Mischling

by Affinity Konar
April 9-May 6, 2017

What to say about a Holocaust story that involves the children tortured by Mengele? How can one say a book like this is "good?" How can it be classified as entertaining? Informative, yes, but not an inkling of leisure. A monumental, heart-breaking chore.

Admittedly, I knew very little about Mengele's "zoo" and his horrific experiments on children. And I do believe it's important to keep history in the forefront because events like this should never be forgotten nor repeated. But to make a novel "artsy" in describing the events and circumstances around Auschwitz just doesn't sit right with me. At times the descriptions of torture were so graphic I found it nearly unbearable. Sickening even.

I honestly think subjects like this are best left to history books. Historical fiction told poetically is not the type of reading anyone can or should enjoy.

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