The Watchmaker's Daughter by Larry Loftis

Those who have read Corrie ten Boom's autobiography, The Hiding Place will relish this new, well-researched offering by New York Times award winning author, Larry Loftis. The Watchmaker's Daughter begins by setting the stage for the drama that would play out during World War II and the Nazi occupation of Holland. In Chapter 1, The Watchmakers, the history of the ten Boom family and the start of their watchmaking business is described. The story really begins in 1837 when Willem ten Boom rented the house at Barteljorisstraat 19 in Haarlem, Holland. In 1844, Willem, now married to Geertruida van Gogh, began praying for "God's ancient people", the Jews. This practice would be passed on to his children and grandchildren in the years to come.

Geertruida passed away from tuberculosis in 1856 and in 1858, Willem married Elizabeth Bell. Their first son, Casper eventually opened his own watchmaking shop. After the death of his father, Casper and his wife, Cor, along with their family of four children, Elisabeth (Betsie),  Willem, Arnolda (Nollie) and Cornelia (Corrie), returned to Haarlem, where they took over the shop. It was Corrie who expressed interest in continuing the family business, while Willem decided to study theology at the University of Leiden. Eventually he became pastor at a church in Zuylen near Utrecht. Willem became interested in the development of anti-Semitism, which was particularly evident in both France and Germany. 

Corrie's mother died in 1921, the year that Corrie became the first licensed female watchmaker in Holland. Meanwhile, Willem continued studying the evil of anti-Semitism and accepted a position as a special missionary to the Jews in Amsterdam. Incredibly, he studied at the Institutum Judaicum in Leipzig, Germany where for the next three years he completed work on his doctoral thesis, "The birth of modern racial anti-Semitism in France and Germany". At this time, Adolf Hitler was writing Mein Kampf which was published in two volumes in 1925 and 1926. Willem's dissertation was published in 1928, just five years before Hitler would rise to power in Germany. 

After finishing his Ph.D, Willem began his ministry to Jews in Amsterdam. In 1933, German president Paul von Hindenburg installed Adolf Hitler as chancellor of Germany and the persecution of Jews began. Boycotts of Jewish businesses, and the barring of Jews from all civil service jobs, schools and universities included, as well as the prohibition of Jews from practicing law or medicine became the law. The Nuremberg Laws, enacted in 1935 stripped German Jews of citizenship and made it illegal for them to marry "Aryans". Persecution of Jews and Christians who opposed the persecution was ramped up after the 1936 Olympics. 

While the situation remained normal in Holland, in March 1938, Germany annexed Austria and the persecution of Austrian Jews began. The Munich Agreement between Germany, France and Britain did little to stop Hitler. The attempted assassination of Third Secretary Ernst vom Rath by Herschel Grynszpan in retaliation for the forced transport of eighteen thousand German Jews brought on Kristallnacht - Night of the Broken Glass on November 9th. 

The first hint of the coming storm in Holland arrived within the Beje when Casper had to fire a young German apprentice, Otto Altschuler after they learned he brutally assaulted a man the shop had hired to help with repairs. That man was the elderly, gentle Mr. Christoffels.

As Hitler began his march through Europe, Holland was invaded on May 10, 1940. Despite fierce resistance, the Germans quickly occupied the Netherlands and began to target the Jewish population with ever-restrictive laws. As the persecution raged on in 1941, Corrie and her father, Casper began discussing and planning how they would help their Jewish neighbours. Soon they began hiding Jews who came to Beje for help, sending them on to safe houses. But this was only the beginning of resistance by the ten Boom family and in particular Corrie and her brother Willem. They quickly became involved in the underground, and built a secret room at the back of their house which became "the hiding place". What was once just a simple task of hiding Jews for a night before they could be moved, became a high stakes "cat and mouse" game with the Nazis. Corrie and her family would not escape unscathed.

Discussion

The Watchmaker's Daughter is a moving account of the life of Corrie ten Boom, beginning from her early life, through the war years as she and her family worked to save Jews, her arrest and imprisonment in various concentration camps, and her ministry after the war to both camp survivors and the German people.

Loftis who had authored a number of narrative nonfiction books focused on World War II espionage, was looking for new subject material. He knew about Corrie ten Boom and that her experience focused on the Dutch Resistance - potentially a new topic to explore. Corrie had written six books about her family and the war, including The Hiding Place, but much of what happened was not included. Loftis was able to draw on a number of key primary sources to write The Watchmaker's Daughter: long time refugee Hans Poley's Return to the Hiding Place, nephew Peter van Woerden's memoir The Secret Place, and Corrie's own collection of letters, photos and much more which were held in an archival collection at Wheaton College. Loftis also wanted to focus on Corrie's efforts after the war, to heal the wounds suffered by so many, including the German people. 

