The Librarian of Auschwitz

The Diary of Anne Frank meets Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi in this graphic retelling which blends harrowing historical content with the perspective of a courageous, resilient young girl

In the all-engulfing black mud of Auschwitz, Fredy Hirsch has secretly built a school. In a place where books are forbidden, young Dita hides under her dress the fragile volumes, creating the smallest, most clandestine public library ever to exist. Amidst the horror, Dita embodies courage, never giving up and finding solace in reading. Even in that hellish camp, “opening a book is like getting on a train that takes you on vacation.”

This is how Dita becomes the “Librarian of Auschwitz,” risking her life so children and adults can escape, if only for a few hours, from the camp’s horrors through the power of imagination. But she must be careful: the deadly doctor Mengele, infamous for his horrific experiments, is watching her closely.

The vibrant and evocative artwork by Loreto Aroca captures the stark contrast between the brutal reality of Auschwitz and the transformative power of literature and imagination.

Salva Rubio and Loreto Aroca bring Antonio Iturbe’s bestselling novel to life in this unforgettable graphic novel. Translated into over 31 languages and with more than 700K copies sold worldwide, this poignant true story rescues from oblivion one of the most striking stories of heroism.