This book was crushing, but not in the way you might’ve expected it to be. Reading a book entitled “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” you know it’ll address the atrocities of the Holocaust, but what you aren’t prepared for is the little things. The books Lale’s mother packed for him for ‘comfort’ being immediately taken away, the solitary flower wilting the day after it is found, the brief exploration of the surgeries of Mengelet. And then, after all of that, you remember that Heather Morris is telling a true story, a true story of love where love is bleakest, and perseverance when finding the will to live is impossible. It’s heart-wrenching.