Books
The Past Cannot be Mended
New York Times bestselling author Lucy Adlington’s latest book began with a garment she couldn’t forget: a little red sweater in the Imperial War Museum in London.
“Knitwear doesn’t often survive collections. It’s not considered glamorous necessarily, or it tends to be only spared if it is glamorous. So here was this very, very ordinary looking sweater,” Adlington said.
“I decided I wanted to find out whose was it, where did she get it from? Why did she wear it? Why did it end up in a museum collection?”
Those questions led Adlington to Four Red Sweaters: Powerful True Stories of Women and the Holocaust, which was released in March. Most American readers may know her from The Dressmakers of Auschwitz: The True Story of the Women who Sewed to Survive.
Adlington, a historian who lives in Yorkshire, England, has two decades of experience with these kinds of questions. She learned that little red sweater belonged to Jock Heidenstein, a German Jew whose mother packed it when Jock was lucky enough to be sent to the UK on the Kindertransport in 1939.
A modern replica of Jock’s sweater Adlington commissioned for the book.
Jock’s sweater’s story is about separation, kinship, and, ultimately, survival. But the other three sweater stories aren’t nearly as rosy.
“It was sad to trace the fate of Jock’s school friends and to think, well, there but for luck and chance or fate, those other little girls with their little red sweaters were on the train going the wrong way,” Adlington said.
From the book, in late 1942, “Regina and her family clambered onto horse drawn carts. The destination was a neat compound near the village called Sobibor. A man in SS uniform…ordered women who could knit to step forward. It wasn’t exactly a rare skill among girls and women at this time, but most were reluctant to move. Why single themselves out? There could be safety in the crowd.
“Golda Feldman shoved her daughter forward, saying, ‘You can knit.’
“‘That was the last time I saw my family,’ Regina later mourned.”
Knitting kept Regina alive long enough to see the end of the war. She made warm clothes for the S.S. from yarn recycled from clothes left behind by people sent to the gas chambers.
Another girl, Anita, takes her red sweater from a similar pile of clothing in Birkenau. That sweater, too, increased her odds of survival because it protected her from the bitter winter.
The fourth sweater is Chana’s. She survives in occupied Poland because of her work as a stocking maker. The Germans shipped piles of clothing to Chana’s town. The townspeople use their skills to outfit the German military, who are killing Jews like Chana at scale.
Grafted among the four red sweaters are stories about everyday knitters during the war. Adlington was struck by how resourceful knitters could be. When supplies ran short—wool was needed by the military for uniforms—knitters unraveled, reknit, and repurposed.
“I’ve read so many stories of women knitting in bomb shelters, women knitting on public transport and meetings, women knitting in detention camps and concentration camps. That idea that it somehow keeps you going as well as producing things that you can wear or gift or sell,” Adlington said.
“I have a wonderful knitted blanket that was sent over from Boston during the war. This was part of a charity initiative to help people who’d been bombed out in Britain during the Blitz. All of the patches presumably were knitted by a group of knitters and then stitched together to make a patchwork blanket.
“I think that’s lovely. It’s got a few moth holes, as these things all do,” she said.
Adlington herself isn’t a knitter, not really.
“I can only knit squares,” she said. “I love the actual process of knitting. I love the tactile element of it. I love yarns. I love watching people knit. I love listening to it. I just can’t bloody do it.”
Recently, Adlington gave a talk about this book at the National Holocaust Museum in the UK. Afterwards, as she was signing copies for the audience, a woman asked “Can you sign the book, ‘Just knit’?
“I said, ‘Well, what’s the story there?’
“The woman started talking about her mother who always said, ‘Whenever you have a problem, whether it’s a war or bereavement or stress: Just knit. Just knit.’”
Four Red Sweaters isn’t an easy read but it is an important one. As Adlington points out, the past cannot be mended like a sweater. These lives were irrevocably changed and frequently ended because of a fascist regime.
“But the sweaters are not just emblems of atrocity, and they are far more than evidence of inhuman crimes,” Adlington writes.
“As the stories will make clear, they embody love. A love of life. Deathless mother love. Deep bonds of sibling love and loving friendships.
“The woolen yarns may be fragile, but the love endures, indestructible as long as the knowledge of it is kept alive.”
We have five copies of Four Red Sweaters to give away to MDK readers. Drop the name of the last book you read in a comment by April 28 at midnight eastern. Winners will be randomly chosen.
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What a lovely story. I’m reading Grace Livingston Hill’s ‘Dawn of the Morning’ just now, on Gutenberg.
The Last Devil to Die
I don’t remember the last time I had time for fiction, but I am currently reading The New Menopause by Mary Claire Haver, MD. It was recommended by a couple people and I am going through it right now. I’m about 3 chapters in, and I already wish I’d had access to this information 10 years ago when I started showing perimenopause symptoms without realizing what they were.
Four Red Sweaters does sound like a book I’d read; I like to broaden my view of history by way of personal stories like these. I’m curious what knitted items from right now might show up in museums in 50 years. I can think of a couple.
What a fascinating story, and so appropriate for MDK.
I’ve just finished reading Old Baggage by Lissa Evans. An old suffragette, still living with her thrilling past and trying to find her cause. Funny and sad, and full of charming observations and descriptions.
I tried to write a comment but it seems to have vanished… I’m not sure the previous book I read, it’s been a while because I’ve been knitting instead. I am currently reading The New Menopause by Mary Claire Haver, MD. It was recommended by a couple people I know, and I am going through it now. I wish this book had been available 10 years ago.
Four Red Sweaters is the type of book I would read. I find it fascinating to get a closer look at what life was like for everyday people in different places and circumstances. I don’t bother with fluffy reading any more; I believe life is too short for anything that isn’t beneficial in some way. (And no, I am not pushing my views on anyone. If you like to read fluffy stuff, go for it! This is just my perspective.)
