The Sisters of Auschwitz, Roxane van Iperen
The Sisters of Auschwitz, Roxane van Iperen
16 Rating(s)
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The Sisters of Auschwitz
The True Story of Two Jewish Sisters’ Resistance in the Heart of Nazi Territory

Bestseller

Author: Roxane van Iperen

Narrator: Susan Hoffman

Unabridged: 12 hr 37 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: HarperAudio

Published: 08/31/2021


Synopsis

The unforgettable story of two unsung heroes of World War II: sisters Janny and Lien Brilleslijper who joined the Dutch Resistance, helped save dozen of lives, were captured by the Nazis, and ultimately survived the Holocaust.

Eight months after Germany’s invasion of Poland, the Nazis roll into The Netherlands, expanding their reign of brutality to the Dutch. But by the Winter of 1943, resistance is growing. Among those fighting their brutal Nazi occupiers are two Jewish sisters, Janny and Lien Brilleslijper from Amsterdam. Risking arrest and death, the sisters help save others, sheltering them in a clandestine safehouse in the woods, they called “The High Nest.”This secret refuge would become one of the most important Jewish safehouses in the country, serving as a hiding place and underground center for resistance partisans as well as artists condemned by Hitler. From The High Nest, an underground web of artists arises, giving hope and light to those  living in terror in Holland as they begin to restore the dazzling pre-war life of Amsterdam and The Hague. When the house and its occupants are eventually betrayed, the most terrifying time of the sisters' lives begins. As Allied troops close in, the Brilleslijper family are rushed onto the last train to Auschwitz, along with Anne Frank and her family. The journey will bring Janny and Lien close to Anne and her older sister Margot. The days ahead will test the sisters beyond human imagination as they are stripped of everything but their courage, their resilience, and their love for each other.Based on meticulous research and unprecedented access to the Brilleslijpers’ personal archives of memoirs, Sisters of Auschwitz is a long-overdue homage to two young women’s heroism and moral bravery—and a reminder of the power each of us has to change the world.

About Roxane van Iperen

Roxane van Iperen is a Dutch writer and lawyer who resides in the countryside east of Amsterdam, in the “High Nest,” once a safe house for Jews during World War II. The original Dutch version of The Sisters of Auschwitz was short-listed for the biggest public prize in Holland, NS Publieksprijs’s Book of the Year.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Merel on January 03, 2022

Wat. Een. Boek. Ik weet niet waarom ik het zo lang heb uitgesteld om dit boek te lezen (nou ja, waarschijnlijk omdat ik niet per se graag over de oorlog lees,) maar wat ben ik blij dat dit m’n eerste boek van 2022 is. Ik kon het niet weg leggen en ik heb ontzettend veel geleerd. Dit is een verhaal ov......more

Goodreads review by Angela on November 27, 2019

Every book I’ve read about Auschwitz has been deeply upsetting. Apart from this book. This book is so emotionless that it reads more like a reference book or a history text book. It is upsetting but it portrays the atrocities so badly that I felt very detached from what I was reading. It was interes......more

Goodreads review by Ryan on February 23, 2020

There have been so many books written about the holocaust and I've read a few however this one didn't leave me with anything to much to take away. This story is about two sisters who risk their lives during world war 2, to help save others who have been targeted by the Nazi's in hopes of saving live......more

Goodreads review by Dawn on December 04, 2019

I've read many books on the holocaust and the death camps and they all affect me, this one particularly. The real life story of two sisters living in Amsterdam, their connection to the Frank family and their shared experiences at that time not only opens your eyes to the mind numbing incomprehensibl......more

Goodreads review by Heleen on August 25, 2019

Wat een indrukwekkend boek over hoop, saamhorigheid en de gruwelen van de Holocaust. Ontroerend maar tegelijkertijd ook prachtig om te lezen. Verplichte kost voor iedere Nederlander!......more