Between the Lines: The Future of the Holocaust Novel

May 1, 2019

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

is a series of posts focused on better understanding books, trends in writing, and the labels associated with these.


 

Today is the Jewish holiday of Yom Ha’Shoah. The full name of this holiday is Yom Hazikaron LaShoah Ve-Hagevurah, translated as Holocaust and Heroism Remembrance Day. This annual holiday is observed by the entire State of Israel and all Jews worldwide to commemorate the six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust and the heroism of both rescuers and survivors. Every year as this holiday comes around, I reflect on the experiences in my life which have been impacted by the events of the Holocaust. You might be surprised by how many experiences there are considering I was born in May 1985, almost 40 years to the day after the Holocaust was considered over. Some are light-hearted moments but most are heavy with sadness and frustration.

This May marks the 74th anniversary of the end of the Holocaust. Why does this matter? In the not-so-distant future, the Holocaust will have passed from living memory. There will be no survivors to tell the stories of the horrors they endured, the triumphs of survival, or even the mundane minutiae which made them feel human throughout their ordeals. That doesn’t mean their stories will be lost. Thousands of hours of audio and video record their stories. There are pictures, diagrams, artifacts and other physical remnants of these experiences. And don’t forget the written word! Journals, diaries, essays, stories– the collected works of Holocaust survivors and their children fill whole libraries.

But the role of the novelist is often much more critical to the interpretation of history than the historian. Despite having all these primary sources, and even the sources from children of survivors, it can be easy for a novelist to romanticize and extrapolate beyond what could be considered healthy for the subject. Novels are accessible. Easy to read, ingest, and apply a lens by which we view the world, it is simple to twist the origins of this gruesome history into something more interesting and palatable.

I don’t think I’d worry if we weren’t in the Digital Age. It’s simple to find an echo chamber corner of the internet where your perspectives are heralded as the one and only truth. It’s so easy to completely discredit experiences of others once you’ve found that support group which speaks only your truth to the world.

And how does #OwnVoices apply when the entire group which experienced something passes from this Earth? While I am a Jew, I don’t believe that Jews hold sole custodianship over the Holocaust and its narrative. Certainly, more than just the Jewish people suffered in this event. The place of the Holocaust as a setting for fiction is one which allows the author to explore the human side of genocide. It’s not about the atrocities, it’s not about telling THE story of the event. Holocaust fiction is about the relationships and small moments which brought the world together through this experience.

The article which inspired me to write this post came from the Auschwitz Memorial Research Center in response to the novel The Tattooist of Auschwitz, recently published by Heather Morris. Morris includes an Additional Information section in the back of the novel which discusses, at length, the “true” aspects of the tale. I have not read the novel yet, but the article criticizes Morris’s lack of research and respect for the historical accuracy of her characters’ experiences. Due to the number of factual errors, they don’t recommend the novel for anyone interested in exploring and understanding what the history of Auschwitz might be like.

My concern comes for the future. Will people truly recognize and understand the atrocities of the Holocaust in 10 years? 15? 50? Will these experiences be minimized and romanticized into victim/hero stories? I believe novelists who choose critical moments in history as the backdrop to their stories have a responsibility to understand the truth behind these experiences. They must research. Novelists should be confronting taboos, breaking silences, and provide content which inspires readers to discuss, research, and understand these experiences in greater detail.

This doesn’t mean I shun Holocaust narratives which aren’t steeped in realism. No, the surreal and fantastic certainly has a place in this sub-genre of historical fiction. After all, how else can we explore the many creative, unique, and absurd ways people tried to survive? How else can we explore critical themes and issues of the time? No. My concern comes with those who present poorly researched history has historical fiction.

My concern, from this lens, is not just for Holocaust fiction, but for all historical fiction. Yes, every author of historical fiction must find a way to “trim the fat” of a true story and help make the narrative compelling. But at what cost? The compelling aspect of historical fiction is that the reader is suddenly learning about the individual motions and relationships that make up the past. I am grateful the story is being told at all. But without the truth, without the historical events that comprised that moment being sustained, can we trust the story? The history? And how does this new perception of that historical moment change the way the reader views the past?

I potentially have no problem with The Tattooist of Auschwitz. I’ll find out when I read it. But I am concerned that in the digital age, an age where viral information frames our experiences both present and past, that we will lose the important essence of history. Specifically, my concern is with the Holocaust narrative, one so critical to my identity. Because if we cannot trust what we’re reading, what can we trust?

 


What do you think?

  • Do you agree or disagree with my position? Why?
  • Does the novelist hold as important a position in defining how we view the world as I’ve called out? Or is the historian more important?
  • Have you ever read historical fiction which you doubted the truth of? If so, how did that affect your experience? If not, do you believe you’ve read “fake news” which influenced your perspective of history?

