The Girl From the Train

By: Irma Joubert

Narrated by: Sarah Zimmerman

Six-year-old Gretl Schmidt is on a train bound for Auschwitz. Jakób Kowalski is planting a bomb on the tracks.

As World War II draws to a close, Jakób fights with the Polish resistance against the crushing forces of Germany and Russia. They intend to destroy a German troop transport, but Gretl’s unscheduled train reaches the bomb first.

Gretl is the only survivor. Though spared from the concentration camp, the orphaned German Jew finds herself lost in a country hostile to her people. When Jakób discovers her, guilt and fatherly compassion prompt him to take her in. For three years, the young man and little girl form a bond over the secrets they must hide from his Catholic family.

But she can’t stay with him forever. Jakób sends Gretl to South Africa, where German war orphans are promised bright futures with adoptive Protestant families—so long as Gretl’s Jewish roots, Catholic education, and connections to communist Poland are never discovered.

Separated by continents, politics, religion, language, and years, Jakób and Gretl will likely never see each other again. But the events they have both survived and their belief that the human spirit can triumph over the ravages of war have formed a bond of love that no circumstances can overcome.

Praise for The Girl from the Train:

“A riveting read with an endearing, courageous protagonist . . . takes us from war-torn Poland to the veldt of South Africa in a story rich in love, loss, and the survival of the human spirit.” —Anne Easter Smith, author of A Rose for the Crown

• Full-length World War II historical novel
• International bestseller
• Includes a glossary

Kind

It is a very interesting book mixing in facts with romance. Good read, loved it

It’s all about the journey not haw you arrived

This book was fantastic and definitely going into my list of Favorite books of all time. The characters are full of depth and real emotion, some of them I loved, others not so much but that wasn’t due to the writer’s shortcomings, you’re meant to feel a particular way about some of them. The story revolves mainly around a girl whom you meet around the age of 5 and you’ll come to know her by several names. The other characters flit in and out of her life but there is a select group of them that you’ll come to love and appreciate. The story utterly swept me away. I had it on every chance i could get! It is an emotional story filled with so many events and feelings of kindness, love, laughter, hatred, prejudice. This story also gave me a very intense description of what it would have been like to be a part of events in history, in way that you’re not so much reading about them but standing next to the people as they actively happen. I was afraid at times and sometimes the anxiety was a lot to handle ang I think to myself, I am so very blessed to grow up in the time and the place that I did. However, the book gave me a really good idea of what my great grandparent and grandparents must have lived though, or at least a glimpse of it.
This is the first book I’ve listened to by this author but I’m about to go looking for more of her books. The narrator did an excellent job of telling the story and created such a depth of feeling, she knew just how to read it. IMO, I think the narrator must have read the book in advance and fallen in love with it because you can hear it in her retelling.
Amazing book, I can’t say enough good things. This one I will keep in my library. When I question things going on in this present day and age or ask myself during a hard time: why me, why now? I will once again listen to this story and immediately count my blessings. Please listen to this book! Although its a work of fiction, I think its a very important part of history we need to learn and hear more about on a very personal level.

Captivating

Really enjoyed this story. There was not a lot of this story focused on holocaust events, which is what I though it was going to be, but still really enjoyed it. More about the story of a girls life and what happened to her and her love story. Will stay will me days after I have finished it.

Phenomenal story

The Girl from the Train takes you on a journey of emotion. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves history.

Marvelous

Clever plot and excellent narration. Through the eyes of our heroine, the author shows respect and appreciation for different religious views. Ironically, as a Jew, circumstances force her to embrace Catholicism and protestant views. She can see the merits in each approach. She watches as people she loves realize that their anti Jewish hatred is unfounded.

Engaging