A remarkable, powerful young readers’ adaptation of an award-winning World War II memoir.
An autobiographical account of one Jewish girl’s childhood in Fascist Italy during World War II.
Barred from her Italian school, 6-year-old Lia now goes to a Judaic school. After more antisemitic laws cost her Papa his job, the family moves to Milan and then to Rome, where Lia’s father is forced to work clandestine jobs. Things grow steadily worse as occupying Nazi troops hunt and deport Jews. Lia, her sisters, and their Mama spend the rest of the war hiding out at a convent while Papa is on the run. But there are also moments of laughter and joy, and Lia finds comfort in her parents’ love. Levi narrates using dual perspectives—as the young girl experiencing the war and as an older woman remembering her past. The age-appropriate text is beautifully translated by Notini from the Italian. Lia’s young voice is perceptive and heartbreakingly vulnerable as she recounts her steadfast, even cheerful, acceptance of the changes in her life amid the insanity around her. Levi always makes it known when her older self is at the helm, directly addressing her “dear readers” and interjecting helpful supplementary information. Mason’s black-and-white sketches provide immediacy and added clarity. In a closing letter that gives more insight into Levi’s memories, she requests a moment of silence for the 6 million Jews the Nazis murdered, urges readers to always stand against racism, and expresses eternal gratitude to the American soldiers who “came as saviors” during the war. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A remarkable, powerful young readers’ adaptation of an award-winning World War II memoir. (Memoir/history. 9-14)Pub Date: March 22, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-06-306508-6
Page Count: 144
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 24, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2022
A beautiful, powerful reflection on a tragic history.
In spare verse, Lowry reflects on moments in her childhood, including the bombings of Pearl Harbor and Hiroshima.
When she was a child, Lowry played at Waikiki Beach with her grandmother while her father filmed. In the old home movie, the USS Arizona appears through the mist on the horizon. Looking back at her childhood in Hawaii and then Japan, Lowry reflects on the bombings that began and ended a war and how they affected and connected everyone involved. In Part 1, she shares the lives and actions of sailors at Pearl Harbor. Part 2 is stories of civilians in Hiroshima affected by the bombing. Part 3 presents her own experience as an American in Japan shortly after the war ended. The poems bring the haunting human scale of war to the forefront, like the Christmas cards a sailor sent days before he died or the 4-year-old who was buried with his red tricycle after Hiroshima. All the personal stories—of sailors, civilians, and Lowry herself—are grounding. There is heartbreak and hope, reminding readers to reflect on the past to create a more peaceful future. Lowry uses a variety of poetry styles, identifying some, such as triolet and haiku. Pak’s graphite illustrations are like still shots of history, adding to the emotion and somber feeling. He includes some sailors of color among the mostly white U.S. forces; Lowry is white.
A beautiful, powerful reflection on a tragic history. (author’s note, bibliography) (Memoir/poetry. 10-14)Pub Date: April 7, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-358-12940-0
Page Count: 80
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2020
PROFILES
A mighty portrait of poverty amid cruelty and optimism.
Recounting his childhood experiences in sixth grade, Ogle’s memoir chronicles the punishing consequences of poverty and violence on himself and his family.
The start of middle school brings about unwanted changes in young Rex’s life. His old friendships devolve as his school friends join the football team and slowly edge him out. His new English teacher discriminates against him due to his dark skin (Rex is biracial, with a white absentee dad and a Mexican mom) and secondhand clothes, both too large and too small. Seemingly worse, his mom enrolls him in the school’s free-lunch program, much to his embarrassment. “Now everyone knows I’m nothing but trailer trash.” His painful home life proffers little sanctuary thanks to his mom, who swings from occasional caregiver to violent tyrant at the slightest provocation, and his white stepdad, an abusive racist whose aggression outrivals that of Rex’s mom. Balancing the persistent flashes of brutality, Ogle magnificently includes sprouts of hope, whether it’s the beginnings of a friendship with a “weird” schoolmate, joyful moments with his younger brother, or lessons of perseverance from Abuela. These slivers of relative levity counteract the toxic relationship between young Rex, a boy prone to heated outbursts and suppressed feelings, and his mother, a fully three-dimensional character who’s viciously thrashing against the burden of poverty. It’s a fine balance carried by the author’s outstanding, gracious writing and a clear eye for the penetrating truth.
A mighty portrait of poverty amid cruelty and optimism. (author’s note, author Q&A, discussion guide, writing guide, resources) (Memoir. 9-12)Pub Date: Sept. 10, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-324-00360-1
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Norton Young Readers
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2019
PERSPECTIVES
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