THE BOOK OF URIEL

During World War II, a Jewish boy gets the chance to save his people by rescuing an archangel in this historical fantasy.

Ten-year-old Uriel survives the destruction of his village in German-occupied Poland. The orphaned, mute boy awakens to angels on Earth, and they need his help. Angel of Death Samael has captured Archangel Michael, part of a diabolical plan to erase the Jewish population. As evil causes the angels agonizing pain, they can’t search a Nazi-infested land. But Uriel can, especially with the pendant they give him that renders him invisible “to the wicked.” Shockingly, Samael promises to tell the boy where he’s confined Michael, provided Uriel locates five rare items (including the Golden Tree, with no clues to get him started). The pendant makes it easier to avoid the Order Police, though one person can see Uriel. Luckily, it’s sympathetic civilian translator Uwe Litten, who’s only working with the Nazis to keep himself and his family safe. Despite the inherent danger, Uwe considers helping a group of “renegade Jews” resist the Order Police while Uriel stays dedicated to freeing Michael from Samael’s imprisonment. Hoffman’s novel sublimely fuses world history and Jewish folklore. For example, Samael’s requested items include a real-life World War II–related text as well as the Shamir, a six-eyed creature that looks “like some monstrous combination of a worm, a weasel, and a spider.” This story is, perhaps unsurprisingly, somber, as it features scenes of torturous Nazi interrogations. The Order Police’s Maj. Gunter Brandt is particularly unnerving; he laughs and smiles while treating Jews as inferior. On the lighter side, Uriel and Uwe’s relationship is parental, and the adult even bathes the youngster (lest the Nazis smell the invisible boy). In addition, Uriel’s experiences best highlight Hoffman’s prose: “He stood near the smoldering house and listened to the wails of the poor woman who had lost everything to the storm.” The book’s sharp, uncredited, black-and-white artwork strikingly illustrates Uriel’s loneliness.

An otherworldly tale with indelible characters in a realistic wartime setting.