Writing The Watchmaker's Daughter had a lasting impact on Loftis as well. He writes in his Author's Note that "...writing about Corrie's message of faith, hope, love, and forgiveness was an empowering experience for me..."  Loftis succeeds in capturing this message throughout The Watchmaker's Daughter. In fact, the most inspirational aspect of Corrie's story is not her survival, but the heroic virtue displayed by her entire family, but most especially by her sister Betsie, in the face of great cruelty. The ten Boom's encounters with Lieutenant Hans Rahms at Scheveningen Prison, proved that such virtue could change minds and hearts. 

Loftis takes care to set Corrie's story within the larger context of events that were occurring each year during World War II. For example, he includes not only historical details from the war, but also mentions Audrey Hepburn who played a part in the Dutch Resistance, and Anne Frank and her family who were in hiding in Amsterdam, until their betrayal in August of 1944. There are also many black and white photographs throughout, helping readers to know many of the people in Corrie's story.

The Watchmaker's Daughter is ultimately a story of hope and forgiveness. This is very evident in Corrie's struggle both during the war, but even more so after the war. Especially poignant, is the account of her meeting the man, who had been an SS guard in a shower room at Ravensbruck, at a speaking event in Munich. Repulsed at the sight of this man who had been so cruel, Corrie struggled to offer him the forgiveness he asked for. And yet she did, through God's grace, despite this man not apologizing for what he did to her.

To those who loved The Hiding Place, this work provides a richer context and backstory, informing readers as to how the ten Boom's resistance to the Nazis began a century earlier with their immense love and charity towards God's "ancient people", the Jews. Loftis lays out the history that shaped a family and their courageous resistance at great personal cost.

Loftis offers his readers a list of major people in the Dramatis Personae at the front of the book. This includes the members of the ten Book family, refugees in the Beje and the Dutch Resistance. At the back of the book, The Rest of the Story informs readers of the fate of many of the major German and Dutch people in the book. An Appendix offers a list of Jewish or Dutch diver refugees at the Beje during the war. The author has also provided an extensive Notes section for each chapter. Maps of Amsterdam, the Netherlands and Germany during World War II would have been much appreciated.

The Watchmaker's Daughter will appeal to not just those interested in Corrie ten Boom, but also those interested in  World War II history and resistance.

Book Details:

The Watchman's Daughter by Larry Loftis
New York:  HarperCollins Publishers     2023
370 pp.

What Makes A Van Gogh A Van Gogh by Robert Muhlberger

The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Series of What Makes A.... A...." introduces young readers to a series of famous artists. For this post I will review one of the books in this series, What Makes A Van Gogh A Van Gogh?.

Each book in the series follows a similar format, beginning with an introduction to the artist. This introduction provides some background information about the artist's early life.

In What Makes A Van Gogh, readers learn that Vincent Van Gogh was a person who "inherited a deep respect for humanity" from his minister father, while his passion for art and nature came from his mother. Van Gogh was a hard-working student who studied a number of languages. But school was not his forte and he quit when he was sixteen. Van Gogh worked in an art gallery, as a school teachers and then a minister. But eventually Van Gogh came to believe that he was called to be an artist.

What Makes A Van Gogh follows Vincent's artistic journey from its beginnings in 1885 when he painted his first masterpiece. This painting was of a group of peasants eating their dinner of potatoes.  He used his friends, the DeGroots making many sketches before finally paint the larger portrait. From Holland, Van Gogh traveled to Antwerp and then on to Paris where his brother Theo lived. One of the first people Van Gogh met in Paris was the owner of an art supply shop, Julien Tanguy. Their friendship was to prove an important influence on Van Gogh and his art. It was probably due to the Through Tanguy, Van Gogh formed a friendship with fellow artist Paul Signac, who painted with bright colours and used a new technique called pointillism. Although Van Gogh never really adopted pointillism, he did begin to use brighter colours. He painted more than twenty self-portraits during his time in Paris.

In 1888, Van Gogh moved to the town Arles in southern France. This was to be the most productive time of his life, a period where he painted his famous sunflower canvases.  What Makes A Van Gogh explores the influences on Van Gogh's art and technique, which scenes and subjects attracted his interest, and some of the different techniques he used to create his beautiful paintings. Muhlberger devotes a few pages to Van Gogh's famous painting, Starry Night, exploring the some of the features of the painting.

Like the other books in the series, this book ends with a section that uses the title of the book to summarize the special attributes of Van Gogh's art and technique. Although these books are out of print now, they are worth obtaining from your local library or through interlibrary loan. They provide young readers with many interesting facts about the artist, their techniques and paintings.

Book Details:

What Makes A Van Gogh A Van Gogh by Robert Muhlberger
New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art and Viking Press    1993
49 pp.

