The Girl Who Sang
| Modern Age |
|---|
 The Girl Who Sang: A Holocaust Memoir of Hope and Survival
|
World History > Modern Age > Holocaust
A heartrending graphic memoir about a young Jewish girl's fight for survival in Nazi-occupied Poland, The Girl Who Sang illustrates the power of a brother's love, the kindness of strangers, and finding hope when facing the unimaginable.
Born to a Jewish family in a small Polish village, Estelle Nadel―then known as Enia Feld―was just seven years old when the Nazis invaded Poland in 1939. Once a vibrant child with a song for every occasion, Estelle would eventually lose her voice as, over the next five years, she would survive the deaths of their mother, father, their eldest brother and sister, and countless others.
A child at the mercy of her neighbors during a terrifying time in history, The Girl Who Sang is an enthralling first-hand account of Estelle's fight for survival during World War II. She would weather loss, betrayal, near-execution, and spend two years away from the warmth of the sun―all before the age of eleven. And once the war was over, Estelle would walk barefoot across European borders and find remnants of home in an Austrian displaced persons camp before finally crossing the Atlantic to arrive in New York City―a young woman carrying the unseen scars of war.
Beautifully rendered in bright hues with expressive, emotional characters, debut illustrator Sammy Savos masterfully brings Estelle story of survival during the Holocaust to a whole new generation of readers. The Girl Who Sang is perfect for fans of March, Maus, and Anne Frank's Diary.
Emily's Review
This was such a moving and heartrending story and I'm so glad that Estelle chose to tell it. One of the most important things we can do is bear witness to the horrors of the Holocaust, and that is why I think it's so important to read the books of survivors. This graphic novel was very well done. I read this whole book in a sitting and then I sat in a puddle of tears. I will always be amazed at the lengths people will go to survive and protect their loved ones. One of the things I enjoyed most about this story was that it focused not only on surviving the war years but also on what came after. I think it is important that people learn that the antisemitism that led to the Holocaust didn't just stop when the war ended. Poland and other European countries that had participated in the Holocaust were just as dangerous for Jews in the years after.
I also loved that this story shows us that not everyone was willing to turn on the Jews. There were still good people willing to do what was right. That brings me hope.
I was also a girl who sang - singing has always been the thing I can do to make myself feel better. I loved that she was able to use her gift to bring herself and others joy.
I recommend this book for children ages 10+
Other Similar Books
Other suggestions on the subject of the Holocaust.
- Hidden Hope (by: Boxer, Elisa, France, LE, MG)
- Stars of the Night: The Courageous Children of the Czech Kindertransport (by: Stelson, Caren, Czechoslovakia, LE, MG)
- Stone Angel (by: Yolen, Jane, France, LE)
- Once (by: Gleitzman, Morris, Poland, MG, UMG)
- Then (by: Gleitzman, Morris, Poland, MG, UMG)
- The Girl Who Sang (by: Nadel, Estelle, Savos, Sammy, Strout, Bethany, Poland, MG, UMG)
- Out of Hiding (by: Gruener, Ruth, Poland, United States, MG)
- Now (by: Gleitzman, Morris, Australia, MG, UMG)
- Hidden: A Child's Story of the Holocaust (by: Dauvillier, Loïc, France, MG, UMG)
- I Will Protect You: A True Story of Twins Who Survived Auschwitz (by: Kor, Eva Mozes, Romania, MG)
- When We Flew Away (by: Hoffman, Alice, Netherlands, UMG, YA)
- Esfir is Alive (by: Simon, Andrea, Poland, UMG, YA)
- Four Perfect Pebbles (by: Blumenthal Lazan, Marion, Germany, Holland, UMG)
- Courage to Dream: Tales of Hope in the Holocaust (by: Shusterman, Neal, various, UMG, YA)
- We'll Soon Be Home Again (by: Bab Bonde, Jessica, Various, UMG, YA)
- Beyond Courage (by: Rappaport, Doreen, Germany, UMG, YA)
- No Pretty Pictures: A Child of War (by: Lobel, Anita, Poland, UMG, YA)
- The Devil's Arithmetic (by: Yolen, Jane, Poland, UMG, YA)
- Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl (by: Frank, Anne, Netherlands, UMG, YA)
- Upon the Head of the Goat (by: Siegal, Aranka, Hungary, UMG)
- When the World Was Ours (by: Kessler, Liz, Austria, UMG, YA)
- Briar Rose (by: Yolen, Jane, Poland, YA, A)
- They Went Left (by: Hesse, Monica, Poland, Germany, YA, A)
- Names in a Jar (by: Gold, Jennifer, Poland, YA, A)
- 28 Days: A Novel of Resistance in the Warsaw Ghetto (by: Safier, David, Poland, YA, A)
- Margot (by: Cantor, Jillian, United States, YA, A)
- The Redhead of Auschwitz: A True Story (by: Birnbaum, Nechama, Romania, Germany, YA, A)
- The Search (by: Heuvel, Eric, Netherlands, YA, A)
- My Name is Selma (by: van de Perre, Selma, Netherlands, YA, A)
- Mapping the Bones (by: Yolen, Jane, Poland, YA, A)
- Night (by: Wiesel, Elie, Romania, YA, A)
- Dawn (by: Wiesel, Elie, Palestine, YA, A)
- Impossible Escape: A True Story of Survival and Heroism in Nazi Europe (by: Sheinkin, Steve, Poland, YA, A)
- The Librarian of Auschwitz (by: Iturbe, Antonio, Poland, YA, A)
- The Blood Years (by: Arnold, Elana K., Romania, YA, A)
- Day (by: Wiesel, Elie, United States, YA, A)
- The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million (by: Mendelsohn, Daniel, Ukraine, A)