After being arrested by the Nazis, Ana (a Catholic midwife) and Ester (a Jewish nurse) work tirelessly in awful conditions to help pregnant women and newborns in Auschwitz. ⁣
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⁣What I enjoyed about The Midwife of Auschwitz: ⁣
⁣- It was based on a true story, but doesn’t romanticize any one person. Sometimes it can seem yucky when an author tells the story about a real life person without consulting them- you know? ⁣
⁣- As a woman who recently almost died from pregnancy complications in the best of circumstances, I am blown away by the things women can survive. Seriously- we run the world. ⁣
⁣- The Midwife of Auschwitz will make you feel all the emotions- anger, shock, sadness! It’s a lot! ⁣
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⁣I highly recommend this book to historical fiction fans! Four stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⁣
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⁣Thank you to @netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of The Midwife of Auschwitz. It’s available now.

I am absolutely astounded by this book. It’s beautifully written, and highly emotional. Im just speechless. An absolute must read.

I was fearful of reading this book and others like it but I took the plunge and am glad I did.

Learning what those poor men and women went through at the hands of the SS and others (it sickens me even to write those initials) broke my heart. Their strength, love, and care is the only thing that got them through this horrendous time.

The conditions were unimaginable and the daily hunger, filth, and fear made me cry.

How a person could put another person through the travesties and cruelty these people did is beyond me. Power can be frightening.

Living alongside them whilst reading this story made me feel fear for all of them and disgust at the hands of the people that caused the misery that these people endured.

What a well-written, gripping and descriptive story, punchy, powerful bad sadly oh so true.
Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this sad book. xxx

As an avid reader of World War II fiction, The Midwife of Auschwitz did not immediately grab me, but once into the story, I could not put the book down…in fact my husband found me more than once underneath the covers with my Kindle reading long into the night. Changed my world view; highly recommend. Thank you Anna Stuart for a great read.

The Midwife of Aushwitz tells the story of two women, Ana and Ester. Ana is a middle aged Polish midwife abd Ester, a Jewish nurse in her early twenties. Through Ana's son, who has a job in the train transportation sector and has access to trains which make their way through the ghetto at regular intervals, Ana supports Ester and the ghetto hospital in getting supplies to care for Jewish patients. Eventually, Ana and two of her sons are accused of being part of the resistance and Ana ends up on a train to Auschwitz at the same time as Ester and her dying mother. Together in Auschwitz, Ana and Ester face cruel conditions and brutal punishments as they attempt to provide what limited medical care they can with no supplies and disease running rampant. Completely cut off from any information about their families, both Ester and Ana have no idea whether or not they will have anyone left to return home to if they manage to outlast this excruciating war.

The story is based on a true story and gives a more accurate picture of the resistance than many of the other WWII historical fictions that have gained popularity recently. Resistance efforts were definitely present during the second world war, but plans failed and people got caught and punished, and Jewish people rarely saw the benefits of these resistance efforts because they were hidden away in death camps. But murder doesn't exactly scream happy endings so it tends to get left out of some of the stories in favour of heroism and everlasting love.

This book was not uplifting, it was not about happy endings or love stories. It was about the lengths people went to in an attempt to survive the most inhumane conditions. It was about murder. It was about sacrifice. It was about resilience and never giving up. And it was those thing that made it such a good book. I'm really glad I had the chance to read it and I highly recommend it! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review The Midwife of Auschwitz!

Whilst fiction this is based on truth. It was a well written story, with great characters who I so wanted to survive. The setting was well described in all its horror, but the bravery of the people who fought back was paramount. I’d highly recommend this book.

This is one of those books that hits you and stays with you for a long time and although it is a work of fiction, the author has clearly done her research and there is a lot of this book that is based on fact.

As you can imagine, this is a hard book to read; it's a story filled with despair, death and unimaginable suffering but it's also a story filled with hope, the power of friendship and love.

Ana and Ester are the two main characters and oh what characters they are; strong and with a will to continue to do good whilst all around them descends into chaos and madness.

This book had my emotions in a constant state of flux; angry, sad, tearful, horrified but also hopeful and in awe and wonder of the people who went through such despicable crimes but continued to keep their humanity unlike the Nazis!

Like I said, this is a difficult read but, I think, an essential one and I must thank Bookouture and NetGalley for enabling me to read it and share my thoughts.

