Code Name Kingfisher
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 Code Name Kingfisher
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World History > Modern Age > WWII
“A stirring story that will give any reader a boost of bravery in the face of adversity.” —Booklist
A young girl learns of her grandmother and great-aunt’s involvement in the Dutch Resistance during World War II in this “intense story, gorgeously told” (School Library Journal, starred review) of family, history, resilience, and hope from acclaimed author Liz Kessler.
Thirteen-year-old Liv’s beloved ninety-two-year-old grandmother, Bubbe, is moving into a home where she can be cared for as her dementia worsens. As Liv helps her father empty Bubbe’s house, she finds an old chest which opens up a whole world that Liv never knew about: the hidden world of Bubbe’s childhood.
Through the letters and other mementos, Liv learns that her bubbe, given name Mila, had a sister, Hannie, that no one in Liv’s family ever knew about. In 1942, Mila and Hannie are sent away from their parents to a non-Jewish family so they will survive the war. Twelve-year-old Mila believes that they will soon be reunited with their parents and go back to their normal lives, but fourteen-year-old Hannie knows better, and soon gets involved in the Resistance. Hannie takes on more and more dangerous assignments until a betrayal forces her to decide between running away with her sister or fully committing to mission. Tragedy strikes, and Mila goes to England on her own to restart her life from scratch, vowing never to talk about her childhood again.
In the present day, Liv reads how Mila builds something new from the shattered pieces of her childhood while giving beloved Bubbe all the support she can. Both Liv and Mila grapple with loyalty, family, and love as they discover what it means to be brave and go above and beyond to offer someone else a life of dignity, happiness, and freedom.
Emily's Review
I often judge a book by whether or not it can make me cry. If it can make me feel so much that I shed a tear, then the book is deserving of a high rating. I gave this one 5 stars, because it left me sobbing. This book broke my heart then healed it less than 300 pages.
Told in two timelines, Mila and Hannie are sisters who have been sent away from their parents because they are in danger of being sent to the camps. They live with their "Aunt and Uncle" and have new last names. They have no idea if they'll ever see their parents again. Hannie immediately joins the resistance, in a desperate attempt to find some way to live through this war without compromising her convictions.
In modern day, Liv is helping her father move her grandmother into a nursing home after she begins to show signs of dementia. Her Bubbe has always been a closed book when it comes to her past, and she knows almost nothing about her life. When she has to do a project on her family history, she decides it's time to ask her Bubbe some questions. She has no idea the story she's about to uncover.
I adore books about people learning their family history - I love a book with dual timelines and multiple perspectives. This was an excellent story about the Dutch resistance. If you, like me, watched A Small Light last year, you will love this book. I was utterly captivated and on the edge of my seat. This story has so much to say about living out our convictions and being brave in the face of adversity. This is a heavy book, and it doesn't shy away from the worst parts of the war, but it's absolutely worth the read. HIghly recommend!
Other Similar Books
Other suggestions on the subject of World War II (European Front).