The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom

The Hiding Place is a moving account of a Dutch family's work in the underground to save Jews during the Holocaust. It is considered a classic in Christian literature today.

Cornelia Ten Boom was the youngest daughter of Casper ten Boom and Cornelia Johanna Arnolda Luitingh. Corrie as she came to be called, was born on April 15, 1892. The ten Boom family was comprised of three older surviving children; Elizabeth who was called Betsie, Willem, and Arnolda Johanna known as Nollie. The ten Boom family belonged to the Dutch Reformed church and were very devout.

Strongly believing that the world should know the story of what happened in Holland, Corrie wrote about her family's experiences in The Hiding Place. In the book, the story begins with her family's party celebrating the 100th anniversary of their watchmaking and repair shop located in Haarlem. The shop had been founded by her grandfather Willem ten Boom. It is 1937, only a few years before the horror that will soon consume Europe and come to be known as the Holocaust. Corrie is forty-five years old, her older sister Betsie is fifty-two.

In celebration of their anniversary, the shop and family home begins filling with bouquets of flowers from friends and patrons. In addition to Nollie and Willem attending, both of whom now have their own homes, the family is visited by many people including the mayor of Haarlem, the postman and policemen.

Soon talk at the party turns to the worsening situation in Germany with the arrival of Willem who is accompanied by a dazed and injured young Jewish man. Willem, who runs a home for elderly Jews in Hilversum tells Corrie and her family that the man, Herr Gutlieber whose lower face is badly burned was set on fire by boys in Munich. He managed to flee Germany on a milk truck, arriving this morning in Hilversum.

Corrie remembers that Willem had been studying what was going on in Germany for years. In 1927 he wrote about the unprecedented "contempt for human life" that was growing in the country. He noted the German clockmakers who were suddenly and mysteriously no longer open for business and that they were all Jewish.

There are more signs that things in Germany are deteriorating when Corrie's father hires a young German apprentice named Otto to work at the shop. A member of the Hitler Youth, Otto comes only once to listen to Corrie's family's nightly reading of the scriptures. The Old Testament, according to Otto, "is the Jews' 'Book of Lies' ". Soon the ten Booms learn of other disturbing events. Otto's landlady discovers a large knife in his bed. But it is Otto's cruel treatment of the old clockmender, Christoffels that moves Corrie's father to fire him. Willem reveals that Germany is teaching its young people not to value the elderly who they consider to "have no value to the state."

War comes to Holland in 1940 with the invasion of the country by Germany. For five days the country's army attempts to fight off the Nazis but eventually they are overwhelmed and surrender, with the Queen fleeing to England.

At first life in occupied Holland is little changed except for the late curfew, the presence of German soldiers, and the takeover of the Dutch press which prints German propaganda. At night Corrie and her family listen to the aerial dogfights between the English and German planes, as Germany uses Holland as a launching point for the bombing of England.

But gradually the true horror of the occupation begins to creep into daily life. Minor attacks on Dutch Jews grow into bolder attacks and outright discrimination. Parks, libraries, restaurants and theatres all ban Jews who are now required to wear the six point Jewish star on their clothing. People begin to disappear, as evidenced by the unclaimed watches in the ten Boom shop.

Corrie and Betsie and their father begin to discuss how they might have to help their Jewish neighbours. That chance comes much sooner than expected, in November of 1941. One day Corrie and Betsie watch as German soldiers ransack Weil's Furriers, ordering Mr. Weil out of his store at gunpoint, ransacking their apartment and stealing their furs. Needing to find a safe place for Mr. Weil and make sure his wife knows not to return home from Amsterdam, Corrie takes the train to Willem in Hilversum. With the help of Willem's son Kik, they find a safe place for the Weils.

As the situation for Dutch Jews worsens, Corrie and her family become increasingly involved in helping them. And their efforts of resistance do not go unnoticed. On Sunday, May 10, 1942, Peter, who is the organist at the Dutch Reformed church in Velsen, plays an inspiring rendition of the Dutch national anthem, Wilhelmus, which has been forbidden by the Nazis. He is arrested in the evening. Each evening, the ten Booms found Dutch Jews making their way to their alley door, all in need of a hiding place from the Nazis. Hoping to get help from Willem, Corrie is told that he now is being watched all the time and that it is better if she seeks out her own resources to help those coming to her. 

Needing ration cards for the Jews who come to the Beje, Corrie seeks out Fred Koornstra who used to read the electric meter at the Beje. As the needs grow, Corrie begins to realize that they are friends with half of Haarlem: nurses and clerks and people in almost all the businesses. She would trust God to lead her to the people who could help. But the real break comes when Kik takes her to a meeting of the "underground" There "Pickwick" whose real name was Herman Sluring, introduces Corrie to a man, whom she only ever knew as Mr. Smit - the name used by all members of the underground - who told her she needed a secret room. This "Mr. Smit" would turn out to be one of Europe's finest architects and it was he who built the "hiding place" in the ten Boom's home.

