Lilac Girls: A Novel Summary
Martha Hall kelly

Lilac Girls: A Novel Overview

Martha Hall Kelly's historical novel, Lilac Girls, captures the experiences of three radically different women in World War II. Kasia is only 16 when German soldiers invade her town of Lublin, Poland and take her and her family to the Ravensbrück concentration camp, where Kasia's faith is tested as she experiences dehumanization and trauma. Herta is sent to Ravensbrück, herself, to serve as a doctor and to commit horrible atrocities against the camp's prisoners. Caroline is an ocean away, in New York, when World War II breaks out, but she uses her charity to desperately try to help the victims of the war. As her character's lives intersect, Kelly explores themes of sexism, dehumanization and healing in her debut novel, which suggests that some scars cannot be healed.