Liesl's Ocean Rescue and a Giveaway!

Congratulations to fellow blogger, Rosi Hollenbeck, who won an autographed copy of Maggie Dana's book, "Riding for the Stars."

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Liesl's Ocean Rescue, an historical picture book struck a personal chord for me. It begins with the awful events that surrounded Krystallnacht; an event which deeply affected my paternal grandparents. Like Liesl the main character in Barbara Krasner's story, my mother also escaped Nazi Germany at a young age and took an ocean voyage to America. But unlike Liesl, my mother's ship docked in New York City and her family quickly traveled to Ohio to establish a new home.

Based on the true story of Liesl Joseph Loeb's voyage on the MS St. Louis, Liesl's journey was different. When the ship attempted to enter Havana on the way to America, the Cuban government refused permission to dock. After almost a week of negotiations, the ship--filled with over 900 individuals trying to escape concentration camps--was forced to return to Europe. Although Liesl's family came to America two years later, over two hundred of their fellow passengers did not survive the war. 

Although every page is full of black and white illustrations by artist Avi Katz, this poignant picture book will best be appreciated by children from 8-10 years old. It will enhance classroom instruction about the Holocaust, bring alive the difficulties that immigrants often face, and offer a great starting point for discussions about war and freedom. A teacher's guide can be found here.

I would like to pass along my gently-used Advanced Readers Copy of this book. To enter, leave me a comment by Friday, November 28. If you are a teacher or plan to donate the book to a classroom library, let me know and I'll enter your name twice. 

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

"If you do start to read this book, you will go on a journey with a nine-year-old boy called Bruno. (Though this book isn't a book for nine-year-olds.) And sooner or later you will arrive with Bruno at a fence. Fences like this exist all over the world. We hope you never have to encounter such a fence."

This description from the cover flap of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (or in my case, on the cover of the CD) piqued my curiosity, but I was totally unprepared for the drama that lay in store for me. Told from the perspective of the son of a newly-appointed Commandant, young Bruno's voice of innocence permeates this atypical Holocaust story. The story opens with Bruno receiving the news that his family is packing up his beloved house in Berlin to move to an undisclosed location. The servants will only tell him that the sudden move has something to do with his father's important, yet highly secretive, job. Not pleased with the news that he has to leave his three best friends with whom he goes on exploring adventures, or that his "Hopeless Case" sister Gretel is also coming, Bruno contemplates the events in the unfolding days with a quiet seriousness. He is at the same time inquisitive (the explorer in him) and naïve (why do all of the boys, men, and grandfathers who live on the other side of the fence wear gray-striped pajamas? And if his father knew about the horrible huts they lived in, wouldn't he do something about it?) These traits are both endearing, and his downfall.

As the story develops, the reader sees life though the eyes of this young boy. We meet "The Fury" ("he was the rudest guest Bruno had ever witnessed.... he walked directly into the dining room and sat down at the head of the table—in Father's seat!"); and Shmuel, the boy who "happens to be on the other side of the fence" who Bruno finds out with delight, was also forced to leave his home—solidifying the friendship that Bruno longs for. Bruno struggles to make sense of the fence that separates the two of them, wondering why he can't crawl under it to play with Shmuel and the hundreds of other boys that Bruno imagines are happily living there.

It is this desire for the simple pleasures of boyhood friendships that propels Bruno into his final "adventure". The sad ending, as unfortunately inevitable as war, prejudice, and discrimination; hits the reader with bomb-like force. I would recommend it for 7^th graders and up, in conjunction with holocaust studies; or, in language arts, to discuss a character's voice. Bruno's distinct but naïve voice is evident in his comments to Shmuel about his clothing, the camp…even about Poland itself. As the book jacket testifies, this is not a book for nine-year-olds. But it is a book that will certainly prompt thought-provoking discussions in the classroom. (Random House, 2006)Technorati Tags:
Holocaust studies, Books for boys and girls, books on cd, The Boy in the Sripted Pajamas, John Boyne
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