As the hunt for Holland's Jews intensifies, Corrie and her family find they are taking more and more risks. Soon this dangerous work will cost some their freedom, others, their lives. Their faith in God and his providence are their guiding light through the darkest of times.

Discussion

The Hiding Place is much more than just a recounting of one family's experiences during the Nazi occupation of Holland. It is much more than a memoir of Dutch resistance. It is a testament to Christian faith acted upon in a time of great evil. Corrie and Betsie were determined to follow God's will in everything in their lives, sometimes at great cost to themselves and those they loved.

Corrie became an integral part of the Dutch underground, obtaining ration cards, helping Jews to safe houses and even allowing the Beje to undergo renovations creating a secret room. Willem was involved in hiding Jews, along with his son Kik. There was never any question in Corrie and her family's minds as to whether they would help their Jewish neighbours. Service was already an integral part of their lives. It was only a matter of how. Their Christian faith demanded nothing less.

The ten Boom family's life was framed and informed entirely by their Christian faith. Casper ten Boom read scripture to the family at 8:30 in the morning before beginning his work in the watch shop and at night before bed, asking "God's blessing on us through the night." Their mother visited the sick and the poor, "cooking and sewing for the needy in the neighborhood...". Every event in their lives was informed by their Dutch Reformed Protestant faith. For example,  Corrie accompanied her mother who was visiting a young mother whose newborn baby had just died. This experience of death haunted Corrie and she became so distraught that later at home she was unable to eat dinner. Her fear was for the death of her father, Mama and her sister Betsie. Her father uses this moment to impart some of his faith and wisdom, reminding Corrie that he gives her the train ticket just before boarding, when travelling to Amsterdam. "...And our wise Father in heaven knows when we're going to need things, too. Don't run out ahead of Him, Corrie. When the time comes that some of us will have to die, you will look into your heart and find the strength you need -- just in time."

L to R: Nollie, Corrie, Casper, Cornelia, Willem and Betsie

Life was lived in service to others in the ten Boom household and Corrie's mother and aunts were exemplary in that regard. Corrie mentions the numerous ways her mother and aunts served their friends and neighbours. Her mother is described as having knit "caps and baby dresses", "composing cheery messages for shutins" When Tante Jans is diagnosed with diabetes, then a terminal illness, she decides to spend what time is left for her, organizing a center for the soldiers, writing and fund raising. When her disease progresses and she has only weeks left, Tante Jans is distraught because she believes she has not done enough in her life to merit salvation. Her worry shows how important service to others was in the ten Boom family and had been for generations.

Perhaps Corrie's birth on Good Friday, April 15, 1892 was a sign of what was to come. She was not expected to survive but she did and grew up to be a woman with strong Christian principles. During an aerial battle over their city, Corrie experienced a premonition in the form of a vision about her family.

While praying for their country as the Nazi invasion began, Corrie experienced this following terrifying vision. "Then as I watched, a kind of odd, old farm wagon -- old fashioned and out of place in the middle of a city -- came lumbering across the square pulled by four enormous black horses. To my surprise I saw that I myself was sitting in the wagon. And Father too! And Betsie! There were many others, some strangers, some friends. I recognized Pickwick and Toos, Willem and young Peter. All together we were slowly being drawn across the square behind those horses. We couldn't get off the wagon, that was the terrible thing. It was taking us away -- far away, I felt -- but we didn't want to go...." At the time Corrie had no idea what the vision could possibly mean, but years later, when she, her sister Betsie, Peter, Nollie, Pickwick and her father are taken away after a raid on her house, Corrie remembers the dream. It was a warning, perhaps to help her prepare for what was to come.

As the occupation continued, Corrie was deeply conflicted as to how they would work in the underground given the rumours about the types of resistance involved. "The rumors tended to get more spectacular with each repetition. But always they featured things we believed were wrong in the sight of God. Stealing, lying, murder. Was this what God wanted in times like these? How should a Christian act when evil was in power?"

It is something that Corrie and her family struggled with as the months went by. After a search by German soldiers for young men for forced work, the family argued over whether it was permissible to lie to protect someone. While Nollie believed that "God honors truth-telling with perfect protection!" as her daughter Corky had just done. But Corrie is not so certain.

The title of Corrie's autobiography is more than just a reference to the secret room in the Beje. It is also a spiritual reference, one Corrie did not realize until she was in prison. Watching ants hiding in the wall of her cell Corrie understands the significance of having a special safe place in Christ. "And suddenly I realized that this too was a message, ...For I too had a hiding place when things were bad. Jesus was this place, the Rock cleft for me..." Later on while suffering from edema in the hospital at Ravensbruck, Corrie wonders what if....and then remembers, "There are no 'ifs' in God's kingdom. I could hear her soft voice saying it. His timing is perfect. His will is our hiding place. Lord Jesus, keep me in your will...."

