I am a child of Holocaust survivors. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I truly appreciated the horrendous circumstances that they lived through. But even more than their plight and will to survive, I was impressed with the heroism of the people willing to sacrifice their lives in order to help others. It is their story, above all else that I want to tell in my books.
Though my preference tends to be for works of fiction, I love this Holocaust classic which, being a diary, draws the reader immediately into the life of 13 year old Anne. It is a highly captivating book, intimately sharing the thoughts, feelings, hopes and fears of this young girl on the verge of adulthood. It also has a fair bit of drama as she tells of the interactions between the other people in hiding with her and their constant fear of discovery.
I find that it is especially pertinent in the present time, when because of the Covid 19 restrictions we can all relate to how it feels to be separated from friends, family and the normal activities of everyday life. Anne’s hopeful attitude and means of coping is an inspiring example.
With 30 per cent more material than previous editions, this new contemporary and fully anglicized translation gives the reader a deeper insight into Anne's world. Publication of the unabridged Definitive Edition on Penguin Audiobook, read by Helena Bonham-Carter, coincides.
I Am David is a unique story about a boy born in a concentration camp whose only experience of life is one of hardship and cruelty. Aside from his mother, he has known no kindness from people. When he is suddenly thrust into the free world all alone, he is scared of everyone and doesn’t know how to survive. Together with David, the reader is taken on an extraordinary journey of discovery of the goodness of life and love.
This is the story of a young boy's journey through Europe after escaping from the camp where he has lived all his life. Faced with a host of new experiences, David gradually begins to understand the world around him.
In an underground coal mine in Northern Germany, over forty scribes who are fluent in different languages have been spared the camps to answer letters to the dead—letters that people were forced to answer before being gassed, assuring relatives that conditions in the camps were good.
I like this book because it shows in an exciting and engaging way, that a war is not over, just because it is declared to be over. For many survivors, such as Ruth Mendenberg, it is the beginning of a new war in which they fight to re-establish their identity and their right to a place to call home once again.
"Didn't the gas ovens finish you all off?" is the response that meets Ruth Mendenberg when she returns to her village in Poland after the liberation of Buchenwald at the end of World War II. Her entire family wiped out in the Holocaust, the fifteen-year-old girl has nowhere to go. Members of the underground organization Brichah find her, and she joins them in their dangerous quest to smuggle illegal immigrants to Palestine. Ruth risks her life to help lead a group of children on a daring journey over half a continent and across the sea to Eretz Israel, using secret…
I recommend this book because it is a very engaging story of many different aspects of people's experiences during WW2. It leads the reader to feel the confusion and horror of the reality of the war through the eyes of young Liesel, the 'book thief'. Through her we see and experience how the war impacts both the lives of the persecuted Jews as well as those of the people trying to protect them and also those willfully ignoring what is going on. This book is not only informative and exciting, but also introduces readers to the realm of wonders that books can inspire in their own lives.
'Life affirming, triumphant and tragic . . . masterfully told. . . but also a wonderful page-turner' Guardian 'Brilliant and hugely ambitious' New York Times 'Extraordinary' Telegraph ___
HERE IS A SMALL FACT - YOU ARE GOING TO DIE
1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier. Liesel, a nine-year-old girl, is living with a foster family on Himmel Street. Her parents have been taken away to a concentration camp. Liesel steals books. This is her story and the story of the inhabitants of her street when the bombs begin to fall.
In an underground coal mine in Northern Germany, over forty scribes who are fluent in different languages have been spared the camps to answer letters to the dead—letters that people were forced to answer before being gassed, assuring relatives that conditions in the camps were good.
This story effectively unites the present with the past. Two girls anticipate their Bat Mitzvah in very different circumstances. Laura learns to appreciate the freedoms she has to make her own choices through the past life of a girl the same age as her but facing severe limitations. It is a thought-provoking book for young teens.
“I’m not Hendrik,” he said. “I am Jakob. Jakob Kohn. And I am a Jew!” Ivan and Hendrik have been best friends for years. Then in the fall of 1944, when they are both 13, Hendrik makes an astounding revelation which forces Ivan to make some very difficult choices - choices that will impact both of their lives, and the lives of their families forever. Ivan must now maneuver through the intricacies of life in Nazi - occupied Hungary and within his own family without giving away his secret allegiance.
Ivan’s Choice is a companion book to The Choice, giving Ivan’s side of the story. It is a story of courage and the inner conflict that many young people confront when establishing the values they want to live by.
Ivan's Choice is a novel inspired by real events.
