The most-read books based on true stories tend to be survival stories and memoirs: Heather Morris’s The Tattooist of Auschwitz, The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, the gripping The Helicopter Heist and, in Slovenia, Bronja Žakelj’s hugely popular autobiographical novel Belo se pere na devetdeset. Below you will find ten verified titles, an explanation of what “based on a true story” actually means, and tips for telling fact from literary licence.
What “based on a true story” really means
The label on the cover promises truth, but the dose varies enormously. Some books follow the documents to the last comma; others take a real framework and fill it with invented dialogue. It helps to know what you are getting before you choose.
| Type of book | How much is true | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Diary and memoir | An account by someone who lived through the events, from their point of view | The Diary of a Young Girl, Becoming |
| Autobiographical novel | The author’s own life, shaped as fiction | Belo se pere na devetdeset |
| Biography and non-fiction | Research into sources, testimony and archives, with no invented scenes | The Volunteer, Blitzed |
| Novel based on true events | Real people and events; details and dialogue are the author’s | The Tattooist of Auschwitz, The Helicopter Heist |
Ten of the most-read books based on true events
We put this selection together from titles that appear on lending charts of Slovenian public libraries and bestseller lists, and from the books readers most often recommend to one another.
Slovenian bestsellers
- Belo se pere na devetdeset (Bronja Žakelj) – an autobiographical novel about childhood, the deaths of the author’s mother and brother, and her own illness. It won the 2019 Kresnik award for best Slovenian novel, topped the lending chart at Ljubljana City Library for a long time, and was adapted into a film by Marko Naberšnik that premiered at the Sarajevo Film Festival. It has been translated into Croatian, Italian and Macedonian.
- Cavazza (Vesna Milek) – a biography of the actor Boris Cavazza, full of personal stories from behind the scenes of theatre and film (available in Slovenian).
Stories from the Second World War
- The Tattooist of Auschwitz (Heather Morris) – the love story of Lale and Gita, Slovak Jews who survived Auschwitz-Birkenau. Lale was the prisoner who tattooed numbers onto fellow inmates.
- The Librarian of Auschwitz (Antonio Iturbe) – a novel based on the life of Dita Kraus, who hid and protected a handful of books in the camp’s children’s block.
- The Volunteer (Jack Fairweather) – the non-fiction story of Witold Pilecki, who in 1940 let himself be imprisoned in Auschwitz under a false name to report on the camp to the Allies. It won the 2019 Costa Book of the Year award for biography.
- The Diary of a Young Girl (Anne Frank) – the notebooks of a Jewish girl hiding with her family in Amsterdam, and one of the most widely read testimonies of the war.
- The Disappearance of Josef Mengele (Olivier Guez) – a novel about the Nazi doctor’s flight and life in hiding after the war, written from historical sources.
Crime, history and memoir
- The Helicopter Heist (Jonas Bonnier) – a novel about the robbery of 23 September 2009, when thieves landed a helicopter on the roof of a cash depot in Västberga, Stockholm. It became a Netflix series in 2024.
- Blitzed (Norman Ohler) – an investigation into how drugs shaped everyday life in the Third Reich, from ordinary soldiers to the top of the regime.
- Becoming (Michelle Obama) – the former First Lady’s memoir, from a childhood in Chicago to the White House.
Why true stories grip us
When we know something really happened, we read differently. Every decision carries weight because it was not dreamed up by a novelist; a real person had to make it. That is why books based on true stories are so often the ones we cannot put down, even when we know how they end.
The second reason is understanding. One person’s story – a girl in a hiding place, a woman facing illness – brings history or experience closer than any textbook. The third is simply courage: we like reading how others survived the worst, because it gives us hope.
How to check how much of a book is true
Novels based on true events sometimes simplify or dramatise history. That is not necessarily a bad thing, but readers should know where the line is. A few simple steps:
- Read the afterword or an interview with the author – serious writers say which characters and scenes they invented.
- Look at the subtitle – “a novel” allows more freedom than “a true story” or “a biography”.
- Look for documentary sources – survivors’ memoirs and museum archives for war stories, contemporary press reports for crime cases.
- Compare with the film or series – adaptations usually add even more drama, so the book tends to stay closer to the facts.
Where to find them and which to read first
Most of these titles can be borrowed from public libraries, many as e-books too. Check your library’s online catalogue and reserve bestsellers early, since waiting lists for popular titles can run to several weeks. Slovenian titles such as Cavazza are, for now, available mainly in Slovenian.
If you are unsure where to start, choose by mood: Belo se pere na devetdeset for something moving yet witty (if you can read Slovenian or one of its translations), The Volunteer for history that will stay with you, and The Helicopter Heist for an evening when you want suspense. Once true stories get hold of you, you will keep coming back to them.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most-read Slovenian book based on a true story?
In recent years the standout is Bronja Žakelj’s autobiographical novel Belo se pere na devetdeset, winner of the Kresnik award for best Slovenian novel and later adapted into a feature film.
Is The Tattooist of Auschwitz a true story?
It is based on the real story of Lale and Gita, two Slovak Jews who survived Auschwitz-Birkenau. It is still a novel, though, so the dialogue and some scenes are the author’s own reconstruction.
What is the difference between a biography and a novel based on true events?
A biography sticks to documents and testimony and does not invent scenes. A novel based on true events uses a real framework but leaves details, dialogue and sometimes characters to the author.
Where can I borrow these books for free?
Almost all of them are stocked by public libraries and available as e-books. Check your library’s online catalogue and place a hold, as waiting lists for popular titles can be long.
