Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly can be described as heartbreaking. This massive novel–almost 500 pages–is inspired by real people and true events. Lilac Girls is narrated by three women protagonists during World War II and the Cold War. The novel is unique as one of the three narrators is a Nazi doctor. Seeing things from her perspective, as the story’s villain, offered an unusual and provocative viewpoint.
Despite its length, Lilac Girls is fast-paced and most chapters end in cliffhangers, so the book is almost impossible to put down. The plot centers around the Ravensbruck Concentration Camp and involves some dark and horrifying subject matter that may make readers squeamish and/or uncomfortable. Lilac Girls is a fascinating work of fiction and a powerful reminder that good can conquer evil.
Review of an Advance Reader Copy
This book was sent to Compass Book Ratings for review by Ballantine Books
Content Analysis:
Profanity/Language: 23 religious exclamations, 8 mild obscenities, 2 religious profanities and 5 scatological words.
Violence/Gore: Several second hand reports of violence involving war crimes, kidnapping, murder, torture, concentration camps, and Pearl Harbor; several brief incidents of violence involving an adult slapping a child, bombings, suicide attempt, whipping prisoners and experimental operations on prisoners; a few non-detailed scenes of violent death including hanging and shootings; a few scenes of intense violence when a woman is mauled to death by a dog and experimental operations are described; a brief scene of rape among teenagers; a brief yet explicit description of sexual abuse.
Sex/Nudity: A few incidents of kissing; a few non-sexual depictions of nudity involving a gynecologist exam and concentration camp prisoners being made to strip naked; a few sexual references and an incident of touching a character on her bottom; several implied or reported accounts of sexual activity involving rape, brothels and prostitution; a mention of pornography, a brief scene of nudity with sexual innuendo; a discussion regarding sex; a brief scene of rape among teenagers; a brief yet explicit description of sexual abuse.
Mature Subject Matter:
War, the Holocaust, concentration camps, rape, sexual abuse, refugees, religious persecution, surgical experimentation, torture, cancer, homosexuality, death of family members, abortion, STDs, kidnapping children, the Polish Underground, cutting.
Alcohol / Drug Use:
Characters frequently drink and smoke.