9 Comments

  • Isabelle @ BookwyrmBites May 1, 2019 at 2:35 pm

    “Novels are accessible. Easy to read, ingest, and apply a lens by which we view the world, it is simple to twist the origins of this gruesome history into something more interesting and palatable.” YES. TO. THIS. I’ve found myself feeling distanced from historical fiction, desensitized to horrific events like the Holocaust and internment camps and serial murders because they’ve been written about so extensively (and, to be honest, not always well) – I get that it has marketing/PR value, but you can’t always tell who’s sensationalizing or exploiting the real history for personal gain (whether that’s book sales or just what they think makes “a good story”) and who has a personal stake in representing the real history.

    like you, I don’t believe in gatekeeping, ie, that only #OwnVoices writers can write about certain characters or themes. but I’ve heard so many stories about authors who didn’t bother to do their research, whether historical or current event or marginalized group, and honestly it’s terrifying since what we read can have such a huge impact on our worldview. I don’t know that there’s a right answer to the dilemma, but it’s certainly a problem to think about.

  • Grab the Lapels May 2, 2019 at 8:48 pm

    Jackie, I find this post very moving. I guess in my brain I thought that because there IS so much video and written testimony of Holocaust survivors, their families, and even people who served as Nazis, that the time period was sort of “covered.” I must confess I have a strong dislike for historical fiction because I feel like it never gets things right. I like historical fiction in which an alternate thing or world exists, but not when people try to set characters “back then” and make it real, because it never works. Someone throws in a zipper, or an actual date between two people, or makes large events seem trivial. I’m a big fan of memoir and journalism instead.

  • Annemieke May 3, 2019 at 6:58 am

    You make some good points. I’m sorry to hear that the Tattooist of Auschwitz or at least the author’s views seems to have inaccuries. In itself that doesn’t have to be a problem as you say as long as that is clear. But that doesn’t seem to be the case and that I find worrying. I’ve seen a lot of people read it and think its the way it was. More people read novels and find what is in there with history to be the truth. Or think it is. Less people are inclined to read non-fiction.

  • Krysta May 3, 2019 at 7:37 pm

    I think a positive way to look at historical fiction books that may not be entirely accurate are that they can lead readers to want to learn more. They could, essentially, serve as a gateway for readers to begin immersing themselves in the history behind the fiction. I know, for instance, that Alexandre Dumas’ books are not necessarily 100% historically accurate. But i have read a nonfiction book on the Man in the Iron Mask because of Dumas. I also loved the Hornblower books growing up and was inspired by them to try to learn about ships in the age of sail! So I think good can potentially come even from a “bad” book.

  • Captain's Quarters May 5, 2019 at 11:15 am

    Jackie this be a lovely and thought-provoking post. I read the the tattooist of auschwitz and only heard about the controversy after I had reviewed it. I know a Holocaust denier and it hurts me soul. I actually went back into the two posts I wrote about the book to add a disclaimer. Links below if ye want to read.
    x The Captain

    https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/2018/02/01/off-the-charts-and-on-the-horizon-the-tattooist-of-auschwitz-heather-morris/

    https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/2018/02/02/further-thoughts-the-tattooist-of-auschwitz-heather-morris/

    • Jackie B May 20, 2019 at 3:31 pm

      Thank you for sharing your posts, Captain! I really appreciate that. I’m glad that you read and enjoyed The Tattooist of Auschwitz. I won’t pass judgment on the book until I get a chance to read it myself. You’re right that it’s important to focus on the fact that we’re losing those who can tell their stories. It’ll be interesting to see how things grow and change over the next few years. I expect we’ll start to see more Holocaust books about the children of survivors, actually.

  • Amanda @Cover2CoverMom May 16, 2019 at 1:10 pm

    Very interesting post Jackie!

    I’d never really thought about what Holocaust novels will look like years down the road. For me, Holocaust novels have been so important for me to grasp the magnitude of the atrocities that occurred during this terrible time. When you read about it from a text book, it feels cold & almost doesn’t feel real… but when you read about the PEOPLE that suffered, it suddenly becomes real. The idea that an author would not respect these events by doing their due diligence, or by romanticizing it makes me ill.

    I think Historical Fiction is a hard genre to write within in general. To write it authentically, it takes so much research, which I am not sure every author takes the time to do. One of the reasons I love HF so much is that it often inspires me to do my own research & learn more about lesser known historical events.

    I had no idea The Tattooist of Auschwitz was receiving some criticism for lack of research and historical accuracy! I will be very interested in seeing what you think after reading it for yourself, then making my decision if I should pick it up or not.

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