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torimc's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Death, Violence, and War
whoolie3's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
This is a book that most middle grade students read in their study of WWII. As a school library media specialist I had never read it. The book was an amazing, child-friendly way to discuss WWII and the how it affected Jewish families. This story takes place in Denmark, when the Germans were occupying Denmark. Families had to deal with the war going on. Families that were not of Jewish descent had to help their Jewish friends escape to Sweden. This is a story of a little girl named Annemarie and how Annemarie's family helped their family friends, the Rosens (a Jewish family) during this time. My advanced language arts 4th and 5th graders LOVED this book and begged me to keep reading it whenever we had to stop! 5 stars all the way!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Antisemitism, War, and Violence
Minor: Car accident, Confinement, Death, and Grief
stevia333k's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
1.0
The way this book is/was used in schools is Holocaust denial. Historical fiction about the Holocaust is Holocaust denial. I had that opinion in 2004-2005. I have it in 2023.
Also it bleeds into "messianic judaism" rhetoric especially with the way the book ends, and possibly the traditional cover art for the book. Messianic judaism is less 2 sisters hand-in-hand, and more like a husband (christians) killing his wife (jewish people).
---
As a 28 year old these days I've been doing dhikr with the names al-batin & al-latif because another death in the family, studying genocide, and burnout.
When I was 9-10 years old this was a book my classmates were reading... Somehow I didn't quite process the info around me at the time? Maybe I just wasn't in their classes? (I was in the school to prison pipeline during a tgnciq2s+ genocide, yet my family was carceral instead of abolitionist.) Anyways, one of the things that made the book boring for me as a kid was that it had a lot of gaslighting, it was a subtle/gentle puzzle put together gradually, ... I'm sorry trying to make the Holocaust gentle is creepy.
It was literally teenagers who led & organized the resistance movements. This book erases that as much as possible focusing more on active parents & ignorant kids in order for schools to prevent student organizing as in prevent "disruptions to education". This book is the anti-union PSAs your manager would pick if they were assigned the task of "teaching" how about how a successful strike was organized. Hitler on the basis of age has more in common with the teachers than the resistance leaders. Strike sabatogers include cops, managers, teachers, and HR. Cops & capitalists have more in common with nazis than students & the leaders of the Danish resistance do!
[Chapter 5 triggered the hell out of me as a kid. I'm not going to elaborate on what I was going thru as a kid, but shit sucked. I read the giver trilogy when I got to middle school, but by that point I had taken living isolated as a given that I didn't get the contrast of living in a community.]
My main problem is that the book focuses on a kid on the periphery of the resistance and it implies that being relatable to a kid is to be ignorant. It's a white feminist lens. I would've preferred Ellen instead of Annemarie speak (in fact that would've been the best of both this book & the giver) -- ignorance might give bravery, but it really god damn under cuts the point about how the community needs to be consciousַ on a need to know basis because otherwise one's ignorance will lead to complicity & assimilation instead of liberation. -- bravery is separate from power, bravery is separate from victory.
Other than that tho, it's a good book about gaslighting. (I only stopped asking Santa for gifts because he stopped coming to my house.) The children book "the spider and the fly" (2002 October) kept coming to mind as I read this book, as well as the idea of lambs to the slaughter.
Anyways here's some accurate links about the righteous among nations
https://www.yadvashem.org/righteous/about-the-program/honoring-the-righteous.html
https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/righteous-among-the-nations
Also it bleeds into "messianic judaism" rhetoric especially with the way the book ends, and possibly the traditional cover art for the book. Messianic judaism is less 2 sisters hand-in-hand, and more like a husband (christians) killing his wife (jewish people).
---
As a 28 year old these days I've been doing dhikr with the names al-batin & al-latif because another death in the family, studying genocide, and burnout.
When I was 9-10 years old this was a book my classmates were reading... Somehow I didn't quite process the info around me at the time? Maybe I just wasn't in their classes? (I was in the school to prison pipeline during a tgnciq2s+ genocide, yet my family was carceral instead of abolitionist.) Anyways, one of the things that made the book boring for me as a kid was that it had a lot of gaslighting, it was a subtle/gentle puzzle put together gradually, ... I'm sorry trying to make the Holocaust gentle is creepy.
It was literally teenagers who led & organized the resistance movements. This book erases that as much as possible focusing more on active parents & ignorant kids in order for schools to prevent student organizing as in prevent "disruptions to education". This book is the anti-union PSAs your manager would pick if they were assigned the task of "teaching" how about how a successful strike was organized. Hitler on the basis of age has more in common with the teachers than the resistance leaders. Strike sabatogers include cops, managers, teachers, and HR. Cops & capitalists have more in common with nazis than students & the leaders of the Danish resistance do!
[Chapter 5 triggered the hell out of me as a kid. I'm not going to elaborate on what I was going thru as a kid, but shit sucked. I read the giver trilogy when I got to middle school, but by that point I had taken living isolated as a given that I didn't get the contrast of living in a community.]
My main problem is that the book focuses on a kid on the periphery of the resistance and it implies that being relatable to a kid is to be ignorant. It's a white feminist lens. I would've preferred Ellen instead of Annemarie speak (in fact that would've been the best of both this book & the giver) -- ignorance might give bravery, but it really god damn under cuts the point about how the community needs to be consciousַ on a need to know basis because otherwise one's ignorance will lead to complicity & assimilation instead of liberation. -- bravery is separate from power, bravery is separate from victory.
Other than that tho, it's a good book about gaslighting. (I only stopped asking Santa for gifts because he stopped coming to my house.) The children book "the spider and the fly" (2002 October) kept coming to mind as I read this book, as well as the idea of lambs to the slaughter.
Anyways here's some accurate links about the righteous among nations
https://www.yadvashem.org/righteous/about-the-program/honoring-the-righteous.html
https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/righteous-among-the-nations
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Death, Deportation, Outing, Antisemitism, Car accident, Colonisation, Racism, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Trafficking, Violence, War, Genocide, Grief, and Police brutality
jbry44's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Antisemitism, and War
holiday7's review against another edition
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Now that I've read this for a second time, I can say that this is definitely 3 stars instead of 5. I don't know why I loved this book SOOO much. I mean, it's still good. But not like, amazing type good. It's just plain good. So yeah. The Willoughbys is definitely Lois's best novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Antisemitism, Death, and Gun violence
Moderate: Religious bigotry, War, and Grief
Minor: Violence, Alcohol, and Kidnapping
hyp3rpop's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I love this book!! had Lise not died, I think she would've been a great character Great explanation on world war two and the Holocaust! Not great for people with great great of death.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Physical abuse, War, and Murder
Moderate: Confinement
Minor: Cursing
marissasa's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I first read this book in elementary school and as an adult now I can truly see why it is a Newbery medal winner. It tells the story of the Danish and Jewish communities in Denmark facing Nazi occupation during WWII with such empathy and honesty, even through simplified terms due to the narrative perspective of the 10 year old girl Annemarie's point of view. This is a very well-written and moving book, and the afterword from the author at the end noting which details were factual really puts into perspective the bravery and compassion that these people had.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Antisemitism, Violence, and Police brutality
dawntin's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Antisemitism, Death, and Gun violence
Moderate: War
Minor: Violence
ksuazo94's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: War and Antisemitism
Minor: Violence
nxclx's review
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
A reread from my childhood that I come back to every couple of years. It's a great introduction for children into the very sensitive topic of the Holocaust. Annemarie's viewpoint is great for processing and understanding what's going on from a young age.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Genocide, Grief, and Violence
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