The Boy on the Wooden Box, Leon Leyson. This is a memoir written by a man that survived the Holocaust due to Oskar Schindler, the very man renowned for saving hundreds of Jews during WWII. Leon and his family moved from rural Narewka, Poland to the bigger city of Krakow when his father got a new job. When the Nazis conquered Poland, Leon, his parents, three brothers and sister were taken away by train to live in the ghetto behind the barbed wire fence. From there, they were transported to work camps where their hope was tested over and over. Beatings, starvation, sickness, fatigue and separation were a constant. Gas chambers, massacres, massive graves were all around. Sunken eyes, caved in bodies, hollow souls. Leon remembers the day his older brother Tsalig was taken away by train and never seen again.

Leon's father, good with locks, happened to impress a Nazi soldier who allowed him to stay in his employ. It was none other than Schindler himself.  Despite the horror of the camps, the family had an angel looking out for them. Little did they realize how much Schindler himself was going out on a limb to protect his Jewish employees.

When the allies came to Poland, capturing the German soldiers and releasing the Jews, Leon, his parents, one brother and his sister lived to tell their stories. Leon followed his parents to Los Angeles where he closed himself off from his past and made a new life. His experiences remained silent, until others encouraged him to tell the world his story. Here it is. Read it. Be moved. Never forget.

The War that Saved My Life, Kimberly Brubaker Bradley. Young Ada, living in England at the start of WWII, has never left the rat-and-roach-infested apartment where she lives with her younger brother, Jamie and her Mam. Ada has a club foot and her Mam deems it too embarrassing to let her outside. Her only connection with the world is looking out a window and waving. She gets around by crawling, until she forces herself up on her feet, painfully learning to walk. One night, when all the children are leaving on trains for the countryside, Ada and her brother sneak out, joining the evacuation. Upon arriving to the outskirts of England, when all the children are provided a home, Ada and Jamie are forced upon Susan, the local spinster, who doesn't want them either. However, through Ada's nightmares and Jamie's bed wetting, Susan warms to them, despite their resistance. She encourages Ada to go outside, getting her a pair of crutches to get around. Butter, the pony, becomes her first friend, whom she learns to ride like the little girl she saw from the train window. Wanting to get Ada the surgery she needs to correct her foot, Susan consistently sends letters to Mam asking for permission, only to be met with silence. Despite feelings of unworthiness, Susan is persistent and shows Ada she is smart, capable and lovable. Ada makes friends, Jamie goes to school and life takes on a routine until the air raid sirens go off, forcing them to below ground shelters. Susan is encouraged to send them further away, but she holds tight, maintaining they will stay together.

One day, on her trek to help Fred with the horses, she notices an unusual sighting: a man rowing ashore, burying something in the ground and walking toward the road. Told that any suspicious behavior should be reported to the authorities, she races to the police station, only to be met with chuckles. Standing strong and waiting to tell someone that will listen, they soon find out that the man was, indeed, a spy.

As war is getting closer and closer, Ada and Jamie arrive home one afternoon to find Mam standing outside the house. She forces them to go home with her and there is nothing Susan can do, but try to give Jamie his cherished copy of The Swiss Family Robinson. The stench, the rats, the lack of food, the hatred all come rushing back to them both. With Mam having taken Ada's shoes and crutches and air raid sirens going off, they hold each other tight, wanting to go "home."

This is beautiful and I couldn't stop reading it. The reader will be right next to Ada as she continues to triumph over the hand life dealt her. She learns to love and accept and believe and hang on. She is a character with grit and fortitude and fingernails to hang on. Read it and be moved.

Full Cicada Moon, Marilyn Hilton. It is 1969 and Mimi Yoshiko Oliver, half-black and half-Japanese has her dream of being an astronaut. Apollo 11 is preparing for its take off and Mimi and her parents move from California to Vermont, next door to Mr. Dell, who doesn't take too kindly to her family, along with most of the local people. She is tired of the question, "Where do you come from." Mr. Dell's nephew, Timothy, often stays with him and likes to play with Pattress, the dog, outside. Mimi learns there is a telescope in Mr. Dell's garage and Timothy lets her look through it when Mr. Dell is gone.

