Reader's Fave

I recently interviewed Carlene Grangroth for our 25th installment of Reader's Fave, a casual interview with someone who shares their favorite book. Carlene lives in the Elochoman Valley, and we met up at Erickson Park for our conversation.

Carlene shared "The Tattooist of Auschwitz" by Heather Morris. This novel touches on the Auschwitz concentration camp and is based on some true personal events. "I listened to it using the Libby app, and it took me about two months," Carlene said. Two months might seem a bit long, but Carlene is a busy mom of nine, with eight of her kids at home to care for and one other having moved on.

What struck Carlene about the book was the strong sense of human resilience while living in the very midst of hopelessness. "The people had nothing, yet they shared," Carlene reflected. "You would think it would be survival of the fittest, yet they shared."

As we talked, Carlene shared how the book came to be. "The author interviewed Lale, the main character, in 2003, about his life in the camp," she said. From the interviews, the author learned from Lale Sokolov, a Jew, who had been imprisoned in Auschwitz, about how while he was tattooing identification numbers on fellow prisoners, he fell in love with a girl he was tattooing.

Carlene further reflected how the book brought out the human psychological conflicts of being a guard or a prisoner. "The guards were only following orders themselves," she said. "They were possibly brainwashed themselves. The prisoners and guards didn't know what was really going on, it was just top–down orders." The book brings out how the tattoo artist is just another person caught up in a system. "The tattoo artist, he was human," Carlene said. It made her realize this human connection we all have and she reflected on the questions of "What would I do?" and "Do you do whatever to stay alive?"

When asked if this book bothered her, Carlene thought about it and said, "What the Jews went through...being treated as just a piece of property ...very sad at the end of the day. Could something like this happen again? Anything is possible, it's sly and subtle...it's slow and happens over time. Who's to say? Are we above this?"

Explaining that she liked the author Morris' style of writing, Carlene said, "She used German words in places throughout. It made it very personal. You felt like you could see it. You could hear it, feel it." Morris made it so you were there. You felt as if you were a prisoner or a guard, living in the slog of evil as you attempt to survive each day.

As mentioned above, Carlene uses the Libby app most of the time for her reading. She said it's "about a three to one ratio" of audio to print. Her kids use the Libby app, too, especially at night getting ready to fall asleep. The boys in their bedroom will listen together to a story with the oldest usually turning it off after his brothers have fallen asleep.

Carlene remembers growing up and going to the library a lot. In her high-school years, she worked at the Longview library for a couple of years as a library page. She has a clear appreciation for libraries. "Screens," she asked. "What happened to just reading? I love libraries."

May you wonderful Wahkiakum readers find a book which challenges you, makes you ask tough questions of yourself, and lets you reflect on who you are as a human.