Remembering World War II: The Holocaust, The Fight, The Homefront

This week, I am sharing teen books set during World War II . . . .

Annexed by Sharon Dogar
Retells the story of Anne Frank from the perspective of Peter, who overcomes an initial loathing for the precocious young diarist before falling in love with her and questioning his faith in light of frightening persecutions.

Invasion by Walter Dean Myers
Josiah Wedgewood and Marcus Perry were friends in Virginia, but now that they are both involved in the Normandy invasion, the differences in their positions is uncomfortable, for Josiah is a white infantryman and Marcus is a black transport driver, the only role the segregated army will allow him.

Tallgrass by Sandra Dallas
Her life turned upside-down when a Japanese internment camp is opened in their small Colorado town, Rennie witnesses the way her community places suspicion on the newcomers when a young girl is murdered.

The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak
Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death relates the story of Liesel--a young German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents help sustain her family and the Jewish man they are hiding, as well as their neighbors.

Soldier Boys by Dean Hughes
Two boys, one German and one American, are eager to join their respective armies during World War II, and their paths cross at the Battle of the Bulge.


More Books --
Almost Autumn by Marianne Kaurin
B for Buster by Iain Lawrence
Escaping Into the Night by D. Dina Friedman
The Extra by Kathryn Lasky
Fly Girl by Sherri L. Smith
For Freedom: The Story of a French Spy by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
Four-Four-Two by Dean Hughes
Girl in the Blue Coat by Karen Hesse
The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antonia Iturbe
Max by Sarah Cohen-Scali
Postcards from No Man's Land by Aidan Chambers
Prisoner B-3087 by Alan Gratz
Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman
The Right Fight by Chris Lynch
Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein
Shanghai Shadows by Lois Ruby


Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through March 23, 2018.

We Remember . . . The Holocaust

The Holocaust is one of the most disturbing and upsetting events that has occurred in history.  I believe that children should be taught about this horrific time so that history does not repeat itself -- so that nobody has to live in fear because of their beliefs, background, or ethnicity. 
The following are some books that tell of the Holocaust for children . . .

Yellow Star by Jennifer Roy
From 1939, when Syvia is four and a half years old, to 1945 when she has just turned ten, a Jewish girl and her family struggle to survive in Poland's Lodz ghetto during the Nazi occupation.

Emil and Karl by Jacob Glatstein
In Vienna, Austria, in 1940, two nine-year-old boys, one Jewish and one Aryan, are classmates and best friends when events of the Nazi occupation draw them even closer together as they fight to survive and escape together.

Torn Thread by Anne Isaacs
In an attempt to save his daughter's life, Eva's father sends her from Poland to a labor camp in Czechoslovakia where she and her sister survive the war.

The Shadow Children by Steven Schnur
While spending the summer on his grandfather's farm in the French countryside, eleven-year-old Etienne discovers a secret dating back to World War II and encounters the ghosts of Jewish children who suffered a dreadful fate under the Nazis.