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Born Survivors
- Narrated by: Wendy Holden, Anne Dover, Eva Clarke
- Length: 13 hrs and 40 mins
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Born Survivors
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Summary
Among millions of Holocaust victims sent to Auschwitz II-Birkenau in 1944, Priska, Rachel and Anka each passed through its infamous gates with a secret. Strangers to each other, they were newly pregnant and facing an uncertain fate without their husbands.
Alone, scared and with so many loved ones already lost to the Nazis, these young women were privately determined to hold on to all they had left: their lives and those of their unborn babies. That the gas chambers ran out of Zyklon-B just after the babies were born, before they and their mothers could be exterminated, is just one of several miracles that allowed them all to survive and rebuild their lives after World War II.
Born Survivors follows the mothers' incredible journey - first to Auschwitz, where they each came under the murderous scrutiny of Dr. Josef Mengele; then to a German slave labour camp where, half-starved and almost worked to death, they struggled to conceal their condition; and finally, as the Allies closed in, their hellish 17-day train journey with thousands of other prisoners to the Mauthausen death camp in Austria.
Hundreds died along the way, but the courage and kindness of strangers, including guards and civilians, helped save these women and their children.
In Born Survivors, Wendy Holden brings all three stories together for the first time to mark their 70th birthdays and the 70th anniversary of the ending of the war.
A heart-stopping account of how three mothers and their newborns fought to survive the Holocaust, Born Survivors is also a life-affirming celebration of our capacity to care and to love amid inconceivable cruelty.
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What listeners say about Born Survivors
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Vonny Milonny
- 16-12-16
A heartbreaking account told beautifully
I will ever forget listening to this. Sad the world never learned from the atrocities.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Roger
- 06-08-16
Well written, with all the horrors they went through
With all that is written it makes me wonder how could someone treat another person in the way these people were yet alone a nation. It was a miracle how these woman hid their pregnancy from so called German doctors let alone give birth to their off springs. It was great how the babies born in the camp met up after the war and they have kept in touch ever since. I thought when I first started reading the writing of different survivors they all would be pretty much the same thing, but I was wrong. Each persons story tells a different tail of what went on and each persons builds up the whole story of what happened under the control of the Nazi's.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Pete
- 04-02-17
Thought provoking
Beautifully written and narrated. This book is narrated by a woman, written by a woman and written about 3 women. However, it's not just a woman's book.
Born Survivors follows 3 victims of oppression and is seen from their viewpoint. It also acknowledges acts of compassion by the members of the oppressing regime (even though they may be minor and extremely rare). On the other side I felt there was an absence of compassion in some aspects of the liberating regimes. It shows how some people turn a blind eye through fear whilst others find courage and solidarity to try and help.
I believe this book should be compulsory reading in schools. It shows what happens when control comes through bigotry, hatred and fear. Highly recommended!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Julie
- 13-01-16
loved this book
Would you listen to Born Survivors again? Why?
No never listen to a book again
Which character – as performed by Anne Dover – was your favourite?
All of the women do not like writing much as do not want to spoil story for others
Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
I felt moved by the ending and the family.
Any additional comments?
do not like writing much as do not want to spoil story for others
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- shaz
- 16-02-16
Emotional
This story was very emotional and well read ann dover was brilliant I would recommend for people to listen to this well documented story those bravery of the people is unbelievable.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Camilla Currin
- 13-08-20
Outstanding and Utterly Tragic
The most unbelievable true story of a horrific period in history. Outstandingly well written and beautifully narrated. A wonderful interview at the end closes off the book. Such immense respect for the strength and courage shown by the families to which this story refers. A story that will live forever in my mind.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- miss lj lawley
- 31-12-15
Outstanding story about courage, survival, love and hope
Really interesting story to learn about the lives of 3 pregnant women who survived such adversity against nazi Germany in the second world war. This story continues after the war until 2015 which allows the reader to have closure on everyone's lives that have been described in the book. A wonderfully written and read audio book about the amazing stories of the survivors wartime experiences. We will not forget and we will teach our children so this never happens again. Thank you for sharing your stories.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Hellsbelles
- 26-06-16
An amazing story of miracle babies born into hell
I can never comprehend how the murder of so many people can ever of happened. That any human being could inflict such atrocities on another human is beyond words....
At a time when extremists are targeting religions again, everyone would do well to remind themselves of the holocaust - we don't want this ever to happen again.
Excellent book. Well read.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Patsy C
- 22-08-16
Heartbreaking
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
Yes. It gives an insight to the ACTUAL suffering of all the people in the camps. Unbelievable the horror and torture they endured and yet never gave up the will to survive.
What other book might you compare Born Survivors to, and why?
Nothing compares to this book
What about Anne Dover’s performance did you like?
Excellent story teller spoken with feeling
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
All of it
Any additional comments?
There is nothing else I can say, very very moving. The people of today have no real idea what the human suffering those people endured.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mr. R. Taylor
- 05-03-23
Born to survivors
This book should be in every school and compulsory reading.. It shows how easily evil can flourish.
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