This touching account is well worth reading, not only for the heroic efforts of the ten Booms, but more for the remarkable spiritual gems contained within.

To learn more about the ten Boom family The Corrie ten Boom House website (https://www.corrietenboom.com/en/family-ten-boom) has many interesting details.

ten Book family image: https://renovare.org/articles/this-too-is-in-his-hands

Book Details:

The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom
Crossing Classics
228 pp.

The Tree In The Courtyard: Looking Through Anne Frank's Window by Jeff Gottesfeld

In the picture book, The Tree In The Courtyard, the story of Anne Frank is told from the point of view of the horse chestnut tree that stood in the courtyard opposite the house in which Anne and her family took refuge.

The tree with its "flowers foaming cones of white and pink" in spring and its "spiky seedpods" each fall lived in the courtyard growing and stretching towards the sky. Then war came and with it the explosions, rockets and soldiers.

The tree which looked out over homes and factories saw a new family come to one of the factories. Every day the tree would see the two girls, one of whom was spirited and who wrote often. But one day the tree no longer saw the girls, except at the window in the factory annex. Soon others came to join her in that annex. The tree, now tall and strong, could see into the attic window of the annex. It saw that the girl often wrote in a red and white diary. The war dragged on for four years until one summer the girl and her family were taken away by "men in gray uniforms".

Another set of seasons passed by before the war ended. The tree never saw the girl again; only the father returned to the rooms in the annex, filled with sadness. As the years passed, many people came to the rooms in the annex where the girl had lived. By the close of the century the tree was dying. When a lightning strike finally damaged the tree that it had to be cut down, its saplings were planted throughout the world - a reminder of the tragedy that happened long ago in the annex.

Discussion

The Tree in the Courtyard by Gottesfeld is a poignant and subtle retelling of the story of Anne Frank through the perspective of a beautiful stately horse chestnut tree that really did exist outside the Annex where Anne and her family were hiding. In peacetime, the tree grows into a towering shade tree with a view of the houses around it. When war comes, the tree cannot help but notice the terrible changes. It sees what others cannot see and it notices the girl never returns after the war.

Although the girl is gone, life goes on for the tree until it begins to die. When the tree itself is in danger of dying, and every effort is being made to save it, the tree notes, "...how few had tried to save the girl." But both the tree and Anne Frank are destined to live on. Just as Anne's diary has been published worldwide in various forms and editions for all to read, the tree also has spread throughout the world, its seeds and saplings now growing in many countries as a reminder of what happened to Anne and her family.

The Tree in the Courtyard offers a fresh and unique perspective on the story of Anne Frank and is a wonderful way to introduce younger students to the events surround Anne and the Holocaust as well as World War II.

Peter McCarty has created illustrations that are captivating in their simplicity, using brown ink on watercolor paper and which capture the gravity of the events of Anne's life.

Gottesfeld includes an Afterword that explains who the girl is and what became of the tree outside the Annex. A beautiful picture book and a must add to any collection.


Book Details:

The Tree in the Courtyard: Looking Through Anne Frank's Window by Jeff Gottesfeld
New York: Alfred A. Knopf    2016

Boy From Berlin by Nancy McDonald

Boy From Berlin is Canadian author, Nancy McDonald's debut novel about a Jewish boy and his family who flee the Nazis. The novel opens in 1938. Eight-year-old Heinz (Kafer) Avigdor lives in Berlin with his papa, Rifa, his mother Else, his older sister Ellen whom they call Bibi, and older brother Peter.

One night Heinz suspects something unusual is going on: most of the servants including Nanny are given the evening off and their beloved Aunt Charlotte pays a surprise visit. Peter and Ellen are doing their homework in the nursery, giving Heinz the opportunity to eavesdrop on his mother and aunt. From their conversation, he learns that his parents are planning to leave Berlin that very night. They believe the situation will only grow worse. Heinz's mother begs Charlotte to come with them but she refuses, saying that her work is too important.

At dinner that night, Father announces that they are leaving for the Hague, where he has been offered a new job. Both Peter and Ellen protest, unhappy that they will be missing their science and art shows. Heinz startles everyone by asking if they are Jewish - a question that is not answered. They pack their suitcases with Heinz taking his Peter Rabbit toy he has named Funny Bunny Blue.

As they drive through Berlin, Heinz recalls that things have changed subtly in the past weeks and months: his parents no longer go out to restaurants and cabarets, his mother's prized artwork has been disappearing of their walls and he has seen her sewing an emerald necklace into the lining of a dress. Their leaving in the dark, without saying good-bye to Aunt Charlotte, Nanny or any of their friends seems equally strange.

