Summary of The Choice

This audiobook is narrated by a digital voice. The Choice is a deeply moving memoir and practical guide to healing by Dr. Edith Eva Eger, a psychologist whose extraordinary life as a Holocaust survivor informs her work with patients struggling to overcome trauma. At just 16, Eger was deported with her family from Hungary to Auschwitz, where her parents were immediately killed in the gas chambers. In a harrowing encounter with Josef Mengele, she was forced to dance a waltz to "The Blue Danube," earning a small reward that would ultimately help her survive alongside other prisoners. She later endured transfers to the Mauthausen and Gunskirchen camps in Austria, surviving until American troops liberated her in 1945. Choosing forgiveness and the pursuit of joy became central to Eger’s life. After the war, she returned to college to study psychology, combining her professional knowledge with her own experiences of trauma to help others heal. Over the years, she has worked with Holocaust survivors, veterans with PTSD, survivors of abuse, and countless others seeking to reclaim their lives. Through her counseling, lectures, and writing, Eger demonstrates the transformative power of love, forgiveness, and resilience. In The Choice, Eger intertwines her personal story with compelling case studies from her clinical practice. Her patients’ experiences reveal the stages of healing and illustrate how individuals can escape the mental prisons they construct, reclaiming freedom and joy regardless of circumstance. Her life and work send a powerful message: “Your pain matters and is worth healing. You can choose to be joyful and free.” Even at 89 years old, Dr. Eger continues to dance—a testament to the enduring strength of the human spirit.