As a school project, Mimi is building one on the moon phases; however, girls are not allowed in the shop class. Timothy helps her get access to Mr. Dell's tools, in exchange for her dad teaching him how to bake bread. In 1969, girls took home economics and boys took shop and neither needed to learn the opposite trade.  However, with Mimi's perseverance, she continues to dog Mr. MacDougall, the principal, to make a change, although a small one.

When Mimi and her mother realize Pattress, self proclaimed watchdog to their turkeys, is missing, along with one of the nine turkeys, they go looking, only to find him hurt and alone. Reluctantly, Mimi goes to get Mr. Dell for help.

Mimi's grit and determination keep her moving forward and thinking of her waxing future, which will include the moon.

Some Kind of Courage, Dan Gemeinhart. The newest book from this talented author had me racing along with Joseph, the main character, in his gut wrenching run to reclaim Sarah, his beloved horse. Set in 1890, young Joseph has lost his dad to a freak wagon accident and his mother and little sister to typhoid. All he has is Sarah, sweet Sarah, who was sold out from under him by the very man his father asked to take responsibility for him. But Ezra Bishop, a mean spirited, conniving bullish man, now has his horse and is headed off to Wenatchee. When Joseph arrives, too late to meet up with Bishop, he finds a young Chinese boy outside the trading post, starving and thirsty. With his mother's warm words nestled in his soul, he kindly feeds him and encourages him to tag along. Although they can't understand one another, they learn to communicate in other ways and Joseph soon learns his name is Ah-Kee. They continue onto Walla Walla, where Bishop is next headed. Along the way, they come across a momma grizzly and Joseph and Ah-Kee barely make it up a rock when the grizzly stands tall enough to scrape Joseph's leg. About to shoot her point blank in the eye with the gun he took from the drunkard who sold Sarah, Ah-Kee, forces the gun down, climbs down the rock and . . . talks to the bear. And that momma took her cubs and wondered off. This is only the first of many hair raising adventures these two will have and the reader will be right there with them, gasping, choking, chugging.

Town after town finds Sarah just out of Joseph's reach, yet she is the only family he has and he will not give up. The two boys run across wickedly mean men, as well as tender hearted, generous folk that clothe and feed them. Joseph does finally rescue Sarah, sweet Sarah, from Caleb Fawney, the outlaw on the run, only to have her shot in the neck while riding her bareback from the dying Fawney. They both go down and they go down hard.

Oh, the tears flowed. You won't escape this story without shedding some tears and thinking of this story long after the pages come to an end.

The Port Chicago 50, Steve Sheinkin. During WWII, in San Francisco sat Port Chicago, a navy base. Bombs were being made and put onto navy ships by mostly teenage black boys to be sent to the fighting troops. At the height of the war, an explosion occurred killing and wounding hundreds of men. The young black men were ordered to go back to doing the exact same work, but they refused, wondering why their white counterparts weren't also ordered to work the Port. When the Navy cried mutiny, most of the men went back to work, with the exception of 50 men. Their strong stance set history in motion and tells the story not often heard before.

Sheinkin, author of Bomb, (look for a book review in this blog) in his masterful way, tells yet another gripping story not to be missed. If you are a history buff, pick this book up and be transformed. Photographs of the key figures are sprinkled throughout, bringing this heroic read even more to life.

Stella by Starlight, Sharon Draper. Set in the south with the Ku Klux Klan a constant reminder of how segregation divided us by color, Stella lives with her family. She witnesses things no little girls should witness: physical abuse, prejudice, hatred unfairness. Stella and her family try their best to avoid confrontation; however, when her father, and other neighbors, walk to town to register to vote, they are looked upon with disgust by the white court official. They must take a written test, even though white men don't have to take it. They pass despite scrutiny and plan to join so many others in voting Roosevelt into office.

