A story for children and adults, full of historical details and humorous anecdotes.
A strong-willed, patriotic young girl growing up during World War II dreams of being a war heroine in Tarantino’s (Life at the Café Berlitz: A Memoir of Paris, 2004) heartwarming tale.
It’s 1942 and precocious 11-year-old Alice Calder commits to the war effort as an airplane spotter. Even though Alice is told she is too young for such a job, she perches at her window with binoculars and a logbook—much to her mother’s dismay. The novel chronicles Alice’s adventures and misadventures as she volunteers at the Red Cross, encourages other kids to get involved in the war effort, and keeps in touch with her teenage friend, Jimmy, who flies planes for the Civil Air Patrol. She even looks for spies in her hometown of Providence, R.I., reporting any suspicious activity she sees to police. But she is most interested in Jimmy, whom she admires and has a crush on, even though she doesn’t yet understand her feelings toward him. Tarantino’s convincing narrative evokes Alice’s childlike excitement and fears. When Jimmy disappears after flying in a storm, Alice is extremely upset; her overactive imagination contributes to the overwhelming worry she feels for Jimmy. Desperate to see him again, Alice will do anything she can to help. But Alice doesn’t let much get her down. She perseveres through everything thrown her way, showing her courage, innocence, enthusiasm and zest for life. Her spirit and can-do attitude are engaging and inspiring. The story is unique in that it approaches this time period through a child’s eyes, while the dialogue and inner monologue are spot-on. There’s also an enjoyable balance of period details and characterization, which combine to transport readers back to the ’40s with a fresh perspective on a trying time.
A story for children and adults, full of historical details and humorous anecdotes.Pub Date: Dec. 23, 2011
ISBN: 978-1462068029
Page Count: 124
Publisher: iUniverse
Review Posted Online: April 18, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2012
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An emotional, much-needed historical graphic novel.
Sandy and his family, Japanese Canadians, experience hatred and incarceration during World War II.
Sandy Saito loves baseball, and the Vancouver Asahi ballplayers are his heroes. But when they lose in the 1941 semifinals, Sandy’s dad calls it a bad omen. Sure enough, in December 1941, Japan bombs Pearl Harbor in the U.S. The Canadian government begins to ban Japanese people from certain areas, moving them to “dormitories” and setting a curfew. Sandy wants to spend time with his father, but as a doctor, his dad is busy, often sneaking out past curfew to work. One night Papa is taken to “where he [is] needed most,” and the family is forced into an internment camp. Life at the camp isn’t easy, and even with some of the Asahi players playing ball there, it just isn’t the same. Trying to understand and find joy again, Sandy struggles with his new reality and relationship with his father. Based on the true experiences of Japanese Canadians and the Vancouver Asahi team, this graphic novel is a glimpse of how their lives were affected by WWII. The end is a bit abrupt, but it’s still an inspiring and sweet look at how baseball helped them through hardship. The illustrations are all in a sepia tone, giving it an antique look and conveying the emotions and struggles. None of the illustrations of their experiences are overly graphic, making it a good introduction to this upsetting topic for middle-grade readers.
An emotional, much-needed historical graphic novel. (afterword, further resources) (Graphic historical fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Oct. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5253-0334-0
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A deftly told story that dramatizes how Danes appointed themselves bodyguards—not only for their king, who was in the habit...
The author of the Anastasia books as well as more serious fiction (Rabble Starkey, 1987) offers her first historical fiction—a story about the escape of the Jews from Denmark in 1943.
Five years younger than Lisa in Carol Matas' Lisa's War (1989), Annemarie Johansen has, at 10, known three years of Nazi occupation. Though ever cautious and fearful of the ubiquitous soldiers, she is largely unaware of the extent of the danger around her; the Resistance kept even its participants safer by telling them as little as possible, and Annemarie has never been told that her older sister Lise died in its service. When the Germans plan to round up the Jews, the Johansens take in Annemarie's friend, Ellen Rosen, and pretend she is their daughter; later, they travel to Uncle Hendrik's house on the coast, where the Rosens and other Jews are transported by fishing boat to Sweden. Apart from Lise's offstage death, there is little violence here; like Annemarie, the reader is protected from the full implications of events—but will be caught up in the suspense and menace of several encounters with soldiers and in Annemarie's courageous run as courier on the night of the escape. The book concludes with the Jews' return, after the war, to homes well kept for them by their neighbors.
A deftly told story that dramatizes how Danes appointed themselves bodyguards—not only for their king, who was in the habit of riding alone in Copenhagen, but for their Jews. (Historical fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: April 1, 1989
ISBN: 0547577095
Page Count: 156
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: Oct. 17, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1989
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