The Recommended Reading Path: Where to Start
Dr. Edith Eger’s bibliography is relatively brief but extraordinarily impactful, consisting of three core books. Because her works blend personal history with psychological teaching, the order in which you read them depends on what you want to get out of her message. Here is the recommended path for most readers:
- Start here: The Choice: Embrace the Possible (2017). This is Dr. Eger's masterpiece and debut memoir. Written when she was 90 years old, it recounts her early life in Košice, her harrowing survival in Auschwitz, her liberation, her subsequent migration to the United States, and her journey to becoming a clinical psychologist. Reading this first provides the foundational context for all her teachings.
- Next: The Gift: 12 Lessons to Save Your Life (2020). Once you understand her personal story, this follow-up book acts as a practical handbook. It takes the concepts introduced in her memoir and structures them into twelve specific lessons to help you identify and break free from your own mental limitations, such as fear, grief, guilt, and anger.
- Alternative / Companion: The Ballerina of Auschwitz (2024). If you are a young adult reader, or if you are looking for a version of her story that is highly focused on her wartime experiences and tailored for younger audiences, you can start with or substitute this adaptation. It retells the memoir portion of The Choice with additional historical framing and accessible narrative structures.
Dr. Edith Eger Books in Publication Order
Dr. Eger did not write series fiction, so there is no complex timeline to navigate. However, reading her books in the order she published them allows you to follow the development of her public voice—moving from raw personal memory to structured therapeutic guidance, and finally to legacy-focused adaptation for the next generation.
- The Choice: Embrace the Possible (2017) – Co-authored with Esmé Schwall Weigand. Published by Simon & Schuster.
- The Gift: 12 Lessons to Save Your Life (2020) – Co-authored with Esmé Schwall Weigand. Published by Simon & Schuster.
- The Ballerina of Auschwitz (2024) – Co-authored with Esmé Schwall Weigand. Published by Simon & Schuster.
Deep Dive: Understanding Each Book
The Choice: Embrace the Possible (2017)
Part memoir, part psychological guide, The Choice is Dr. Eger's account of surviving the unthinkable. At the age of sixteen, Edith was sent to Auschwitz, where she survived starvation, abuse, and the constant threat of death—including being forced to dance for Josef Mengele. The memoir covers the trauma of losing her parents in the gas chambers, the grueling death march, her rescue from a pile of bodies, and her struggle with survivor's guilt in post-war America. Crucially, the second half of the book transitions into her academic and professional life, showing how she used her pain to earn a PhD in psychology and help others heal. It is widely considered a spiritual companion to Viktor Frankl’s seminal work, Man's Search for Meaning.
The Gift: 12 Lessons to Save Your Life (2020)
If The Choice is the narrative of Dr. Eger’s life, The Gift is the blueprint for her clinical practice. Drawing from her decades as a therapist specializing in post-traumatic stress, she outlines the twelve most common psychological traps she has observed in her patients (and herself). These include the prisons of victimization, avoidance, self-neglect, secrets, guilt, and unprocessed grief. Each chapter features stories from her therapy sessions paired with practical advice, writing prompts, and cognitive exercises. It functions as a standalone self-help book that does not require reading her memoir first, though the lessons carry far more weight if you are already familiar with the crucible in which they were forged.
The Ballerina of Auschwitz (2024)
Dr. Eger wrote this book to ensure that the lessons of the Holocaust survive with younger generations. Working again with her collaborator Esmé Schwall Weigand, she adapted the first half of The Choice into a young adult narrative. It focuses heavily on her teenage years, her passion for dance and gymnastics, the sudden loss of her freedom due to anti-Semitic laws, and her ultimate survival in the camps. The language is direct, accessible, and emotionally resonant for teenagers without sanitizing the history of the Holocaust. It serves as an excellent educational tool and a powerful starting point for high schoolers.
What to Know Before You Start
Dr. Edith Eger passed away peacefully on April 27, 2026, at her home in La Jolla, California, at the age of 98. Her books stand as her enduring legacy, transforming the darkest moments of human history into a source of hope. Before diving into her work, there are a few important pieces of context to keep in mind:
- The Influence of Viktor Frankl: Dr. Eger was a close friend and student of Viktor Frankl. His belief that we cannot always control our circumstances but can always choose our attitude is the core foundation of her writing. If you enjoy Frankl's work, Eger's books offer a modern, deeply personal extension of those ideas.
- Co-Authorship: All three of Dr. Eger's books were written in collaboration with Esmé Schwall Weigand, who helped shape her spoken recollections and therapeutic principles into a cohesive literary style.
- Trigger Warnings: While both The Choice and The Ballerina of Auschwitz are ultimately stories of hope, they contain graphic descriptions of camp conditions, starvation, loss of family, and physical violence. Readers sensitive to historical trauma should approach these sections with care.