When Stella's little brother gets too sick for their mother to cure him and the black doctor out of town, Stella is asked to find the white doctor who refuses to tend to him and is comfortable with the possibility of letting him die. Stella has suspicions that he is the head of the KKK and responsible for the burning of the Spencer house with their many children. When Hazel, the youngest is missing and feared in the house, Stella remembers a special spot she just might be hiding and finds her safe and sound.

Not all white people in the south were full of hatred. In fact, one day two white ladies came visiting with clothes and goods for the Spencer family. With so much generosity, Mrs. Spencer came with extra clothes and shoes for Stella and her brother, their first pair ever. She also brings a typewriter, for which she has no use. Stella, a struggling student, wants nothing more than to write, so she sneaks outside late at night to practice her writing, until her dad tells her it is much too dangerous.

Draper is a master writer. With this story, she shares the horrors of segregation and the racism running so rampant in our not so distant history. A book well worth reading and sharing to help children learn history in a way that connects us so strongly with Stella.

Promises to the Dead, Mary Downing Hahn. At the prelude to the Civil War, Jesse is out turtle hunting for his uncle's soup when he comes across a runaway slave with her boy, Perry. She is about to give birth and asks Jesse to get help. During the delivery, but knowing she is about to die, she forces Jesse to promise to take her son to his aunt in Maryland. Keeping his word, he takes little Perry with him but runs into the colonel that is looking for his runaway slave girl. Realizing Jesse knows more than he will tell, he stalks him and follows him to Maryland. Jesse finds Perry's rightful aunt and grandmother, fulfilling his promise. He soon confronts the colonel again and learns surprising information that leaves him conflicted.

A Night Divided, Jennifer Nielsen. It is 1961 and the Berlin Wall goes up, dividing families, separating friends, enclosing people within its borders for years to come. Gerta, her brother Fritz, and their mother are left within the patrolled walls, while her father and brother, Dominic, left the city earlier that day for work. Life takes a drastic change: food is hard to come by, work is scarce, trust is absent and armed guards watch every move. One day, while walking with her friend, Anna, she notices her father and brother on the other side of the wall dancing and making odd motions. She believes he is signalling for her to dig under the wall and escape. She immediately tells Fritz and they form a plan. Their mother left to stay with their grandmother who is sick and away for many days. Gerta and Fritz find the place where they are supposed to dig and their daring attempt at escape begins. Getting dirty and trudging tools to their secret spot is risky and they worry about their neighbor who questions their every move with suspicion. Gerta's friend, Anna, lost her brother while attempting to escape and Anna is being told to stay away from Gerta.

Danger lurks around every corner, movements are monitored closely and no one is to be trusted. Hunger sets in, exhaustion causes mistakes and their mother has to buy into their plan. Digging a tunnel is no easy task and their time is running out.

For readers pulled toward gripping historical stories with a backdrop of truth, this book is for you. To know this is a real time period is chilling. Nielsen is the author of The False Prince, and an earlier book review is available.

One Came Home, Amy Timberlake. A unidentifiable body is buried in a pine box and all but Georgie, or Georgiana, assume it is Agatha, Georgie's older sister. The year is 1871 and she goes to Billy McCabe, the man who kissed her sister, to rent a horse. Instead, she gets a donkey named Long Ears and Billy's company, who insists on traveling with her. They set out to search for Agatha. They make it to Dog Hollow and meet the Garrow family, who provide little information but enough suspicions to keep Georgie and Billy curious. As they continue on, she comes across a cave full of counterfeit money and printing presses. They know they will be hunted so they make a run for it, only to be found, trapped and threatened. Billy is shot and in need of medical attention. Georgie must get him help. Mr. Olmstead, the other man in Agatha's life, finds them, helps out, but also must tell Georgie that her Grandpa Bolte has died. When she arrives home, she is no closer to finding her sister and must accept that her sister is dead. Until . . . a letter arrives.

