Reviews

Hitler's Canary by Sandi Toksvig

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queen_of_lilikoi's review against another edition

4.0

A startling view of war from the juxtaposing perspective of a small child. Sympathetically written and wonderfully entertaining.

octobertune's review against another edition

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4.0

I've read plenty of books about the second world war, but most of them took place in either the Netherlands, Germany or France. A while back, I talked to a friend of mine about the war and he mentioned this book he read when he was younger, about a Danish family dealing with the invasion of their country. I borrowed the book off him and I found it very interesting, especially when I realised it was a (partly) true story.

elleneam's review against another edition

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4.0

I read this book with my class of 11-year-olds and I would really recommend it to teachers looking for an engaging, thought-provoking class novel connected to the second world war. I really liked it because it was an accessible and exciting read for the kids while bringing up questions like; who is a terrorist? How far should you go when fighting for what you believe in? Why did people resist the Nazis and why did people not? Although the Holocaust is mentioned it is not as dark as books like 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas' or 'Once' and focuses on the Danish resistance which makes it good for the primary school classroom where you might be concerned about how the children can manage reading more graphic or emotional accounts. It is vital when teaching WW2 we don't teach a "good Britain vs nasty Germans" narrative which is common in many schools. This book really avoids it, showing german conscripts sympathetic to the resistance, as well as non-German Nazi zealots, and also highlights the role of the resistance in Germany and German-occupied countries. I will defiantly use this as a class novel again!

clarax2006's review against another edition

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4.0

Nette historische Geschichte um einmal die dänische Seite des 2. Weltkrieges zu sehen

coops456's review against another edition

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5.0

Very few books get 5 stars from me, but Hitler's Canary thoroughly deserves it. Toksvig tells a fictionalised version of her dad's childhood in Copenhagen under Nazi occupation.
It's funny and gripping, uplifting, poignant; just fabulous.