I find that from the start of the book she was trying to find how to survive and be human. The inhumanity that was rampant, and the humanity that moves forward from such horror is an old story for the human race and psyche. Her story is an intense and horrible one, yet the beauty she has found in her writing, in her descriptions, in the humanity of coming face to face again with that time, through seeing and hearing other stories, watching, seeing, and being with families who have moved beyond that time. It is an optimistic message, because we are human, highly intelligent animals, with an instinct to survive, so we do move on.