- You Wouldn't Want to Be a Secret Agent During World War II (by: Malam, John, WWII, Great Britain, France, LE, MG)
- You Wouldn't Want to Be a World War II Pilot (by: Graham, Ian, WWII, Great Britain, LE, MG)
- Number the Stars (by: Lowry, Lois, WWII, Denmark, MG)
- Snow Treasure (by: McSwigan, Marie, WWII, Norway, MG)
- The War That Saved My Life (by: Brubaker Bradley, Kimberly, WWII, Great Britain, MG)
- Just a Girl: A True Story of World War II (by: Levi, Lia, WWII, Jews in Hiding, Nazi Occupation, Italy, MG)
- The Little Riders (by: Shemin, Margaretha, WWII, Nazi Occupation, Holland, MG)
- Genevieve's War (by: Reilly Giff, Patricia, WWII, France, MG)
- Max in the House of Spies: A Tale of World War II (by: Gidwitz, Adam, WWII, Kindertransport, Espionage, Great Britain, Germany, MG, UMG)
- The Night War (by: Brubaker Bradley, Kimberly, WWII, Resistance, France, MG, UMG)
- The War I Finally Won (by: Brubaker Bradley, Kimberly, WWII, Great Britain, MG)
- A Whale in Paris (by: Presley, Daniel, Polders, Claire, WWII, Nazi Occupation, France, MG)
- Safiyyah's War (by: Noor Khan, Hiba, WWII, Nazi Occupation, Muslim Resistance, France, MG, UMG)
- Twenty and Ten (by: Bishop, Claire Hutchet, WWII, Jews in Hiding, Nazi Occupation, France, MG)
- The Bletchley Riddle (by: Sepetys, Ruta and Sheinkin, Steve, WWII, Code Breakers, Spies, Great Britain, UMG)
- Code Name Kingfisher (by: Kessler, Liz, WWII, Jewish Resistance, Netherlands, Great Britain, UMG, YA)
- The Dollmaker of Krakow (by: Romero, R. M., WWII, Poland, UMG)
- Catherine's War (by: Billet, Julia, WWII, Jews in Hiding, Nazi Occupation, France, UMG)
- Salt to the Sea (by: Sepetys, Ruta, WWII, East Prussia, YA, A)
- Wrath Becomes Her (by: Polydoros, Aden, WWII, Jewish Resistance, Lithuania, YA, A)
- Seized by the Sun: The Life and Disappearance of World War II Pilot Gertrude Tompkins (by: Atwood, Kathryn J., WWII, Women's Aviation, Various, YA, A)
- Between Shades of Gray (by: Sepetys, Ruta, WWII, Lithuania, Russia, YA, A)
- All the Light We Cannot See (by: Doerr, Anthony, WWII, France, Germany, YA, A)
- The Paper Girl of Paris (by: Taylor, Jordyn, WWII, France, YA, A)
- The Boys Who Challenged Hitler (by: Hoose, Phillip, WWII, German Occupation, Denmark, YA, A)
- Kursed (by: Smith, Lindsay, WWII, Soviet Union, YA)
- Code Name Verity (by: Wein, Elizabeth, WWII, Great Britain, France, YA)
- Leonora in the Morning Light (by: Carter, Michaela, WWII, Art, France, Great Britain, YA, A)
- Girl in the Blue Coat (by: Hesse, Monica, WWII, Nazi Occupation, Netherlands, YA, A)
- We Were the Lucky Ones (by: Hunter, Georgia, WWII, Poland, YA, A)
- X, Y & Z: The Real Story of How Enigma Was Broken (by: Turing, Dermot, WWII, Enigma Machine, Poland, Great Britain, YA, A)
- Code Name Pauline: Memoirs of a World War II Special Agent (by: Cornioley, Pearl Witherington, WWII, France, Great Britain, YA, A)
- The Postcard (by: Berest, Anne, WWII, Jewish Life, antisemitism, Holocaust Survivors, France, A)
- The Bookseller of Dachau (by: Ryan, Shari J., WWII, Germany, United States, A)
- Maria: A Novel of Maria von Trapp (by: Moran, Michelle, WWII, musical theater, Austria, United States, A)
- Light Perpetual (by: Spufford, Francis, WWII, Great Britain, A)
- The Kitchen Front (by: Ryan, Jennifer, WWII, Great Britain, A)
- The Underground Library (by: Ryan, Jennifer, WWII, Great Britain, A)
Other suggestions on the subject of the Jewish Resisitance.
- Hidden Hope (by: Boxer, Elisa, France, LE, MG)
- Courage to Dream: Tales of Hope in the Holocaust (by: Shusterman, Neal, various, UMG, YA)
- Code Name Kingfisher (by: Kessler, Liz, Netherlands, Great Britain, UMG, YA)
- Wrath Becomes Her (by: Polydoros, Aden, Lithuania, YA, A)
- The Librarian of Auschwitz (by: Iturbe, Antonio, Poland, YA, A)
- Impossible Escape: A True Story of Survival and Heroism in Nazi Europe (by: Sheinkin, Steve, Poland, YA, A)
- 28 Days: A Novel of Resistance in the Warsaw Ghetto (by: Safier, David, Poland, YA, A)
- My Name is Selma (by: van de Perre, Selma, Netherlands, YA, A)
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