After reading the description of The Librarian of Auschwitz, written by Antonio Iturbe, I was intrigued and wanted to read more. I have a minor in History and I have already read lots on the topic of World War II and the plight of the Jewish people, but I have never read a book about the day to day horrors of Auschwitz through a young adults eyes. This book was such an insightful read. Dita’s voice is authentic and one that will haunt me for years to come.
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| This book is cataloged- Young Adult, historical fiction |
The protagonist is Dita, a 9 yr. old Jewish girl living in Prague. Dita spends most of her childhood in a Jewish ghetto and then later in a concentration camp. What we experience through her is nothing short of miraculous. It’s hard to imagine the strength and sheer determination one must have to ever endure such deplorable conditions and acts of violence.
Dita is assigned the task of Librarian while in Auschwitz. Her duties include keeping the eight books in the library in good repair, checking them out to the teachers of the kinder school, and hiding them away at the end of the day. At the beginning each school day, when the doors were closed and the look-out gave the “all clear” sign, Dita would bring out the books so the teachers could read parts of them to the children. Some of the teachers had committed a book to their memory (prior to captivity) and they would re-tell those stories to the children as well. These stories were called “Living Books” and the children would sit and listen and for a little while escape.
The Nazis obviously did not know about the secret library- All books were banned in the camps and if you were found to have one it was a sure death sentence. The kinder school in Auschwitz was set up as a propaganda tool allowing the world to think that the Jewish children were being taken care of.
For the classroom:
Who should read this book? All students from 7th grade and up. I can easily see this book as a starting point for a World War II discussion in history or English class. I would choose this book over, or in addition to, Diary of Anne Frank. Some of my Eighth grade boys did not like Diary of Anne Frank because it was written in the form of a girl’s diary. Although this book is also written from a girl’s point of view, the details are graphic enough to hold the interest of a middle school or high school adolescent boy.
Topics for further research could include: Josef Mengele, Auschwitz Camp, Prague and Warsaw ghettos, the Extermination plan, liberation and how difficult it was for the liberators to witness such horror, the Nuremberg Trails, and lice and typhoid- diseases in the camps. Map studies could follow Dita’s travels from Prague to Bergen-Belsen.
Other World War II books for students:
Historical fiction
The Book Thief
by Zusak, Markus
Summary: An incredible young adult novel about how a young girl’s love of books helps a community survive World War II and the Holocaust. It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. Set during World War II in Germany, this groundbreaking novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist—books. This is an unforgettable story about the ability of books to feed the soul.
Prisoner B-3087
by Gratz, Alan
Summary: Based on the life of Jack Gruener, this book relates his story of survival from the Nazi occupation of Krakow, when he was eleven, through a succession of concentration camps, to the final liberation of Dachau.
Then
by Gleitzman, Morris.
Summary: In early 1940s Poland, ten-year-old Felix and his friend Zelda escape from a cattle car headed to the Nazi death camps and struggle to survive, first on their own and then with Genia, a farmer with her own reasons for hating Germans.
Girl in the Blue Coat
by Hesse, Monica
Summary: “In 1943 Nazi-occupied Amsterdam, teenage Hanneke–a ‘finder’ of black market goods–is tasked with finding a Jewish girl a customer had been hiding, who has seemingly vanished into thin air, and is pulled into a web of resistance activities and secrets as she attempts to solve the mystery and save the missing girl”– Provided by publisher.
Escaping into the night
by Friedman, D. Dina.
Summary: Thirteen-year-old Halina Rudowski narrowly escapes the Polish ghetto and flees to the forest, where she is taken in by an encampment of Jews trying to survive World War II.
Non-fiction
Smoke to flame : September 1935 to December 1938
by Sherrow, Victoria.
The Holocaust survivors
by Yeatts, Tabatha.
Summary: Discusses the experiences of people who survived the Holocaust, the trials of Nazi leaders at Nuremberg, the establishment of the state of Israel, the search for justice, and efforts of the survivors to begin new lives.