This is a Newbery Honor book worth its award. From the first page, the reader is among the mourners at Agatha's funeral. A decomposed body, a familiar looking dress, a pine box, disbelief. Readers will be pleased.

Kizzy Ann Stamps, Jeri Watts. The year is 1963 and Kizzy, a young black girl, is about to attend the white school because of desegregation. Her teacher encourages all her students to write their new teacher, Miss Anderson, to introduce themselves. Miss Anderson writes back and she and Kizzy continue to write one another throughout the year. Through Kizzy's journal entries, we learn about the trials of being a little black girl at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. She also has a drastic scar along the length of her face, given to her by Frank Charles, the neighbor boy wielding a scythe, that causes curiosity and mean remarks. Her one comfort is Shag, a border collie, born to run sheep. Because of Mr. McKenna, an immigrant knowing about border collies, he shows Kizzy how to train him and he is a shoe in for local herding competition, as well as the spelling bee, but being black prevents her from entering either one. She gets some support; however, from an unlikely person and proves that some were able to see beyond skin color.

"The President Has Been Shot: The Assassination of John F. Kennedy," James L. Swanson. For history buffs, this is a chilling read full of compelling black and white photos, quotes, diagrams and resources. The author briefly takes us up to the inauguration of John Fitzgerald Kennedy on January 20, 1961, with the bulk of the book focusing on Thursday, November 21, 1963 . . . the day of his assassination. The author alternates between Kennedy and Lee Harvey Oswald, the man assumed to be his assassin, and their final destinies, which would change America forever, shrouding that day in mystery and theories. Real photos of his flag draped casket and funeral procession, to his final resting place in Arlington National Cemetery with a permanent flame raise goosebumps, despite it seeming ancient history to young readers. For readers with an interest in informational text, this is a book well worth your time. Although, I recommend this for any reader to build an understanding of this intense period in history and the man that dared to be president.

Echo, Pam Muñoz Ryan. Another favorite book, plunked right during the rise of Adolf Hitler. The front and end pages tell the tale of Otto playing hide and seek, only to stumble and fall into the fairy tale of three forgotten girls with the gift of music. Only with the passing on of a harmonica, can they be released from the spell of their captive witch. From there, the story tells in turn, the tales of three young lives: Friedrich, Mike, Ivy.

Jews are disappearing in Germany and Friedrich and his father are scrutinized because they are not members of the Nazi party. Friedrich's sister, Elisabeth, joined the party and fights against their resistance. They must choose between their beliefs and the love for their sister/daughter. Hiding proves difficult because of Friedrich's port stain birth defect covering half his face and his uncontrollable hand movements as though he is conducting an orchestra.

Across the Atlantic Ocean in Pennsylvania, Mike and his younger brother, Frankie, are orphans, living in an unfit orphanage. Mr. Howard, the lawyer for Mrs. Sturbridge, is charged with finding a young girl to adopt, but leaves with the two boys, not baring to separate their longing arms around one another. When he brings them home to Mrs. Sturbridge, they are unwanted and rebuffed along with the lonely piano that Mike longs to play. Yet, in order to retain her wealth, she must bring joy back to the household. Mike strikes a deal with the sad woman to keep Frankie only.

Ivy and her family are moving yet again, away from her only friend in the world, to tend the farm of the Yamamotos, a Japanese family forced to move to an internment camp in California. Their neighbors, the Wards, suspect the Yamamotos of espionage and search for proof. Their son died in the war and they blame Kenny Yamamoto for living.

All three stories are connected through the "silken thread of destiny," or a harmonica with the letter M  on the side. The stories are separate, yet come together at a beautiful concert in Carnegie Hall. With a sense of fulfillment, Ryan brings closure and satisfaction to a not-to-be-forgotten story yearning to be enjoyed over again. Consider rereading the front and end pages before closing the book. Without a doubt, awards are sure to await Ryan.

"Your fate is not yet sealed.
Even in the darkest night, a star will shine,
a bell will chime, a path will be revealed."

