I Will Plant You a Lilac Tree by Laura Hillman is such an excellent book and there are so many great this to say about, it I do not know where to begin. I will start by saying that this is a true story told in the point of view of 16-year-old Hannelore Wolf and her experiences in the nazi concentration camps during WW2.
I will make this review shorter since I could probably recite this whole book and you wouldn't even have to read it. Buuuut since I DO want people to read it I will just give you the gist of the book and my thoughts on it.
Basically it begins with the main character Hannelore finding out that her father has died and her mother and two brothers are being deported to a labor camp. Hannelore, being in a school in Berlin decides to join her family in the labor camp. So she travels by train to her home and her family is taken away to a concentration camp and not long after, she get separated from her brothers Wolfgang and Selly. Both her mother and Hannelore have their heads shaved balled and numbers put on their arms. Eventually she gets separated from her mother and she is forced to do several jobs such as being a maid/cleaning girl for a German family. She gets moved from camp to camp, not knowing if her family is dead or alive. She watches helplessly as people are killed, starved to death or died of disease. The only good that came out of Hannelore being put in the camps is Dick Hillman, a POW she falls in love with. Dick and Hannelore would meet up in the middle of the night and talk and Dick would gift Hannelore with chocolate and bread. In the middle of all the hell around them, these two were still able to form a bond and fall in love. Eventually they both find out they have been put on Schindlers List and will be saved! I wont spoil anymore of the story for those of who you are interesting in reading it.
I highly recommend this book to everyone, especially if you like Holocaust survivor stories and love stories all in one. This book is sad as well as eye opening just like many of the other holocaust survivor stories. I first read this one in 10th grade so being the same age as Hannelore it really effected me in a significant way. The things she, and other Jewish victims had to go through was horrible and shouldn't be ignored. So if you have an opportunity or some extra time, please pick up this book I Will Plant You a Lilac Tree by Laura Hillman and you won't be disappointed.
