I read this book as a young girl about a family escaping Germany as things started to get bad. It is a fine, extremely well written book suitable for most ages.

The subject matter has always been difficult for me honestly. I love Historical Fiction but do not tend to read many books on WW2. However, this one is a gem. Another reviewer described it as "quiet" and I would agree. It is perfect for anyone who wants a book on this subject but does not want alot of violence included.

This book, because it is a children's and YA book, is fast ,easy reading as well as being extremely well written. The characters are developed and the story..this is a family escaping to America during that horrible time..will have you on the edge of your seat. It is a marvelous read.

If you want to lean more about this horrible period of time and have not read much about it, this is a good book to start with. This is also a great book for people who love Historical novels about this subject.

Although it is YA, as with many YA books, this can be read and enjoyed by anyone at any age. I am sure that if you do read it, you will not be able to put it down, as I wasn't and you will fall in love with the family, particularly the children and you will root for them. 4.5 stars for an amazing book. ( )

00008864

Wow, this book is amazing. One reason I loved this book was because of the plot/ending. This story told about a very real situation, but it was toned town significantly for younger readers to understand. World War 2 was a devastating time for a lot of people, and that was shown very well within this book. Times where this was shown was whenever it was mentioned that masses of people were trying to get to America, or when Rosemarie was sent to England with her sister. I thought the way the author handled this topic, with giving it a happy ending, was excellent. I also thought that the author showing that the father was having difficulties in America was great too because it showed the true problems that immigrants faced when they moved to America: finding work, saving up money for family, finding a place to live, worrying about loved ones.
Another reason I loved this book was because of the difficulties faced by Lisa. Lisa handled leaving her friends and extended family very well, and she grew up very quickly in the short time that her family relocated to Switzerland. When her mother fainted, Lisa was the one to take action, not her older sister Ruth. Lisa had to contemplate what being a good person was, and she faltered in her belief of her Judaism at one point. I think the problems she faced and conquered show a lot about Lisa, and I really enjoyed reading about it.
The main idea of this story is that good experiences can come out of the bad ones. ( )

A historical novel about leaving Germany as World War II begins

This is a story about an Jewish family that escapes from Germany and makes their way to America. The father goes on to America to work and save enough money to bring his family to America. The family has to wait in Switzerland for the money and papers to be in order for the trip to America. At the end of the story the family is united together in America.

I really like reading this book and I think children will enjoy reading this story once they start it. It's a great to describe how life was during the Holocaust.

In the classroom I would use this book while studying the Holocaust and World Was II. I would have the students write a story about the different pressures of growing up in Nazi Germany during this time in history. ( )