Paperboy, Vince Vawter. This truly delightful Newbery Honor book about Victor Vollmer, III, is a treasure. A stutterer that uses as few words as possible is an unforgettable character. He is in charge of his best friend, Rat's, paper route for the month of June while he is away. He fears asking for his weekly collections and must think of words that start with less painful letters to ask for payment. However, he learns that adults, unlike kids, are not so cruel and he has favorite patrons that he hopes to see each week: Mrs. Worthington, the prettiest, but maybe the loneliest woman he has ever met, Mr. Spiro who tells him stories and gives him part of a dollar each week with a new word written on it, and TV boy, who comes to be an unlikely friend.

This story takes place in Memphis, during the time of civil unrest. Although that is not the focus of the book, his colored Mam takes care of him and she is his protector and his defender. She warns him to stay away from Ara T, the local shopping cart wielding thief. Mam has a past with him, and she shows her tigress when Victor's prized possessions and stash of newspaper money are stolen from his own room. She knows exactly who stole it and she sets out to make it better.

This is a new favorite story. The author, a stutterer himself, wrote a beautiful book worth reading.

Lincoln's Grave Robbers, Steve Sheinkin. A favorite non fiction writer, this award winning author of Bomb, writes a juicy story of the real account of the attempt to steal the body of Abraham Lincoln. Counterfeiting money was a common crime in the mid-late 1800's, and at that time, the main role of the Secret Service was to collar the bandits. When the best known counterfeiter, Ben Boyd was imprisoned, plans were put into place to steal the president's body, ask for a ransom and the release of Boyd and continue with their counterfeiting business. However, the clever police Chief Patrick Tyrrell, thwarts their plans and Lincoln's body is able to finally rest in peace. This is a page turner of a story, sure to keep readers engrossed until the end.

A Long Walk to Water, Linda Sue Park. A true story of Salva, a "lost boy"  of Southern Sudan, in 1985. Attending school one day, war came to his small village, changing his life forever. Told to run by his teacher: from his village, from his family, from everything he knew and he did. The story takes us with him, as he, along with others, trudge through deathly deserts toward Ethiopia and a hoped that things might be better. Along the way, he finds his uncle, the apparent leader of the refugees. His words of wisdom get him through many difficult times. After living in a refugee camp, the people are forced to flee yet again, forcing them to cross the crocodile infested Gilo River, back to Sudan. Death, desperation and despair surround him, yet hope is around the corner.

Paralleling Salvo's story is Nya, a young girl that must walk eight miles a day for water. Day in, day out, she walks. The year is 2008. How their stories connect is heart warming and unforgettable.

Linda Sue Park, author of A Single Shard, masterly tells an important story that kids ought to know. I highly recommend sharing this story with students, perhaps, as a read aloud. It is a slim book, sure to capture their attention.

Be sure to catch Linda Sue Park as she shares the importance of books and how they can change a life. It is definitely worth the 12 minutes.

Every Day After, Laura Golden. Lizzie's father, after losing his job, is gone. Ben's father is dead. The two become fast friends at the height of the Great Depression. For Lizzie, her world shattered when her dad left, leaving only a note and a locket to replace him. Her mother, living within her own silence, is unable to help. Things go from bad to worse when her enemy, Erin Sawyer, envious because of Lizzie's top grades and friendship with Ben, sets out to destroy everything for her: pushing into her, stealing Ben's friendship, faking an apology so that Lizzie will not enter the writing contest, letting Dr. Heimler know that her mother is "not in her right mind," hoping that Lizzie will be put into an orphanage. When a letter is handed to Lizzie, delivering the news that they are now defunct on several mortgage payments, she begins to lose hope. With Ben and his mother moving away for the same reason, she wonders if it will ever stop raining despair on her life. Making some tough decisions, she learns to let go of what she needs to let go of and hang on to what she needs to hang on to.