They travel all night stopping at a gasthouse to freshen up and get something to eat. Father warns both Peter and Heinz to tell anyone who questions them that they are travelling to the Hague for their mother's aunt's funeral. At the gasthouse, first Heinz and then his father encounter Captain Rolf Konig who questions them about where they are going and why. Captain Konig's interest is unsettling and their suspicions are confirmed when leaving: Frau Klein warns Rifat and Else that the captain has taken down their vehicle registration and called the Gestapo.

The Avigdor's continue driving towards the German border with Holland, but soon are stopped by two German soldiers in a black car. The soldiers are suspicious of Rifat leaving the country as he is in charge of one of the largest aeroplane parts companies. When his father is ordered to open the boot (trunk) of the car, Heinz, sensing his father might need some help, runs out and asks for his stuffed toy, corroborating his father's story about going to the Hague for a funeral.

The soldier, touched by Heinz's sweet disposition and youth, discreetly tells Rifat that he is being watched for at the border and that should he try to cross he will likely be arrested. The soldier then lets them go. Back in the car, Rifat reveals that they will have to cross the border through the fields. After eating the food from Frau Kein's basket, Heinz and his family begin their journey to cross the farmers' fields and into Holland. Burdened with heavy suitcases, the trek is tiring.  Heinz stumbles and sprains his ankle. Once again they encounter what appears to an obstacle to their crossing the border into Holland, when they are discovered by the farmer. However, the man is sympathetic to their plight and not supportive of Hitler, and willing to help them. After spending the night resting, the farmer offers to drive them across the border hidden amongst  bales of hay. But this also goes awry when Rifat is discovered. Heinz, once again hoping to help his father, bravely jumps out of the hay. They are fortunate in that Rifat is able to bribe the border guards with his valuable stamp collection.

Safe in Holland, the Avigdor's rebuild their life. But soon war will overtake them once again, meaning difficult decisions will have to be made if they are to save themselves.

Discussion

Boy From Berlin is an exciting, well-written middle school novel that will appeal to young readers, especially boys. The story is based on the real-life events experienced by Heinz Avigdor, the late husband of the novel's author, Nancy McDonald.

McDonald, who has worked as a journalist reporting on various television programs and as a freelance journalist, first met Heinz Avigdor when he was working as a producer on CTV's W5 and she was a journalism student at Western University in London, Ontario. The two fell in love and married. After Heinz's death in 2015, a bereft McDonald discovered copies of letters written by his father, Rifat. McDonald knew little about Heinz's early life as he rarely spoke of his childhood. McDonald knew little about why her husband's family left Germany or how they escaped from Holland to England. Her research led her to Rome to meet surviving cousins, to Berlin to visit the family home that had survived the war, to the Hague and the harbour at Scheveningen where they made their escape to England, and back to Toronto to meet Heinz's brother-in-law and sister-in-law. As she gathered information about her husband's family, McDonald thought she might write a family history but instead, the story of a boy from Berlin began to take shape.

The novel, although only 129 pages in length is filled with many suspenseful moments such as when the Avigdors are attempting to escape Germany and they encounter German soldiers. The war catches up with them in Holland, and they barely escape, again under tense circumstances, as the country falls to the Germans. These moments of tension engage the reader and lead up to a suspenseful climax.

A subplot explores the relationship between Heinz, his older brother Peter, and their father Rifat. Heinz feels that his father favours his older brother Peter, who like their father has a mind for math and science.  Peter garners their father's praise for his ability to work with his hands, constructing model airplanes and putting together a crystal radio. In contrast, Heinz is told he is being babied. However, Heinz proves to be intelligent, quick thinking and resourceful in ways that are different from Peter. Eventually Heinz's father comes to recognize this asking him to care for his mother and Bibi on the voyage to Canada and telling  him, "...I'm very impressed by how brave and resourceful you can be."

Boy From Berlin is an engaging short novel that will appeal to younger readers. McDonald is working on a sequel to Boy From Berlin which will be published in September 2019.

Book Details:

Boy From Berlin by Nancy McDonald
Toronto: Iguana Books    2018
129 pp.

The End of the Line by Sharon E. McKay

This touching short novel by Canadian author Sharon McKay tells the story of two elderly brothers who risk their lives to save a little Jewish girl from certain death after the Nazis overrun Holland.

The story begins in the fall of 1942 in Amsterdam where a young mother and her five-year-old daughter Beatrix are on the run from the Nazis. Beatrix is warned by her mother to never tell anyone that she is Jewish. Fleeing from the home of Mrs. Dahl, where her husband had brought them to hide,  the mother is on her way to meet a stranger, a woman who will take her daughter to a safe place. To get there they must take the tram.

