The Nightingale: Chapter 36 Summary & Analysis

In February of 1945, Isabelle is still working in a concentration camp. The weather is brutal, and on this particular day, she and Madame Babineau are put on a road crew. The road crew is perhaps the most brutal job in the camp, as the women are strapped up to a steel wheel and whipped as they move through the snow. Isabelle forces herself to just keep moving, even though every step is an exercise in pain. After their work is done, Madame Babineau tells Isabelle not to cry—if she does, she will give up hope and die. But Isabelle is already ill and doesn’t know how much longer she can last. However, she knows that the war is coming to an end, and she sees the light at the end of the tunnel.

Shortly after their work on the road crew, Isabelle and Madame Babineau are moved to another concentration camp. When Isabelle gets off of the train, she sees Anouk, who calls out to her. Anouk explains that the Germans are executing everyone in the camps to cover up their tracks. She also tells Isabelle that Gaëtan, Henri, and Paul were arrested, and that Henri was executed. Before she can learn anymore, the authorities separate Isabelle from Anouk. They both goodbye to each other as the authorities pull them apart.