Kammala wannan jumla: An haifi Eva Unger a Berlin a 1932 zuwa wani dangi na Yahudawa masu arziki, masu zaman kansu, ta isa Biritaniya a matsayin 'yan gudun hijira a 1939 tare da mahaifiyarta Irma Unger, da ƙaninta, Ernst. A lokacin
A Kristallnacht a watan Nuwamba 1938, an kama mahaifinta Emil kuma aka tura shi zuwa sansanin Dachau. Daga baya aka sake shi bayan da matarsa ta ba da babbar cin hanci ga Nazis kuma ta yi nasarar tserewa zuwa Ingila don shiga danginsa a London. Dukkanin kakanin Figes a bangarorin biyu na iyalin sun mutu a sansanin fursuna. Zuwa ƙarshen Yaƙin Duniya na II, Figes ya tuna a cikin "The Observer" a cikin 1979, "mahaifiyata ta ba ni dinari tara kuma ta tura ni zuwa gidan silima na gida... Na zauna ni kaɗai a cikin duhu kuma na kalli labarai na Belsen". Ya ba ta mafarkai masu ban tsoro na shekaru da yawa.