A powerful source for beginning to learn about the Holocaust.
An overview that educates readers about the Nazis’ horrific efforts to eradicate Jews along with their targeting of Communists, the Roma, gay and disabled people, prisoners of war, and Polish civilians.
Nardo’s work is divided into a helpful introduction followed by five chapters: “Rise of the Nazi Death Camps,” “The Barest Existence,” “Processing Death,” “Resistance and Rebellion,” and “Downfall of the Camps and Liberation.” Quotes from eyewitnesses—such as Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower and an American soldier who helped liberate Buchenwald, as well as survivors of death camps, such as Edith Friedman Grosman, who said she believed she had survived because “one of us had to still be here to tell you what happened”—add vivid details about the appalling conditions. The author includes grim descriptions of the transit by train to the camps, the prisoners’ daily work schedule at Auschwitz, and the experiences of teenage Jewish girls who were kidnapped from Slovakia. The firsthand account of a German army officer and details about medical experiments done by Josef Mengele will have a strong impact on readers. Teens may be surprised to learn about the rebellions at Treblinka and Sobibor. Text boxes highlight quotations and provide additional context, supplementing the graphic archival photographs and adding to the immediacy of this short, accessible text. Nardo unfortunately repeats an outdated and offensive term for Roma people without providing sufficient context.
A powerful source for beginning to learn about the Holocaust. (picture credits, source notes, for further research, index) (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9781678208004
Page Count: 64
Publisher: ReferencePoint Press
Review Posted Online: Aug. 30, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Small but mighty necessary reading.
A miniature manifesto for radical queer acceptance that weaves together the personal and political.
Eli, a cis gay white Jewish man, uses his own identities and experiences to frame and acknowledge his perspective. In the prologue, Eli compares the global Jewish community to the global queer community, noting, “We don’t always get it right, but the importance of showing up for other Jews has been carved into the DNA of what it means to be Jewish. It is my dream that queer people develop the same ideology—what I like to call a Global Queer Conscience.” He details his own isolating experiences as a queer adolescent in an Orthodox Jewish community and reflects on how he and so many others would have benefitted from a robust and supportive queer community. The rest of the book outlines 10 principles based on the belief that an expectation of mutual care and concern across various other dimensions of identity can be integrated into queer community values. Eli’s prose is clear, straightforward, and powerful. While he makes some choices that may be divisive—for example, using the initialism LGBTQIAA+ which includes “ally”—he always makes clear those are his personal choices and that the language is ever evolving.
Small but mighty necessary reading. (resources) (Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-09368-9
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
Brief yet inspirational, this story will galvanize youth to use their voices for change.
Testa’s connection to and respect for nature compelled her to begin championing animal causes at the age of 10, and this desire to have an impact later propelled her to dedicate her life to fighting plastic pollution. Starting with the history of plastic and how it’s produced, Testa acknowledges the benefits of plastics for humanity but also the many ways it harms our planet. Instead of relying on recycling—which is both insufficient and ineffective—she urges readers to follow two additional R’s: “refuse” and “raise awareness.” Readers are encouraged to do their part, starting with small things like refusing to use plastic straws and water bottles and eventually working up to using their voices to influence business and policy change. In the process, she highlights other youth advocates working toward the same cause. Short chapters include personal examples, such as observations of plastic pollution in Mauritius, her maternal grandparents’ birthplace. Testa makes her case not only against plastic pollution, but also for the work she’s done, resulting in something of a college-admissions–essay tone. Nevertheless, the first-person accounts paired with science will have an impact on readers. Unfortunately, no sources are cited and the lack of backmatter is a missed opportunity.
Brief yet inspirational, this story will galvanize youth to use their voices for change. (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Oct. 13, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-22333-8
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2020
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