Like many others here, I was forced to do whatever I was told by those who imprisoned me.
-- Cilka (chapter 1)

Importance: At the liberated Auschwitz, Soviet officers interrogate Cilka. They ask her questions about her years in Auschwitz, how she managed to stay alive, and whether or not the reports of her prostituting herself were true. Cilka responds with this quote, showing the only way she knew how to survive in the concentration camp—which was to submit to the will of those in charge. To not do so would have meant death for Cilka, and in these early pages of the novel, readers glimpse a character with the strength to endure years of rape to survive.

The sound of women suffering. . .Cilka hoped she’d never had to hear it again.
-- Cilka (chapter 2)

Importance: Cilka is sentenced to 15 years in a Soviet Gulag, and the train ride to Siberia is long and demanding. The other...