A well-written historical novel that will both horrify and enlighten the reader. Strong female characters connected through friendship and circumstance, the reader will feel everything they feel. A must read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for giving me a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely adored this book! When you’re an avid reader of historical fiction, you almost feel like you’ve read every single possible view of World War Two. This books defied all my expectations in the best possible way. The dual point of view gave two sides of the time in Auschwitz - from a Jewish woman and a non-Jewish woman. This gave an in-depth experience that these women went through as midwives during this horrific time in history.

Even when I had put the book down, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I wanted to know what happened to the characters and I was constantly itching to get my hands on my ebook device once again to read more of the story. It’s very rare that any book will make me want to keep reading to such an extent as this one did.

The only issue I would say is that I need a sequel. The ending didn’t feel like the end for these characters due to one character still not appearing without an explanation. If there ever was a sequel, you can bet I’ll be first to preorder it!

A book about the extremes of human nature. Even during the inhumanity of Nazi occupation and the horrors of life in a concentration camp, there is space for compassion.

A story of survival in the darkest of times - this book will tear at your heartstrings, but also give you hope that no matter how dark times are, people can still find the resources to care for and about others.

A great read.

What a heart wrenching book, it really touched me. I'm not sure my words will be able to do the poignancy of this book justice but I'll try!

This book is based on the true story of Stanisława Leszczyńska, and her bravery in helping so many of her fellow prisoners.. Stanislawa was held prisoner at Auschwitz Birkenhau Concentration Camp after her family were caught helping Jewish People in the Ghettos of Lodz. She miraculously helped birth 3000 babies, doing the best for them and their mothers that she possibly could, in the most extreme and horrific conditions.

Anna Stuart has told this harrowing story incredibly well. Her words show the bravery and determination of this wonderful lady, and those surrounding her, in great depth, you really can picture the atrocities and heartbreaking situation these innocent people were put it. It's definitely a page turner, and hard to read at times, but it also shows strength, friendship and love. The hope that they had to cling onto to survive.

I loved this book, you can see it has been extensively researched, and this makes it all the more heart breaking. An important story to be told and it has been done so well.

Thank you to Netgalley, Bookouture and Anna Stuart for a copy of the book in return for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

this book was UNBELIEVABLE 😩😩 aside from the absolutely gripping emotions that stem from a Holocaust-derived book, the story includes a beautiful love story full of tragedy, longing, & hope. i breezed through it because I was so enamored by the characters and their will to live; but I also had to take many breaks throughout just to ground myself and be reminded that while I was reading a piece of fiction, all of the gruesome & terrifying details stemmed from events that actually happened in our world less than 100 years ago.

based on true characters and events, the story begins with a young romance blossoming between Ester and Filip, both Jewish and living in Poland. as quick as their love story begins, it is tainted by the Nazi reign as SS soldiers are assigned to take over their home and deplete the Jewish population.

as Ester, Filip, and their families are forced into the Jewish ghetto, Ana, a Christian midwife and friend of Ester’s family, vows to be an ally and help however she can, no matter the risk. unfortunately, Ana is caught for being part of the Resistance, and is punished by being sent to Auschwitz; but she is not alone, as Ester is also aboard the train.

upon arriving to Auschwitz, Ana and Ester think on their feet & declare themselves both as midwives. together, they work in the maternity hut helping deliver babies-as grim as their fates may be. as the women lean on each other to survive abusive leaders & deplorable conditions, they come up with a way to help save and, hopefully one day, reunite the moms with their babies, in the way that Ester hopes to one day be reunited with Filip.

there are so many more incredible details that I’m leaving out of this review so that you can experience it to its entirety. @annastuartauthor’s writing was brilliant, mindful, and incredibly well-researched. she even includes historical notes at the end of the book to pay homage to the real characters and events that took place in her story.

thank you to @netgalley & @bookouture for the advanced reader’s copy. this book is available now for everyone to read. highly, highly recommended.

The story follows two women, Ana - a Christian and midwife - and Ester - a young Jewish nurse. Ana was the midwife at Ester's birth and they have been tied together ever since. After an act of defiance, they find themselves at Auschwitz, helping fellow inmates through birth in the maternity hut. As each blonde-haired child is born, they're snatched away for Lebensborn - to be given to German families. Soon Ester's own stomach begins to grow and she fears her child will share her straw-coloured hair and the same fate.

