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THE SECRET OF THE VILLAGE FOOL

Name: THE SECRET OF THE VILLAGE FOOL
Author: Rebecca Upjohn
ISBN: 978-1-926920-75-7

by Rebecca Upjohn & illustrated by Renné Benoit ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 15, 2012

Powerful and deeply moving.

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A gentle, unassuming man’s courage and fortitude saves a Jewish family during the Holocaust in this tale taken from history.

When the Nazis conquered Poland and took over their village, Munio, Milek, Mama, Tata and all the Jews of the village were in immediate danger. True to form, the Nazis quickly burned the synagogue and began roundups of whole families and all the young boys. Their neighbor Anton, a kind, simple man many call a fool, brings girls’ clothing for the boys to disguise themselves temporarily. Then he prepares a hiding place under his house, basically an earthen dugout where they and two girls whose families were taken away will spend the remaining years of the war. Anton is their only contact, constantly risking his life to feed them and keep them safe. Amazingly, at the very moment of near discovery, the Nazis are driven from the village. Modern children are so far removed from the Holocaust that it is extremely difficult to convey its horrors. Upjohn makes this true story personal, immediate and accessible without resorting to bathos or sentimentality. Benoit’s sepia-tinted, ominously shadowed illustrations convey darkness, fear and uncertainty. An afterword accompanied by copious photos tells of the participants’ eventful postwar lives, including Anton’s induction at Yad Vashem as Righteous among Nations. Young readers will need some guidance and input from knowledgeable adults.

Powerful and deeply moving. (Picture book. 8-14)

Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2012

ISBN: 978-1-926920-75-7

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Second Story Press

Review Posted Online: Aug. 21, 2012

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2012

Categories:

CHILDREN'S HISTORICAL FICTION

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AHIMSA

by Supriya Kelkar ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2017

This 2015 New Visions Award winner offers a complex narrative and inspires readers to check their privilege to address...

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Although Kelkar’s debut novel takes place in colonial India in the 1940s, when Indian citizens were fighting for independence from British rule, it is uncannily timely: 10-year old Anjali grapples with issues of social justice in many of the same ways young people are today.

When Anjali’s mother quits her job to become a freedom fighter, Anjali is reluctant to join the struggle, as it means she will have to eschew her decorated skirts and wear home-spun khadi (hand-woven cotton) instead, inviting the mockery of her school nemeses. But as her relationship with her mother evolves, her experience of and commitment to activism change as well. When her mother is imprisoned and commences a hunger strike, Anjali continues her work and begins to unlearn her prejudices. According to an author’s note, Kelkar was inspired by the biography of her great-grandmother Anasuyabai Kale, and the tale is enriched by the author’s proximity to the subject matter and access to primary sources. Kelkar also complicates Western impressions of Mohandas K. “Mahatma” Gandhi—Anjali realizes that Gandhi is flawed—and introduces readers to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, a figure rarely mentioned in texts for young people in the United States but who is best known for campaigning against social discrimination of Dalits, or members of India’s lower castes.

This 2015 New Visions Award winner offers a complex narrative and inspires readers to check their privilege to address ongoing injustices. (Historical fiction. 8-12)