Two brothers, sixty-five-year old Hans and sixty-three-year old Lars Gorter live alone together in the house they once shared with their mamma and papa. Hans and Lars, like many older Dutch, had lived through the Great War and also endured years of economic depression. In 1940, the Germans swiftly overran Holland but the Dutch people were determined to resist the Nazis and had remained loyal to their queen who was in exile in England. When the Germans invaded, Mrs. Vos, an elderly neighbour of the Gorters fled to their home.

Hans and Lars both work on one of Amsterdam's many trams, with Hans operating it and Lars collecting tickets from the passengers. In occupied Amsterdam, they, like other tram workers, have been told to report suspicious passengers to the authorities - now the Nazis. Both brothers decided they would do no such thing. They knew all their regular passengers on their tram; the nun with her winged hat, the elderly man and the students. So when Beatrix and her mother board the tram, Hans doesn't recognize them.

Their tram is stopped by a Nazi soldier who boards and begins asking the passengers for their identity papers. The young mother's papers identify her as a Jew and therefore not allowed to ride the trams. As she is taken off, the German soldier begins telling the child that she must come with them. Lars, has seen the woman's identity papers, knows that she is Jewish and knows that if the child goes with the Nazis she will not survive. And so he speaks up and tells the soldier that the little girl is his niece. No one believes him but to distract the soldier, Hans releases the tram brake and it lurches forward throwing the German off his feet and into the lap of the nun. He leaves the tram angry but the little girl is forgotten. The little girl's mother along with others from the tram are loaded onto an army truck and the little girl sits there alone.

At the end of the day Hans and Lars take little Beatrix home intending to take her to Mrs. Vos. But before they can leave the station she needs to use the bathroom. The brothers are helped in this tricky situation by a well dressed woman who, when she leaves, wishes Beatrix a good evening and walks off with a man dressed in the uniform of an SS officer.

When they arrive at Mrs. Vos's home, she tells them to take Beatrix to their house where she will meet them. When she comes to Hans and Lars home she begins to question Beatrix about where she is from and where she was going. Lars explains what happened on the train and how the Nazi's took Beatrix's mother away. Based on what she has seen over the past weeks, Mrs. Vos believes that Beatrix was being taken someplace safe to be hidden and after hearing more of their story, she helps the brothers brush her hair and has them feed her. Based on her appearance, Mrs. Vos is certain Beatrix is loved because despite evidence that the child is starving, she is clean and her clothes well mended. 

Knowing that the neighbours have seen Beatrix enter Hans and Lars home, Mrs. Vos visits each of them assuring their inhabitants that their personal secrets are safe with her and encouraging them to welcome Hans and Lars long-lost niece. The one neighbour she feels she can trust is Mrs. Lieve van der Meer. Mrs. Vos's visit with Lieve reveals that she has lost her entire family in the bombing of Rotterdam by the Nazi's and that her husband is away doing "war work".  Mrs. Vos is right about Lieve van der Meer, who offers to teach Beatrix the Catholic faith on Saturdays and for her to attend Mass with them on Sundays. Beatrix must appear to be Catholic if she is to survive the war. And so begins the story of how two shy, kindly brothers who as the result of a brave act,  save the life of a little girl.

Discussion

The End of the Line is about strangers and how the most unlikely of people can make a difference in times of crisis and danger. McKay tackles the subject of the Holocaust and the occupation of Holland in a gentle but authentic way for younger readers, while still portraying the terror and difficulties the Jewish population faced and the suffering the Dutch people experienced. McKay portrays life in Amsterdam through the latter part of the war. 

At first Hans and Lars find the Nazi's annoying until they begin to see what happens to the people on who ride on their tram. By the spring of 1943, Mrs. Vos and the Gorter brothers fully comprehend the ruthlessness of the Nazis, who have no qualms murdering even children. Hans and Lars decide the best way to protect Beatrix is to hide her in plain sight - on their tram. It is a bold move but one that works. Lars becomes an expert in studying the people who ride the tram and begins to know those who may need help, such as the young woman disguised as an old lady. He does what he can to help those who need a chance. The winter of 1944 sees everyone starving as the Nazi's seek to punish the Dutch for refusing to run the trains. McKay describes the hunger and privation Lars and Hans, Beatrix and Mrs. Vos experience. McKay relates all these experiences in a thoughtful manner that manages to capture the fear and uncertainty without being overly graphic.

