Introduction

The Tattooist of Auschwitz is a 2018 Holocaust novel by New Zealand novelist Heather Morris. The book tells the story of how Slovakian Jew Lale Sokolov, who was imprisoned at Auschwitz in 1942, fell in love with a girl he was tattooing at the concentration camp. The story is based on the real lives of Sokolov and his wife, Gita Furman.

Background

The book, which was Morris’ debut novel, was originally written as a screenplay. Morris was given the idea of telling the story of Lale Sokolov by a mutual friend of hers and Lale’s son after Lale’s wife Gita died. Morris met with Lale for three years until his death in 2006 to hear his story about his time with Gita in Auschwitz and take notes for her screenplay. During those meetings with Lale, he told Morris about the trauma, pain and survivor guilt he experienced.

Six years after the first meeting with Lale, Morris’ sister-in-law suggested writing the story as a book.

Outline

Told from the perspective of Lale Sokolov, the story follows his journey as a prisoner of Auschwitz concentration camp during World War II. After being forcibly transported on a long journey on a livestock train with other Jewish prisoners, Lale arrives at Auschwitz II-Birkenau work camp where, within his first night, he witnesses two men killed by the SS.

Lale begins to suffer the horrors of a concentration-camp, which involves witnessing gassings of fellow prisoners and becoming ill with typhus. While Lale is ill, the current tattooist of the camp, Pepan, takes interest in him and arranges for him to become his apprentice. Lale endures the labour of tattooing new prisoners to enable his further survival.

Lale briefly meets a beautiful, young woman while tattooing her arm upon her entry to the camp, and he experiences love at first sight. Lale becomes the main tattooist after Pepan disappears. Lale asks the SS officer in charge of him, Baretski, for an assistant, just as Pepan had asked that he be his assistant. Baretski picks out a young prisoner named Leon.

Lale uses his relationship with Baretski to gain increased privileges within the camp, including the ability to communicate with the beautiful woman he met earlier, Gita. Gita works in one of the camp warehouses that houses the confiscated belongings of prisoners and often sneaks valuable items to Lale. Lale then risks his own life to exchange jewels and money with a sympathetic German worker who comes to the camp each day for medicine and items of clothing to help prisoners who are suffering or gain favours with the SS. For example, while Gita is ill with typhus, Lale brings her medicine and promises to one day start a family with her once she is well again.

The SS officers begin acting nervous and impulsive upon news that the Russian army is advancing. Camp documents are destroyed. Many prisoners are transferred out of Auschwitz, including Gita who in the rush tells Lale her surname is Furman. Lale is transferred to Mauthausen in Austria and then soon to another camp near Vienna. Lale escapes from the camp through a hole in the fence and, upon being found by Russian soldiers, is forced to work at a chalet that serves as headquarters for Russian soldiers due to his ability to speak both German and Russian. Every day he is escorted to town by a Russian soldier to procure young, attractive German women to come to parties at the chalet in the evening. He pays them with money and jewels. One day he is told that his escort is no longer necessary and he can take the car into town alone. Once there, he escapes and makes his way to his hometown to find his sister alive, but learns that his parents are still missing and that his older brother has died.

Meanwhile, Gita has escaped her transport with three Polish women before making her way to Bratislava, Slovakia.

Lale then heads to Bratislava to find Gita, knowing that many Slovakian prisoners are being sent there. He waits two weeks at a train station and then spots her in a street. The pair kneel down and tell each other they love each other. Lale asks if Gita will marry him and she agrees.

Cast

• Jonah Hauer-King … Lali Sokolov
• Anna Próchniak … Gita Furmanova
• Melanie Lynskey … Heather Morris
• Harvey Keitel … Lali Sokolov
• Jonas Nay … Stefan Baretzki
• Tallulah Haddon … Hanna
• Mili Eshet … Ivana

Television Adaptation

The Creative Director of Synchronicity Films, Claire Mundell, secured the rights to The Tattooist of Auschwitz after making a deal with Bonnier Books UK in 2018. The novel was set to be turned into a multi-part television series to be tentatively released in January 2020. However, it was not until 2023 that production began, with Jonah Hauer-King and Anna Próchniak joining the television adaptation. The Tattooist of Auschwitz was broadcast on 02 May 2024 on Stan (Australia), Sky Atlantic (United Kingdom), and Peacock (United States).

Translations

By November 2018, the book had been translated into 17 languages. By September 2019, official translations of the book had been published in 47 languages. One of these translations is in Slovak, Lale’s native language. Morris celebrated the launch of the Slovak version of the book in Krompachy in Eastern Slovakia, which is where Lale was born.

The Tattooist of Auschwitz Series

• Episode 01.
• Episode 02.
• Episode 03.
• Episode 04.
• Episode 05.
• Episode 06.

Production & Filming Details

• Director(s):
  • Tali Shalom-Ezer … (6 episodes, 2024)
• Producer(s):
  • Adrian Burns … executive producer for synchronicity films (6 episodes, 2024)
  • Brian Donovan … producer (6 episodes, 2024)
  • Claire Mundell … executive producer / producer (6 episodes, 2024)
  • Jacquelin Perske … executive producer (6 episodes, 2024)
  • Evan Placey … associate producer (6 episodes, 2024)
  • Tali Shalom-Ezer … co-executive producer (6 episodes, 2024)
  • Serena Thompson … executive producer for sky studios (6 episodes, 2024)
  • Ruth Underwood … story producer (6 episodes, 2024)
  • Dalibor Vasica … line producer (6 episodes, 2024)
  • Mark Young … executive producer for synchronicity films (6 episodes, 2024)
• Writer(s):
  • Heather Morris … (based on the novel ‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’ by) (6 episodes, 2024)
  • Jacquelin Perske … (written and adapted for television by) (4 episodes, 2024)
  • Jacquelin Perske … (adapted for television by) (2 episodes, 2024)
  • Gabbie Asher … (written by) (1 episode, 2024)
  • Evan Placey … (written by) (1 episode, 2024)
• Music:
  • Kara Talve … (6 episodes, 2024)
  • Hans Zimmer … (6 episodes, 2024)
• Cinematography:
  • David Katznelson … (6 episodes, 2024)
• Editor(s):
  • Nili Feller … (2 episodes, 2024)
  • Berny McGurk … (2 episodes, 2024)
  • Joe Sawyer … (2 episodes, 2024)
• Production:
  • Synchronicity Film
  • Peacock
  • SKY Studios
• Distributor(s):
  • Sky
  • All Media Baltics
  • Moviestar+
  • NOW TV
  • Viaplay
  • WOW
• Release Date: 02 May 2024 (internet).
• Running Time: 60 minutes.
• Rating: TV-MA.
• Country: US.
• Language: English.

Video Link(s)