James by Percival Everett
54 Miles, by Leonard Pitts, Jr.
Your articles are wonderful, Adrienne. The idea to “just knit” is reminiscent of the beloved quote by Elizabeth Zimmerman: “Knit on, with confidence and hope, through all crises.” I will add “Four Red Sweaters” to my list!
The last book I read was “West with Giraffes” by Lynda Rutledge.
I’m currently reading “The Uncommon Reader” by Alan Bennett.
The last book I read was The Lost Letter.
The Tattooist of Auschwitz
The last book I read was The Lost Letter.
Eileen Miller
The Nightingale – also a difficult read.
I just finished, “By Her Own Design: A Novel of Ann Lowe, Fashion Designer;” an historical fiction by author Piper Huguley.
Ann Lowe was the designer of Jacqueline Kennedy’s wedding gown.
I recently read “Sipsworth” a book by Simon Van Booy. An unlikely friendship between a mouse and an old lady doesn’t sound like the book that will have you rushing to your local bookstore or library…. But take the time to discover why it should be just that book. The unlikely friendships forged because a mouse entered into a lonely older lady’s life are heart warming. The authors style of writing brings you instantly into the main characters home, where you can learn a friend can be found just about anywhere you are willing to open your eyes and look for one! Enjoyable read!
I knit the entire time my husband was undergoing chemo for pancreatic cancer. I still have that completed hanging in my bedroom; he is gone but I have this visual reminder of our love and persistence. Knitting was, and is, my way of surviving.
Thank you, Adrienne. The last book I read: Dream State by Eric Puchner
Those Who Knew by Idra Novey. Such a great book
Dying in the Wool by Frances Brody
Frozen River, by Ariel Lawhon It’s a historical novel, based on the diary of Martha Ballard, an 18th century midwife. A fascinating look at her life and experiences.
The last book I finished was Murder, She Knit by Peggy Ehrhart. Fun little murder mystery that has a knitting component.
The Breaksway
Dream Count, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche.
The God of the Woods, by Liz Moore
I’m on the last few pages of Onyx Storm
“Here One Moment,” by Liane Moriarty. (Recommend!)
I belong to a “Crafty” book club. We read a variety of fiber related books and spend the evening knitting and discussing the topic. We are currently reading “Threads of Life” by Clare Hunter..A History of The World Through The Eye Of A Needle. I’m going to recommend “Four Red Sweaters” to our group.
Good recommendation! It is now on my list. I am reading The Accidental President. Excellent book and easy to read with fascinating facts about Truman becoming president and the problems he inherited from FDR. Not to mention WWII!
The Night Window by Dean Koontz
I am reading mostly fun escape books and just finished Nobody’s Fool by Harlan Coban. Currently listening to, Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson.
Qigong Master Jim Nance.. my life story led me here. By Jim Nance and Naomi Joy Nance
The last book for me was”A Path of Sorrows”, special edition byPhillip Brescia. It’s about the passion of Christ written in the first person.
Just about finished with The Galton Affair by Ross MacDonald.
Nightwork by Nora Roberts
The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles. Wonderful. My new favorite chapter of all time is the first one titled “Sally”.
I honestly can’t remember the title of the very last book I read- a coworker gave it to me and I didn’t have the heart to refuse it- and it was not bad a good break between denser books. I’m getting ready to read The Splendid and the Vile by Eric Larson about Churchill also recommended by another coworker.
Sometimes anymore I shy away from books on Holocaust but then I think oh my goodness they lived it you’re just reading it and we should honor them by remembering.
“Four Red Sweaters” sounds like a fascinating read!
I’m currently reading “This is the Story of a Happy Marriage” by Ann Patchett.
Cloth Lullaby
I can’t wait to read this book.
Last book I read all the way through is “Moon of the Turning Leaves” by Waubgeshig Rice (2nd of a 2 book series & FABulous! The 1st book is “Moon of the Crusted Snow”).
I’m still working my way through “Life of Pi” which I’m finding to be a good book, but I’m still struggling to really get into it. Watched the movie while partially through &… WTF? Why did they make the changes they made in the script?!?!
Rough Sleepers by Tracy Kidder.
Just finished Who’s That Girl by the fantastic Mhairi McFarlane. Perfect stress relieving read.
Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
A Silent Death by Peter May.
The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods is the last book I read. I loved it!
As I was reading this piece, I stopped and added Four Red Sweaters to my library queue. This book sounds fascinating. Thank you for the opportunity to win a copy!
The last book I read was:
The Game
By: Laurie R. King
Series: Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes , Book 7
The entire series takes you all over the world in great detail. An amazing series that I will listen to again.
Book I read “The Warmth of another Sun”
This book looks amazing, if that word can be used in conjunction with such horrors. Last book I read was “A Spy in the House of Loud” by Chris Stamey (of the dBs).
The One in a Million Boy by Monica Wood
The Paris Daughter
Thank you for posting this article. Beautiful…and sobering. One of the last books I’ve read is “Independent People,” by Halldor Laxness. Everyone was knitting!
The Comfort of Crows by Margaret Renkl
Will recommend Four Red Sweaters for our library.
I just finished-The Tiger:A True Story of Vengeance and Survival by John Vaillant.
“The Frozen River” by Ariel Lawhon. The real 18th c. hero Martha Ballard, a midwife and keeper of an extraordinary diary, knit (and accomplished oh so much more too!!).
The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Cahokia Jazz by Francis Spufford, best book I’ve read in ages, but no knitting
Leaving Everything Most Loved by Jacqueline Winspear