Zane and the Hurricane: A Story of Katrina, Rodman Philbrick. After Zane's mother does some digging to learn that his late father has a grandmother in New Orleans, he and his dog, Bandy, fly down to stay with her. Zane warms to Grammy immediately and hopes to learn how his father died. But, Hurricane Katrina is fast approaching so they leave town on the preacher's bus. When Bandy jumps out the window, with Zane fast on his heels, they end back up at Grammy's house, with the storm licking at their heels. When water begins to drown the house, they must escape to the attic, with only a vent for hope. Along come Malvina and Tru in a canoe to rescue them. What follows is their harrowing experience through stink, filth, danger and death. Although familiar with the horrors of Hurricane Katrina, this story takes the reader to the heart of the devastation: poverty, race, drugs, crime.

Philbrick, author of Freak the Mighty, does not disappoint with his latest book. Prepare readers for a dialect for which they may not be familiar (truth = troot, that = dat, darling = dawlin).

Prisoner B-3087, Alan Gratz. "We are alive. We are alive, and that is all that matters. We cannot let them tear us from the pages of the world," said Yanek Gruener, or B-3087, to a young boy in the midst of the horrific Holocaust at Birkenau concentration camp. Watching the wall go up around Krakow, Poland, in 1939, to being separated from his family and knowing their fate, to the ten concentration camps that Yanek endured, his story is important. The author does acknowledge taking liberties, thus calling it a novel; however, Yanek (currently living in America and named Jack) is indeed real and the cruelty, starvation, brutality and hatred is very, very real. This story requires emotional stamina, because it is graphic, unimaginable and horrifying. Before suggesting this to a mature reader, I would recommend reading it first so you can prepare your reader for what lies ahead.

Revolver, Marcus Sedgwick. What a thrill of a read. The cover and title are enough to draw a reader into its fast turning pages. This was a "Chloe-you'll-have-to-wait-until-I-finish-this-book-before-our-walk" kind of story. It drew me in from the first two quotes, followed by the first line, "Even the dead tell stories." And those stories will arise from young Sig's dead father laying on the table only feet from him, who can't be buried because the ground in Giron, 68 Latitude North is just too frozen. The year is 1910 and hopes of gold brought Einar Andersson, his wife and two children north to the frigid temperatures. Stranded in this remote area, finding work as an Assayist (one who checks the purity of gold), Einar comes across Mr. Wolff, a giant of a man, demanding to have his gold tested. When told his gold is worthless, Wolff strikes a deal with Einar, only to be tricked and angered, setting off a ten year search for the constantly moving Andersson family. He finally finds him as Einar's chilling, decaying corpse lays on the table with Sig watching over him. demanding his share of the gold, of which Sig and his sister, Anna, know nothing. Their only hope of survival lives in a box in the pantry: an 1873 single action Army Colt revolver. But Wolff has his own gun. The ending has a satisfying twist that may surprise you.

I recommend reading this before suggesting it to mature readers, due to content that some may consider questionable. If this were a movie, it would probably be rated PG-13. This book earned the Prinz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature.

Hattie Big Sky, Kirby Larson. The same author of my previous chat, has this Newbery Honor Book set three miles north and west of Vida, Montana during the height of WWI in 1918. Orphaned sixteen year old Hattie Inez Brooks is left 320 acres of land by her dying Uncle Chester. She, along with Mr. Whiskers, her cat for catching mice, decides to leave Aunt Ivy and Uncle Holt in Arlington, Iowa to stake her claim. Once there, she learns that she has to set 480 rods of fence and farm 40 acres within ten months. Hattie is hard working and determined to do all that is necessary to keep the land; however, lack of money, natural hardships and exhausting work make her task challenging. Perilee and Karl Mueller, with their three children and one on the way, become her steadfast friends. Leafie, Rooster Jim, Mr. Ebgard, the banker, also become important folk in her life. Then, there is charming, questionable Travis Martin, set on getting her land. Most chapters begin with a letter to Charlie, a childhood friend, off fighting the war in France, with whom she shares her life experiences. Never having been to Montana, Larson paints a lovely picture of this big sky country and its harsh beauty. For your historical fiction reader, this is a great read, with a strong female character sure to earn admirers.