The Librarian of Auschwitz: The Graphic Novel
by Salva Rubio
Category: Banned book in Escambia County, Florida
Age group: Young adult
Format: Physical book
Summary: This graphic novel is adapted from the historical fiction novel The Librarian of Auschwitz which was inspired by the real-life story of Dita Kraus. The story starts off sharing what life was like for Dita and her family right before they are sent to Auschwitz. For 14-year-old Dita, life was great living in Czechoslovakia with her parents, her father had a great job and Dita enjoyed reading and collecting book. One day everything changed, and her life would never be the same. She is transferred to Auschwitz with her family and there she given the role to manage and hide a collection of 8 books, that is how she becomes the librarian of Auschwitz. Dita also has to go through the struggles of living in Auschwitz, witnessing deaths, caring for her sick mother who dies in her arms, and having to adjust to her new life. The story ends with Dita's life after Auschwitz, with very few details, but readers will find that she ends up adapting to her new life.
Justification: I chose to read this book because I heard a bit about the story of the librarian of Auschwitz and I was interested in seeing the story developed as a graphic novel. Graphic novels are fairly popular at the library I work at, and I wanted to see if this would be a book I could recommend for our young adult reader as well.
Evaluation: I will be evaluating the cover, illustrations, and the plot.
The cover of the book shows the main character, holding a stack of books. There is also a fence behind her showing readers the concentration camp. The title of the book is large easy to read. The muted tones of the cover give off an eerie feeling making a reader know the book is not a light read.
The illustrations are dark and have muted tones. I think that blends in well with the story as Auschwitz was a dark place. The story was easy to follow although the font size could have been a tad bit larger in my opinion. The emotions of each character were well illustrated. There are some illustrations that show nudity, such as a pit of dead naked bodies, but this is just showing the realities of Auschwitz.
The plot was well written. I enjoyed how the author shared Dita's life before, during, and after living in Auschwitz. The story really captures the reader as they see Dita enduring so many changes. The story itself shares many heartbreaking moments that almost had me in tears, while other lighter moments gave me hope for Dita being in such a dark place. I think the story ends a little abrupt as Dita is shown in one scene witnessing her mother pass away, and when the reader turns the page, time has passed, and you see Dita's life outside of Auschwitz. I felt that there was something missing. I was hoping to know more of what happened to Dita, but that is how the author chose to end the story. Despite the ending I think the story was beautifully written and shared the realities and the horrors of the people that lived in Auschwitz.
References: Rubio, S.(2023). The librarian of auschwitz: The graphic novel (A. Iturbe, Illus.). Henry Holt & Company.
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