The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz: A True Story of Family and Survival

I can not say enough about this book. I’ve read many stories on the Holocaust and camps but this is a very different book. It’s the true story about a father and son (Gustav and Fritz) that follow each other to so many interment camps, how they had to leave their family and now the family had to split up, a daughter to England and a brother to America. But it is so much more than that. The author did extensive research which he describes at the end of the book. Very important to read that. The story is history but reads like a novel. I hadn’t heard of many of the other camps, such as Monowitz, etc. these two men were in at least five different ones. We’ve all read about the atrocities but the author describes punishments I had never heard before. How these two men survived is beyond belief. Amazing the strength they both had. Don’t get put off by the details and depth Dronfield goes into. It’s necessary for understanding the full story of the era. Gustav\’s son Kurt writes a chapter at the back on how, by reading this book, he finally found out what happened to his mother and sister and was grateful for finally knowing, even though very sad.

I have read many WWII stories especially about the Holocaust but this was the most moving. The author has done so much research that the places, description s of people, emotions, and brutality of the Nazis leaves nothing to the imagination. I am in awe of his writing skills to follow such a linear path of tragedy of this family. Yet despite man\’s inhumanity to man, the love between this father and son, and the extended\”family\” of fellow prisoners, and the wellspring of never ending hope, will keep you turning the page. Thank you for your persistence in getting this book published. Should be required reading for All high school students, so that history like this is never repeated.

I have read many books about the Holocaust. This is one of the best. The story keeps moving right along, giving perspectives about different family members in a way that made sense. What a miraculous story of grit and love!

It reads like a novel, but it is truly sadly a true story of father and son and family. This book helps me realize all of the petty things I worry about are petty, and I should cherish the seemingly little things.

In 1939, Gustav and his sixteen-year-old son Fritz are taken by the Nazi\’s in Vienna, Austria. This is a true story of a father and son –and their terrible experience being held captive in numerous concentration camps. They both survived against all odds and because of the diary Gustav kept hidden during the years he spent in camps, he was able to tell his story with expressive details. This is a very difficult read in some ways, the unimaginable difficulties all Jewish people faced in the camps is quite overwhelming. I do think the author should have included photos of the family because this was based on a true story and would have been nice to see pictures of Gustav and Fritz. I was able to search online to see photos after reading the book, but there is no reason why they weren\’t included.

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