This book is a memoir by Edith Eger, Holocaust and Second World War survivor. That sentence alone is one to awaken the senses and calls for attention. In her memoir, Dr Eger tells her story, and some of her families, on what they experienced during the war, what happened afterwards and in my opinion, how her life began at 50.
This is a carefully crafted story not only of survival but how to overcome trauma and embrace life. Even these words now feel so mediocre when thinking about what Eger endured. As the title suggests, the main message of the book is that in life, we all have a choice. This is also quite ironic as during the time of the war and when Eger was sent to the concentration camp,
Auschwitz, she was not allowed any choice. However, she explains that during this time, she had a choice to free her mind, which is what she did numerous times in order to survive.
What struck me in this book the most, aside from the atrocities and even small fragments of some humanity that was shown in a time of complete lack of humanity, was the huge emptiness and gapping hole that was left of people once they were liberated. It is as if being in the camp at least gave people a purpose, to survive, to keep your head down, to go unnoticed, but after liberation, there was nothing to return too, no hope of reconciling with family members because they were probably dead. This term “liberation” in the book is anything but liberating. Now, survivors had to endure a second round of war trying to rebuild, repurpose and reestablish their lives with no hope or means. I find myself returning to one of the closing scenes on Schindler’s List when the solider approached the Jews at the factory and told them they were liberated, the one Jew said, “what do we do now” – this is not the feeling of liberation.
The type of narration is also interesting and I like how Eger says one thing and then says something like “but I did not know that yet” so the reader knows that more is to come in the story about that topic. The book of course switches between past and present where Eger recalls what happens from when she was 16 years old, right up until the present day when she is well into her late 80’s! This in itself is remarkable and so precious.
The Choice is truly a beautiful book about love, hope, determination, taking a chance, the value of life and of course, survival – in every form.
Praise to Dr Edith Eger,
I recently posted this on my personal Instagram feed:
I’m amazed that human beings like Dr Edith Eger exist. A long time ago someone asked me, if you could choose one
person to represent the human race, who would you choose? I can now answer that and say Dr Edith Eger. What a
remarkable rendition not only of the real like horrors of 1944 but of the truly extraordinary power of Choice – something
we have no idea of what it’s like to be without. What I am truly confronted with in this book is the love, grace and total
quality of mind that is represented. There is so much more to say and a lot I will chew on from this book in the coming
months but for this moment, this book is about trying to teach people not only how to deal with trauma, but how to live
afterwards, to heal. And that, is the Choice.