Deep exhale. Martha Hall Kelly’s first novel, Lilac Girls was really tough for me to rate on GoodReads. Mainly because I have very strong and conflicting feelings the way in which this story was told. Lilac Girls is based off a true story, the horrors that took place at Ravensbrück, and the ‘Rabbits’ that were experimented on. If this book added any good into the world, it brought this piece of history — one that is so often overlooked when it comes to WWII — to life. It’s rare that I walk away from a WWII novel and dislike it, or rate it lower than a 4 on GR, but with Lilac Girls….Lilac Girls made me really ragey…
My biggest issue with the book is, well, the piss poor story telling. If you’re familiar with Elizabeth Gilbert’s work, you know that she’s a believer that creative ideas are floating around in the universe, waiting to be claimed. Stories are begging to be told, and it’s just a matter of who listens, and who claims it as theirs. With that said, I think if this creative idea for a story was given to any other writer it would have given the story justice. And I’m honestly heartbroken at how disappointing the story was molded by Martha Hall Kelly. Let me explain…
INSPIRED BY A TRUE STORY
Lilac Girls is historical fiction, based on the true story of the ‘Ravensbrück Rabbits.’ Ravensbrück was an all women’s concentration camp in Northern Germany, a majority of the prisoners were Polish women. Ravensbrück is well known for their horrifying and deeply disturbing medical experiments on patients. This story touches on the 72 Polish women who were experimented on by the infamous Herta Oberheuser — the only female doctor brought to trial for war crimes after WWII.
Three women, three very different worlds
Lilac Girls follows three main characters, two of which are real people, the third is inspired by a Polish Ravensbrück survivor. All three women lead very different lives, yet all cross paths in an unexpected way.
- Caroline Ferriday is an actual person, an American philanthropist and former actress. Caroline’s character is based off the real Caroline Ferriday. Caroline is a real life heroine, for sure, there is no denying that, but I think she’d roll over in her grave at the way Martha Hall Kelly painted her. She was incredibly unlikeable and I wanted to backhand her, hard, many times throughout her journey (or at least how the author wrote her). Her entire storyline, up until the very end was quite pointless, boring, and got old very quickly. The author provided Caroline with the most asinine dialogue and interactions with others, it was honestly cringe worthy. It also needs to be noted that I felt so disturbed to read into such heavy detail about Caroline’s pretty party dresses, heirloom silver, and her fancy bridge parties, while the chapter before had Herta murdering babies with oil. It was just odd…
- Herta Oberheuser is also an actual person, a nazi physician and war criminal who worked primarily at Ravensbrück. She performed gruesome, terrible experimental surgeries on women, mainly to seek methods of treatment for German troops injured on battlefields. This b*tch was out of her mind, that’s clear. If you’re unfamiliar with her gruesome, inhumane experiments, let me google that for you. I’ll wait for you to read about it before you come back here… Pause. And Resume. OK, now that you’re up to speed on this monster let me tell you, the author made her the only slightly likable character, how is that even possible? And WHY? Herta was sentenced to 20 years in prison for her war crimes, and was released in less than 10 years due to good behavior. She opened up a family practice shortly after that.
- Kasia Kuzmerick, who is loosely based Nina Ivanska, an actual Ravensbruck “rabbit.” Nina is one of the women who helped bring the crimes committed at Ravensbrück to the attention of the world, and ultimately took down Herta Oberheuser, once it was verified that she was practicing medicine again in Germany after her prison release. OK, so the way the author wrote about Kasia… I honestly don’t even know where to start. The unnecessary jealousy the author created between her and Caroline over Zuzanna in the last part of the book? Her puzzling, unexplained and undeveloped relationship with her husband? Her nasty disposition to her daughter? Her ‘te-he! I’m on a secret mission because I have a crush on a boy!’ attitude? Her outburst at her daughters art show? It felt so uncomfortable and just got worse and worse as the chapters went on. Again, the author had so much room to dive deep, to explain, to give us something, and she didn’t.
Sidebar: I’m confused why the author chose to keep Herta and Caroline’s full names, but felt the need to invent a new pair of Polish sister survivors for Kasia and Zuzanna… this was a poor choice IMO. Either all or none should be invented, but maybe that’s BEC on my part (mom — that means bitch eating crackers).
WHY I STRONGLY DISLIKED THE BOOK
If I had to sum it up in three words: storyline, pacing, and writing. I felt the author weighed heavily in on Caroline’s pointless and pathetic non-existent relationship with a married French actor. The author then proceeded to skim over the horrors of Herta’s work, and barely touched upon what daily life for Kasia, a POW, was like. I also don’t know how you go through over 400 pages, with three central characters and barely go below the surface with them, but laser focus on things that added nothing to the central storyline. It felt so shallow and cold.
Weeks and months would go by in two sentences. It was rushed at all the wrong times and slowed to the point of tedium at other spots. The pacing was just so odd. One of my biggest head scratchers was after Herta’s trial… we don’t see her again until the very, very end. But… why didn’t we get a peek into her world post-war? Wouldn’t that have been a great moment for the author to shine? Show us her thoughts in prison. Show us why she continued on in the field of medicine…
ALSO… THE COINCIDENCES
Estimates of 50-80 MILLION people died in WWII, between war, camps, famine, etc. And you’re telling me that every single character made it out alive? Was able to reconnect with their loved ones? Give me a f*cking break. Also, Poland was OBLITERATED — how was everyone’s home still intact when the girls made their way back home? It’s a book, it’s fiction, the author can do whatever she wants. But it’s so far-fetched for this post-war world that it’s… it just takes away from the reality of the situation. Kasia magically reconnected with her high school love, which again, very far-fetched considering he was shipped off to war, but fine. But then the author gives herself a golden opportunity to dive deep into the marriage of two survivors, honestly that could have been excellent! And ended up falling totally flat. Again.
THE MISSED POTENTIAL
It’s so rare that I come across a WWII historical fiction that I don’t enjoy. But ladies, THIS STORY HAD SO MUCH POTENTIAL and I felt like it was left in the hands of someone who totally, totally botched it. Which is so sad, because you can tell how much love, passion, and research went into this novel by Hall Kelly, but it feel oh so short, I’m sorry.
This story deserves to be retold. Because the horrors at Ravensbrück were unthinkable. And unfortunately, this story didn’t do it justice. Can someone please commission Ann Patchett or Celeste Ng to work their magic and retell this story?