Sisters of Auschwitz (USA)

The unforgettable story of two unsung heroes of World War II: sisters Janny and Lien Brilleslijper who joined the Dutch Resistance, helped save dozen of lives, were captured by the Nazis, and ultimately survived the Holocaust.

Eight months after Germany’s invasion of Poland, the Nazis roll into The Netherlands, expanding their reign of brutality to the Dutch. But by the Winter of 1943, resistance is growing. Among those fighting their brutal Nazi occupiers are two Jewish sisters, Janny and Lien Brilleslijper from Amsterdam. Risking arrest and death, the sisters help save others, sheltering them in a clandestine safehouse in the woods, they called “The High Nest.”

This secret refuge would become one of the most important Jewish safehouses in the country, serving as a hiding place and underground center for resistance partisans as well as artists condemned by Hitler. From The High Nest, an underground web of artists arises, giving hope and light to those  living in terror in Holland as they begin to restore the dazzling pre-war life of Amsterdam and The Hague. 

When the house and its occupants are eventually betrayed, the most terrifying time of the sisters' lives begins. As Allied troops close in, the Brilleslijper family are rushed onto the last train to Auschwitz, along with Anne Frank and her family. The journey will bring Janny and Lien close to Anne and her older sister Margot. The days ahead will test the sisters beyond human imagination as they are stripped of everything but their courage, their resilience, and their love for each other.

Based on meticulous research and unprecedented access to the Brilleslijpers’ personal archives of memoirs and photos, Sisters of Auschwitz is a long-overdue homage to two young women’s heroism and moral bravery—and a reminder of the power each of us has to change the world.

The Sisters of Auschwitz reached three bestsellerlists in the USA: The New York Times paperback nonfiction bestsellerlist (14 weeks), The New York Times combined print/ebooks list and the Independent bestsellerlist.

An interview (by Nina Siegal) with Roxane was published in The New York Times on august 25th. You can read it here.

Reviews:

‘Dutch lawyer and novelist van Iperen weaves a spellbinding story of resistance and survival during WWII… Van Iperen’s prose is poetic without lapsing into sentimentality, and she maintains suspense from the first page to the last. Offering fascinating insights into Amsterdam’s Jewish Quarter, the fate of the Frank family, and the bonds of sisterly devotion, this standout history isn’t to be missed.’ Publishers Weekly (starred review)

‘The author’s attention to detail makes the horrors of the Holocaust come to life—not only the physical horrors of the camps, but also the emotional and mental torment of life spent in fear and hiding. The ending, though happy, proves bittersweet in contrast to the incomprehensible scale of torment and death of the era…. A truly worthwhile addition to the body of Holocaust studies.’ Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"In “The Sisters of Auschwitz,” van Iperen skillfully resurrects the story of Lien and Janny Brilleslijper and their circle. Drawing on archival research, personal papers and the memories of survivors who hid in the house as children, the book marries documentary authenticity with novelistic intimacy. One bonus is intriguing glimpses of the concentration camp ordeals of the diarist Anne Frank and her sister, Margot, who became close to the Brilleslijpers…Later, Lien and Janny were able to tell a grieving Otto Frank about his daughters’ final days. Frank would publish the diary Anne had left behind in their secret annex, one of the iconic artifacts of the Holocaust. Now, more than seven decades later, van Iperen has given the heroic Brilleslijpers a literary memorial of their own.’ Forward

Published by Harper Collins USA on august 31st.