Bliss, John. Jewish Migration.

Bliss, John.  Jewish Migration.     Heinemann (Capstone), 2012.   32p.  $29.00

ISBN 978-1-4109-4075-9  elem  VG-BNes          

     The Jews have wandered the world since before Moses brought the Israelites out of Egypt and the Great Babylonian Diaspora, almost always in fear for their lives.  In this book, Bliss concentrates on four individuals who offer first-person information about their travels.  It begins with the emigration of a young Golda Mabovitch, later known as Golda Meir, Prime Minister of Israel, from Russia to the U.S. in 1901.  Then it continues with the true stories of German Ralph Rehbock and his family escaping from Berlin in 1938, Austrian Kurt Fuchel on the Kindertransport in 1939, and Russian Alona Poupeseva to Israel in 2001.  Each chapter contains primary-source accounts of their journeys, statistical details, a picture of their daily lives, and a view of the adult persona of each child.  Well researched and clearly written, the use of first-person accounts lends an intensity to the stories and helps readers relate to the individuals.  The text is enhanced by the inclusion of primary-source quotations, color and black-and-white photographs, and maps.  The book is library-bound and ends with a glossary, a bibliography of books and Internet addresses, and an index.

     The series is entitled Migration, and it includes titles that offer insight into the lives of migrant children throughout the world.  Books in the series cover Jewish migration, Middle Eastern migration, migration from Africa, 19th-century migration to America, and pioneer travels to the American West.

Subject: Jews-Europe-Migrations

Susan Ogintz

Deem, James M. Kristallnacht

Deem, James M.    Kristallnacht     

 Enslow      2011  128p  31.93 978-0-7660- 

 ms/jr E-BN         

    Through first hand accounts, the first terrible night of violence against jews in Nazi Germany is recounted.     

    While there are so many books about this subject, what makes this book exceptional is that it is written for the tween student in the voice of the subjects about whom the book is about. First hand accounts, memoirs verbal and written add such a strong voice to the subject in this book and make for compelling reading for not just the student but anyone who picks up this book to read. The black and white imagery throughout the text keeps it in the period, and narratives are written in a ‘handwriting’ font which also keeps the context of the book intact. Sidebars throughout the book serve to emphasize specific occurences such as “Kristallnact instructions for gestapo and state police”, page 36 and “A German firefighter remembers”, page 79. The book concludes with a timeline, chapter notes, a glossary, further reading and an index.       

    Holocaust Through Primary Sources (Enslow)      Six titles complete this series which, if the other titles are as well prepared as this title would be a welcome addition to any secondary school or public library collection.  Jews - Persecutions - Germany Lynn Fisher

 

Zusak, Markus. La Ladrona De libros (in Spanish)

Zusak, Markus La Ladrona De libros (in Spanish)
Vintage see Random 2007 539p 13.95
978-0-307-47573-2 jr/sr Realistic Fiction E-BN

Liesel’s love for book is what probably saves her. Seen from the eyes of Death, the story of a little girl trying to survive during World War II is a story and the history of a country in turmoil where life and death go hand in hand. Death the narrator of this book has been observing Liesel since she was 10 year olds. She was taken to a foster home by her sick mother and left in the care of strangers. The Hubermann are simple people trying to make a living in a time of bad economics and a raging war in their country - Germany.
Liesel still remembers the day her brother died. Their mother was taking her and her younger brother to a foster home but the poor boy was hungry, tired and sick and never made it pass the next to the last stop. After she was dropped off with her new foster family she never saw her mother again but that is not to say her life did not have excitement, adventure and a lot of danger. Those were the years of fear, hatred and compassion. The story is a complex story of many characters affected and all trying to survive world war II.
An unforgettable Spanish translated book of humanity, guilt and the value of literature. Originally published in 2005, this book has won numerous awards: 2006 Daniel Elliot Peace Award, 2006 Comonwealth Writers Prize for Best Book, 2007 Michael L. Printz Honor book, 2007 Boeke Prize. Diaz, Magna
Books and reading - Death - Germany History 1933-1945 - Jews

Trapped - Youth in the Nazi Ghettos.

Byers, Ann. Trapped - Youth in the Nazi Ghettos.