I haven't actually read many books set or about Auschwitz, but I can tell the other did her research. It's always heartbreaking to read about the treatment the inmates had to endure and so hard to imagine that people could be so cruel. The book is bitter-sweet.

I enjoyed the characters of Ana and Ester. They were strong, yet still had vulnerabilities and at times broke down. They seemed very real, as did their situation.

I did find the writing a bit disconnected. Although we were told that the characters were sad/mad/etc, we weren't shown it. Ana and Ester's individual voices didn't really come out.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book for my review. Just the name of Auschwitz brings the idea of terroir for thousands of Jews.
. The title adds the mid-wife which only made the thoughts more devastating to think of babies.

In 1943Ester Pasternak and Anna Kaminski,who is not Jewish are sent to Auschwitz. They claim to be mid wife and helper and are sent to the maternity block.. The reality of what happens is heartbreaking. The Germans took blonde children for German families.

The one thing these women come up with is to put their numbers on the babies so perhaps in time they can find each other.. The story is heartbreaking, uplifting, hopeful within the darkness of the times.

It is worth the read, the research is more than adequate. The truth to the story is so real. The emotions are so ever present..

I just read the Midwife of Auschwitz and here is my review

As Ana arrives at Auschwitz with her friend Ester, she informs the guards that she is a midwife and Ester assists her. They are sent to the maternity hut… Ana knows that many of these women and babies won’t make it and sets to right the wrongs she is seeing.
Watching babies being snatched from the arms of their mothers, Ana knows they are going to German families so at least there's a glimmer of hope there but one day Ana notices that Ester is beginning to show…
This book tore me apart. I went through a whole box of kleenex reading this one. I could literally feel the despair and heartbreak coming off the book in waves. I couldn’t imagine the fear and hatred thrown at these women simply for being Jewish. The author did an excellent job with compiling the thorough research they did and telling the darker side of our history in such a way you feel like you were there.
Ana really is the best kind of heroine. She had so little and gave so much, you really see the humanity that comes from her and how she conducts herself is inspiring.
I know WW2 is done a lot in literature but this one is full of originality and so beautifully written that you will smile through your salty tears.
If you love the kind of historical fiction that will leave you emotionally wrecked… This is the one for you.
4.5 stars! Let this wonderful story based on true events, take you out of this world.
Thank you Netgalley and Bookouture for my ARC in exchange for my honest review

#Bookouture is the best publisher of wonderful and emotional #historicalnovels. I keep getting more blown away each time. This one, about the unique experience of a midwife, might be one of the best yet.

Thank you, Anna Stuart, Bookouture & NetGalley for my copy! All opinions are my own. Thank you, #TeamBookouture for having me on tour!

There is not an easy way to write a powerful story such as The Midwife of Auschwitz. I had a pretty good idea of what I would be getting into by selecting this book. I did not know how well Anna Stuart would tell this story. Wow. Knowing this is based on a true story made it all the more gripping and poignant. The sheer emotional power contained in these pages does not even come close to representing the actual occurrences, but it increases awareness and makes sure the stories are never forgotten. I needed tissues…lots of tissues for all my tears. This is not a light read, but it is powerful, moving, and provides hope in the darkest circumstances. It reminds us that there are good people who believe in fighting for what is right, right where they are planted.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are solely my own, freely given.

It does not seem to matter how many novels (or ones inspired by a true story) that I read set in Auschwitz, But I am always horrified by the atrocities and suffering endured by so many.
Whilst there were many such moments in this book, there were also glimmers of hope, faith and the strength of love which shone through.
Superbly narrated with good characters, this was a book worth reading.
4.5 stars

Historical fiction like this helps me to learn more about history than non-fiction books which I often find a little too dry for my tastes. Though it is fiction, I find I learn a lot from the story.

Midwife, Ana Kaminski finds herself behind the gates of Auschwitz-Birkenau during world war 2. She is joined by her young assistant, Ester, who she promised to look after as her own daughter. Ana and Ester work hard to save the babies born into this living hell, they lean on each other and those around them in a desperate attempt to save lives and survive themselves.

This was clearly very well researched, and a well written, fictional account of these lives. My heart broke through their tragic story, but the humanity, hope and heroism displayed was very humbling. Very important lives for us all to remember (this was based on the lives of real people I believe) and a humbling journey to follow and learn about.

Love historical fiction. I feel that I learn from every book. Horrible events but they need to be learned from.

I had no idea that so many babies were born in concentration camps.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC