The Rabbit Girls

By: Anna Ellory

Narrated by: Gemma Arterton, Simon Callow

Length: 12 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

Audible UK's Debut of the Year 2019

Berlin, 1989. As the wall between East and West falls, Miriam Winter cares for her dying father, Henryk. When he cries out for someone named Frieda - and Miriam discovers an Auschwitz tattoo hidden under his watch strap - Henryk’s secret history begins to unravel.

Searching for more clues of her father’s past, Miriam finds an inmate uniform from the Ravensbrück women’s camp concealed among her mother’s things. Within its seams are dozens of letters to Henryk written by Frieda. The letters reveal the disturbing truth about the ‘Rabbit Girls’, young women experimented on at the camp. And amid their tales of sacrifice and endurance, Miriam pieces together a love story that has been hidden away in Henryk’s heart for almost 50 years.

Inspired by these extraordinary women, Miriam strives to break through the walls she has built around herself. Because even in the darkest of times, hope can survive.

©2019 Anna Ellory (P)2019 Audible, Ltd

excellent, however,...

this book is well written in terms of plot, character development, tie in to history, & intertwining multiple stories/time periods, subjects (20th century WWII/concentration camps, rise & fall of Berlin wall, domestic abuse, 21st century)

personally, I did not care for the subject matter or graphic description of the modern day daughter, Miriam, who had history of cutting herself due to major physical/verbal/emotional/psychological abuse @ hands of her husband; had I realized this was part of the book, I would not have chosen it; though I have enjoyed some works produced directly by Audible, I often find the content of their offerings to be poorly described by the overview; it is not unusual for me to ask for these works to be removed from my library &/or exchanged for others based on unknown content not of my choice

I selected this book as it popped up based on my other choices w/related WWII/concentration camp content; had I not listened to 80+ hours of such content recently, from books giving a much more in depth account of things referred to in this book (not to mention Internet research prompted by the books), I would not have fully grasped WWII/concentration camp references in this book

I more highly recommend other books if one is interested in the WWII/concentration camp saga & enjoys history & historical fiction, including, but not limited to the Rabbits of Ravensbruck - Ravensbruck: Life & Death in Hitler's Concentration Camp for Women by Sarah Helm, A Life in Secrets: Vera Atkins & the Missing Agents of WWII by Sarah Helm, The Stone Crusher: The True Story of a Father & Son's Fight for Survival in Auschwitz by Jeremy Dronfield, The Pharmacist of Auschwitz by Patricia Posner, & The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antionio Iturbe,

the title, Rabbit Girls, makes it sound like it is primarily about the Rabbits of Ravensbruck, but it is more about the father & daughter & their back stories, which in part include WWII/concentration camps; the Rabbits of Ravensbruck is a riveting captivating non fiction story, but the element of it in this book is fiction, secondary, & does not do the Rabbit story justice

A great listen

The actors voices were super. I never had a glimpse of how it was going to end. Good story

Wonderfully Developed Characters, Very Dark

I knew this book would be an emotionally difficult read, but the quality of the writing, voice narration, and character development made it worth getting through the difficult subject matter. Several amazing character stories all interwoven effortlessly. This writer is beyond her years in talent. Recommend highly, but be ready for some weight in topics explored from the holocaust to modern day domestic violence. Through it all you will leave with hope and the appreciation of love and friendship.

Amazing

Simon and Gemma did An amazing job at bringing this book to life. However the title does seem a little unfitting, but other than that it was fascinating
Hearing this story and the performance. Miriam’s struggle in being in a very toxic relationship can be very relatable to some women as well as trying to get out of it, it can become difficult no physically but rather mentally. It’s amazing how her character was very well written as well as her growth throughout the story.

Beautifully Written, But Not What I Expected

I hate spoilers, so I’m going to do my best to steer clear of any yet still explain how I feel about this book. The writing in this book was beautiful, almost poetic in places, yet nothing like what I expected. When I reread the summary I decided part of my expectations of the book were based more on the title and less on the summary. It plainly states a love story is uncovered. This is much more of a love story and a powerful book about relationships than a book about rabbit girls. But, with a title of Rabbit Girls, I expected much more of their story. I’d never heard of the rabbit girls until I read Lilac Girls. It’s hard to say since I did read Lilac Girls first how much I would have learned about them through this book. Yes, their plight was explained, but more from a broad spectrum and lighter on details. After listening to the author’s interview, I know this was done purposefully. Her explanation for the focus of this book made perfect sense. She seems like a lovely person. I think I’d have given this book 5 stars if the title had been something different. I don’t think the title fits the book. If it’s a beautiful book why is the title a problem? Because I kept waiting for the rabbit girls to become a bigger part of the story and that never happened. Anna Ellory is working on her second book and more than likely, I will read it because she is very talented. The narration was outstanding by both of the narrators.

I could not finish this audio book....

......not because the book was not excellent, or the narrator perfect, but because I listen to my audio books while swimming laps, and this was not a book I could listen to in the swimming pool. Although brilliant, the subject matter was far too harrowing for light listening. I was not familiar with the term ''''rabbit girls", although I am very aware of the unspeakable crimes committed against these women. Consequently, I obtained the Kindle Unlimited version and completed the book that way. Enjoyable is not a word I would use to describe this book, it was gut-wrenching, but it was eminently readable, and I would recommend either version to a serious reader.

The rabbit girls

It was good but left some unanswered questions. Great reader though. She did very well with voice characterization.

A story of multi-generational survival

TW (in no particular order): domestic abuse, marital abuse, Holocaust survival, medical experimentation, concentration camps, marital infidelity

Miriam Winter is caring for her sick and dying Holocaust survivor father in 1989 Germany over the backdrop of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Miriam doesn't know that her father, Henryk, is a Holocaust survivor until she discovers an Auschwitz tattoo on his wrist, hidden underneath his watchband. Henryk barely speaks anymore but cries out for Frieda. Miriam doesn't know anyone in her father's life named Frieda.

Miriam's mother is gone, but Miriam searches through her mother's belongings looking for answers. She finds an old uniform from Ravensbrück women’s concentration camp, and inside the seams of the dress are dozens of folded and hidden letters written to Henryk by Frieda. Miriam begins to read the letters and learn about Frieda and her struggle to survive as a so-called "Rabbit Girl," one of many women who were experimented on at the camp. This part of the book is based on real history, but the characters are not meant to represent any specific historical people. Miriam is able to slowly piece together the puzzle of the love between her father and Frieda and finds out who she truly is in the process.

The Rabbit Girls is also the story of Miriam's own struggle to survive. When we first meet her, she has recently escaped an abusive relationship and struggles to maintain the separation from her husband, Axel. Her escape and current living situation are tenuous and fragile, and her sick and dying father can't protect her. She's always looking over her shoulder as if she's going to find Axel there, and she has to implement security measures in her apartment, like wedging a feather in the door, so she will know if Axel has been there.

This book was an Amazon First Reads pick. The story is emotional, terrifying, and heartbreaking. The twist in the plot as Miriam reaches the end of the letters is super predictable, and I knew what would happen before I actually read it. The title implies this book is mainly about the "Rabbit Girls," but their story as a group is a small part of this book. It is not the main plot. I bumped down my rating from 4 stars to 3 stars due to the predictable plot twist.

heart wrenching

made me cry and feel and really think about humanity n the power of the human spirit and the strength of women overall

Great book....

What a surprise! I really enjoyed this audio book! Not a big fan of one of the characters, I wanted to strangle him. Anyone reading or listening to this book won’t be disappointed.