Enslow 2010 128p 31.93 True Stories of Teens in the Holocaust(Enslow)

978-0-7660-3272-9 ms/hs VG-BN

Through diaries and interviews, teenagers recall life as a Jew during World War II. In particular, their life in the ghettos established by the Nazis. Black and white photos, and quotes make the events of the Holocaust come alive for today’s teens. Grades 7 up. Primary source quotations from diaries and interviews are interwoven into the text of the book. Black and white photographs capture the fear and blankness on the faces of those who were housed in ghettos and forced to work as slave labor in factories. In contrast, photographs of happy families before the Holocaust are shown for specific people who are interviewed or have their diaries excerpted. The harsh living conditions, meager food rations, and certain exposure to disease in the ghettos were in stark contrast to the lives lived prior to Hitler’s rise to power. The brutality of the Nazis is captured quite well through the text of the book augmented by research primarily from the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC. The book chronicles the reason for ghettos being built, the sealing of the ghettos, life in the ghetto, what kept people alive both in body and spirit and the final solution as Hitler called the proposed extermination of the Jewish people. Those who survived either find it hard to speak out or have made it their life’s work to speak out so such an atrocity will be remembered and condemned. A timeline, chapter notes, glossary, further research sources and index complete the book. Because of the common meaning of ghetto, the lack of a definition of ghetto in the glossary is a glaring omission. Excellent reading for grades 7 and up. McNicol,Lois

Shattered Youth in Nazi Germany.

Altman, Linda Jacobs. Shattered Youth in Nazi Germany.

Enslow 2010 128p 31.93

True Stories of Teens in the Holocaust(Enslow)

978-0-7660-3268-2 ms/hs VG-BN

Examines the lives of children and teens living in Germany before and during the Holocaust, including the rise of Nazism, growing persecution of Jews, and the Hitler Youth. Using primary source recollections integrated with the narrative, readers learn of the horror, suffering and brutality experienced by teens in Germany and surrounding countries that were part of Hitler’s empire. The political origins of the events that put the “Final Solution” into operation are discussed in the opening chapters, thus setting the context for reign of terror that targeted Jews, non-Aryans and gentiles alike. Each recollection is set off from the text by a different font, which emphasizes and elaborates upon the narrative. The focus stays true to the title by examining how Hitler’s policies destroyed childhood innocence and ripped families apart. Fractured friendships, interrupted education and life and death choices were only a few of the effects of Hitler’s propaganda and the Nazification of German society. Even German Aryan youth were affected, as the chapter on the Hitler Youth shows both young teens who joined Nazi youth organizations and those who rebelled against it. The subject of this book, specifically teenagers who “saw horrors that no….boy should ever see” fills a void in the non-fiction, non-biographical titles of the Holocaust as seen and experienced by teens. For years Anne Frank’s diary has been the most compelling testimony of a young life destroyed. The recollections in this title are just as compelling. Zajko, Rosanne

Escape- Teens on the Run.

Altman, Linda Jacobs. Escape- Teens on the Run.

Enslow 2010 128p 31.93 True Stories of Teens in the Holocaust(Enslow)

978-0-7660-3270-5 ms/hs E-BNS

This insightful book presents primary source information about the Holocaust. Altman offers firsthand accounts of children and teenagers from across Europe who managed to escape the Nazi death machine through luck, determination, self-reliance, and, sometimes, the kindness of neighbors and complete strangers. Each chapter tells the story of a young person’s circumstances embedded in a succinct discussion of historical background. A different font delineates their own words from the text and maps, sidebars, and black-and-white photographs of the youngsters and their families enhance the story.
Well-researched and clearly written, this book provides an excellent discussion of one of mankind’s darkest periods. Altman uses a balanced content of narrative and primary source material to present this description of individuals caught up by the Holocaust. She discusses the effects of their experiences on the survivors. She presents her information in a well balanced, concise, and lucid manner. The book is library-bound and ends with a timeline, chapter notes, a glossary, bibliography of books and Internet addresses, and an index.
Ogintz, Susan

Laish.

Applefeld, Aharon Laish.
Schocken Books 2009 231p 23.95 978-0-8052-9159-4 hs/adult

This is the story of a pre-WWII pilgrimage of Jews through Eastern Europe to Jerusalem. Told through the perspective of a teen boy in the convoy of horse drawn wagons, the lives of those making this trip show the trials and tribulations of this precarious journey to the promised land. Translated from Hebrew. This is the story of a pre-WWII pilgrimage of Jews through Eastern Europe along the Prut River to Jerusalem. The tale is told through the perspective of a young teen boy, Laish, orphan in this convoy of horse drawn wagons. As he relates what he observes, the reader is drawn into the trials and tribulations of the people making this perilous journey to the Promised Land. The Jews on this trip are people who are escaping persecution, poverty, and other hardships. There are divisions in the caravan: the harsh, hard drinking ex-con drivers; the devout old men; and the dealers, who trade, bargain, try to earn money, and sometimes delay the journey. There are others too: the blind, the mentally ill, the women who cook, mend, and clean. Although they are sometimes revered by the Jewish communities they pass along the way, they all encounter adversity on the way to the sea. They are often preyed upon by thieves (even some within the caravan), thugs, police, the corrupt, and even typhoid. The longer they travel, and it is years; their numbers dwindle. Some die and some run away. Will they get to Jerusalem and be free from all the burdens they suffer? Or not? Those questions are for the reader to decide. Translated from Hebrew, this book is excellently written and for mature readers. T. Weinraub