The Stable Boy of Auschwitz: A heartbreaking true story of courage and survival

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It’s hard to frighten a boy after he’s faced starvation, disease, brutality and, in my case, a machine-gun firing squad. We were the strong ones, the ones who had survived.” Hachette Book Group is a leading book publisher based in New York and a division of Hachette Livre, the third-largest publisher in the world. Social Media

This was a truly heartbreaking recount of Henry’s days in the Holocaust. However, it was inspiring to hear that after surviving his time in Auschwitz, he moved in with his uncle in America, and then got into optometry school. The Stable Boy of Auschwitz is a must-read for anyone who has any interest in the horrors of the concentration camps during WWII and is an educational read for anyone who needs to know more. In my opinion, this is something every person should be aware of, and something that must never, ever be forgotten. I was a child during this time and the mere idea of facing what this child faced is beyond comprehend. I couldn ’ t last much longer. But just as I was beginning to give up, I found myself in the Auschwitz stables, with rows of stalls filled with horses.”

Customer reviews

This was a heartbreaking story. I can’t begin to imagine what Henry went through and still survived. It’s appalling to think that this was allowed to happen. In today’s world I can almost see parts of it happening again. Early in the book, Henry explains some of the political aspects, which I really appreciated being included and learning about. Toward the end, it tells us what Henry went on to do when he was eventually safe (including trying to adjust - a story of resilience). I definitely recommend this book, especially if you are interested in books surrounding World War II. This is a story about survival and the struggles of making it through the Holocaust. It’s always emotionally draining reading about the harsh realities people had to go through to survive.

One hot, humid day in July, 1944, the Gestapo abducted fifteen-year-old Henry and his mother, forcing them onto cramped cattle cars in the Lodz Polish Ghetto. Like so many Jews before them, they had been selected to disappear - they were being sent to Auschwitz.The other half a star is because there were 2 key details about the horses that really jarred me out of the story and made me question what other details might be wrong. I was alive. That was about it. I didn’t see very much to thank God about, frankly. If there was anyone to thank for my survival, after all those years of angst and starvation, it was me. Just this little old wise guy, all of sixteen years old, Heinz Adolf Oster.” This story follows a young boy, Henry, who loses everything and goes through the worst possible scenarios a human can go through. Against all odds, he still fights and survives to tell his story.

The remarkable life story of Mitka Kalinski, who survived seven years of enslavement—while still a child—to a Nazi officer during and after World War II The story of Heinz or Henry Oster will crush your heart and will bring chills to your spine. I didn't know that I could cry that much on every chapter. It made me think of my own mortality and consider how blessed I am today. Yet, I couldn't imagine the life those young jews had to go through... This is onof the most recent books I've read about Auschvitz, and it was the best one I've read so far.

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As a young boy Henry Oster survived deprivation in the Lodz Ghetto, a life-or-death selection in the Birkenau extermination camp, a firing squad in Auschwitz, being strafed by an Allied fighter, and starvation in Buchenwald. Henry rebuilt his life in America, arriving at 18 with no family, no English, no money, and no education. Of the 2,011 Jews who were rounded up by the Gestapo and deported from Cologne, he was one of only 23 to emerge alive from the concentration camps after the war.He was still working as a world-respected Professor of Optometry on his 85th birthday, helping the world to see. Thank you to the publisher threadbooks and Netgalley for my arc of this one to read prior to it's release date on 04/04/2023 I did plan to keep this one to read closer to release date but, I was desperate to read it. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize* A New York Times Book Review Top Ten Book* A National Book Award Finalist* This story is about a boy, who against insurmountable odds, survived to tell his story and inspire others with his courage and faith.

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It was moving, inspiring, emotional, and gut-wrenching. I listened to the audiobook and I think it was so beautifully told. in Poland. Then, one terrifying night, Henry found himself herded onto a stifling, filth-ridden cattle car, on a ride to a place whose name has come to symbolize the worst of humanity: Auschwitz.