The End of the Line is written in third person omniscient which means the readers have the opportunity to understand the story from the perspectives of all the characters. Hans and Lars who are bachelors have no idea how to care for a little girl but their fear of little girls is easily surpassed by their fear of what will happen to Beatrix should the Nazi's find her. The reader experiences Beatrix's terror when she reaches the end of the tram line and is alone with two complete strangers in the cement tram depot with it hanging lights. "She gazed up to bald, dim lights hanging from a vaulted ceiling. Her eyes widened, her lips quivered, she crossed her legs. This was a scary place." When Mrs. Vos is combing Beatrix's hair she notices how thin she is and realizes that she might be starving. She also realizes that despite being on the run, Beatrix's mother has managed to keep her child clean and her clothes neat.  "The child was clean, her hair soft. Even from this distance she could see that the child's clothes were well mended and clean too. Keeping clean on the run, surrounded by war, without a home, must have been very, very hard. 'This child is loved,' she whispered." We are as moved as Mrs. Vos is, fully understanding the tragedy that is unfolding.

This is an excellent short novel for those who are interested in the Holocaust and the experience of Dutch Jews and the Dutch people during the Second World War.  After liberation by the Canadians, McKay reveals what happened to Beatrix, her mother Judith, Lars, Hans, Mrs. Vos, Lieve van de Meer and her husband in the years following the war.  The Afterword explains Hitler's plans for Holland and its people whom he considered to be one hundred percent Aryan (with the exception of the Dutch Jews of course), the different sides in the war and also how total strangers worked together to save many children from the war.

Author Sharon E. McKay was born in Montreal, Quebec and now currently resides in Prince Edward Island. Her novels, Charlie Wilcox and Thunder Over Kandahar are two of her more popular novels. She continues the tradition of excellence in Canadian fiction for young adults and children with this latest novel.

Book Details:
The End of the Line by Sharon E. McKay
Toronto: Annick Press     2014
120 pp.

The Baby Experiment by Anne Dublin

Set in Germany, in 1703, The Baby Experiment tells the story of a 14 year old Jewish girl, Johanna Richter, who signs up to work at an orphanage. With her father dead, Johanna and her mother try to support themselves by selling their lace in the market but it is becoming increasingly more difficult to make enough to feed their family. Johanna gives a false name, one that isn't Jewish because she knows as a Jew she would never be hired. When Johanna is offered the job, she is told that she must follow one rule absolutely. She must never talk or sing to the babies nor may she hold them longer than is absolutely necessary. Although she thinks the rule is strange and unnatural, Johanna needs this job badly and she accepts the position, without further thought.

Life in Hamburg, Germany during this time is not easy for the Jewish people. They have been prohibited from building a synagogue and rumours are afoot that the Jewish people would no longer be allowed to practice their religion even in private houses. The people of Hamburg have been agitating for the Senate to expel all the Jews in the city and many had moved to safer cities such as Altona and also to Amsterdam in Holland.

When Johanna arrives at the orphanage she learns that the babies are part of an experiment being run by Professor Gottfried Leibniz. Each young woman is assigned a section of the nursery with a number of babies under her care. When a baby cries the girls are to change the diaper and feed the baby but they cannot sing or talk to the baby. The work is tiring and difficult. Soon the babies start dying. Doctor Keller who is the orphanage doctor, tries every remedy he knows to no avail.

One day Johanna overhears a conversation between Keller and Leibniz about the babies and the experiment. She soon comes to understand that the young girls not interacting with the babies is slowly killing them. In effect, they are being asked to emotionally neglect the babies and Johanna cannot do this any longer. Johanna comes to a difficult decision and chooses a drastic course of action. She decides to flee with one of the babies in an attempt to rescue at least one child from death. With the help of Daniel the wagon driver who delivers fresh vegetables and fruit to the orphanage, and accompanied by another young girl, Cecile, Johanna slips out of the orphanage with baby Rebecca.

Johanna's journey is a difficult one, fraught with many dangers. She is aided by a Jewish man who has taken on the appearance and public practice of a Christian, Mendoza. Johanna feels a strange attraction to him. After many adventures, Johanna arrives at her destination knowing she has saved at least one of the babies from certain death.

Author Anne Dublin, lives in Toronto and is an award winning author of historical fiction and juvenile biographies. The Baby Experiment will appeal to younger fans of historical fiction who are looking for something a little different to read. This plot driven short story is well paced and provides young readers with a map to aid in understanding Johanna's journey and the setting of the story. The characters are believable and well conceived.

Johanna is a likeable character who struggles with the ever prevalent discrimination against Jews in Europe at this time. Her deep faith forms the basis for her actions. She is both courageous and intelligent, quick thinking and resourceful. Liked well enough by Cecile at first, when she learns that Johanna is a Jew she changes her opinion almost immediately.

The Baby Experiment touches on a few delicate subjects including human experimentation and prejudice.

Dublin is planning a new historical fiction which is set in 1931 Toronto and deals with the dressmakers strike. This should prove to be another interesting read.

Book Details:
The Baby Experiment by Anne Dublin
Toronto: Dundurn Press    2012
152 pp.