THE NIGHT WAR, by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, Dial Books, April 9, 2024, Hardcover, $17.99 (ages 9-12)
A Jewish girl finds herself hiding in a French Catholic boarding school during WWII in The Night War, by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley.
“We don’t choose how we feel, but we choose how we act.”
It’s 1942. German Nazis occupy much of France. And twelve-year-old Miriam, who is Jewish, is not safe. With help and quick thinking, Miri is saved from the roundup that takes her entire Jewish neighborhood. She escapes Paris, landing in a small French village, where the spires of the famous Chateau de Chenonceau rise high into the sky, its bridge across the River Cher like a promise, a fairy tale.
But Miri’s life is no fairy tale. Her parents are gone—maybe alive, maybe not. Taken in at the boarding school near the chateau, pretending to be Catholic to escape Nazi capture, Miri is called upon one night to undertake a deadly task, one that spans the castle grounds, its bridge, and the very border to freedom. Here is her chance to escape—hopefully to find her parents. But will she take it? One thing is certain: The person Miri meets that night will save her life. And the person Miri becomes that night could save the lives of many more. —Synopsis provided by Dial Books
The Night War is not the first time that author Kimberly Brubaker Bradley has explored WWII experiences. Both The War that Saved My Life (Newberry Honor) and The War I Finally Won are also set in the early 1940s. But The Night War is different in that it includes a mystical twist.
While many readers expect historical books to be straight history, there is a precedence of adding magical elements, and in the case of The Night War, young readers will enjoy the added twist, which also builds on history but from a different time.
The story explores a little-known piece of World War II history. At the center of the story is Miri, a Jewish girl who was first forced from her home in Germany and then again in France. Separated from her parents, Miri must do all she can to keep those she loves safe. Miri is a driven character that young readers will easily empathize with.
The Night War is a fast-moving historical novel that’s well written. Bradley’s writing is clean and comfortable, and her use of shorter chapters interspersed throughout provides a nice break for readers.
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