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amyr's review against another edition
5.0
True story of Stefania Podgorska, an 18 year old Polish girl who hid 13 Jews in her attic while Nazis lived in her house below during WWII. This story is going to haunt me for a while. The strength and perseverance of people when facing deplorable circumstances never ceases to amaze me.
jdsutter's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Fantastic book. Some really difficult parts to get through, in terms of the horrific things our POV character had to go through. It was quite heart-wrenching. The fact that it was very closely based on actual events and people made it even more so.
Highly recommend skipping the audiobook version if you want to check out this book. Her narration style was quite difficult for me. She had a very odd way of emphasizing words and pausing in the middle of sentences. I had to take breaks a few times because it was grating on me, but I'd already bought the book on Audible and decided to push through. Note To Self: Next time listen to the sample first! :)
Highly recommend skipping the audiobook version if you want to check out this book. Her narration style was quite difficult for me. She had a very odd way of emphasizing words and pausing in the middle of sentences. I had to take breaks a few times because it was grating on me, but I'd already bought the book on Audible and decided to push through. Note To Self: Next time listen to the sample first! :)
mad_pall's review against another edition
5.0
This, to put briefly is the best historical fiction. The fact that it’s a true story makes it all the more amazing. Even if you don’t like hi-fi this is amazing.
abbehmelinda's review against another edition
DNF pg. 188.
Nothing is happening. Bluebird by this author is one of my favorite books of all time, so I’m sad about having to DNF this.
Nothing is happening. Bluebird by this author is one of my favorite books of all time, so I’m sad about having to DNF this.
cabbage_patch's review against another edition
dark
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
worldsunlikeourown's review against another edition
5.0
Find this review and more on my blog at Worlds Unlike Our Own.
4.5 stars
“Przemyśl had given me an education since that train ride when I was twelve. It had taught me that people like to divvy one another up with names. Jew. Catholic. Germans. Poles. But these were the wrong names. They were the wrong dividing lines. Kindness. Cruelty. Love and hate. These were the borders that mattered.”
Sixteen year old Stefania Podgorska’s life changes when bombs fall on the Polish city of Przemyśl and the Germans invade. The kind Jewish family she worked for, the Diamants, are forced into the ghetto, and she and her younger sister Helena are left alone in a German occupied city that grows more dangerous by the day. Then Max Diamant appears at her door one night, having jumped from the train taking him to a death camp and begs her to hide him and his remaining family and friends. Fusia agrees, though she is risking both her life and her sister’s, and sets out to find a larger house and a job to support and feed them all. She soon finds herself hiding thirteen Jews in her attic, when the Nazis show up to requisition her house for the army.
I didn’t hear about this book until the week before it released, but it was an instant addition to my reading list. Based on a real life story, this moving read is reminiscent of The Diary of Anne Frank and Ruta Sepetys’ works. Despite the heavy subject matter, I found it impressive that it stayed to a level appropriate for YA. There was also quite a lot of information to cover, seeing as this spans a couple of years, and the pacing does vary, slowing down towards the middle and then becoming faster as the plot grew more tense, but at no point did the story ever seem to drag and it kept me engrossed throughout.
The added element that made this story interesting was that it was from Fusia’s perspective, who, not being Jewish, was safe from the Nazis – yet, not safe, since she refused to let the Diamants whom she considered as family die in the ghetto and regularly placed herself at terrible risk to take them food and supplies. This is a book that will keep you on the edge of your seat as things get worse and worse, and it really drives in the immensity of what Fusia and her sister are doing and at what cost. I really admire Fusia for her courage and willingness to do the right thing in very difficult circumstances. And I have to say, it was wonderful to finally read a World War II era story that had a happy ending despite how dark and heavy things get.
Don’t skip the author’s note in this one – it highlights the tremendous amount of research and effort that has gone into this novel and also contains some interesting notes about the characters’ life after the war. There is also a movie based on the events of Stefania Podgorska’s life during WWII called Hidden in Silence that is mentioned here. By the time I finished this book, I just needed to know more about her story and looked for the movie at once – and it’s definitely worth watching.
Overall, this was an emotional read, that truly brings to life not only the horrors of the time and how it affected the people who lived through it, but also how the circumstances led to the rise of some very unlikely heroes who risked their lives to save others. I would highly recommend this book for all readers, not necessarily just historical fiction fans that gives a voice to one of the lesser known heroes of the war.
4.5 stars
“Przemyśl had given me an education since that train ride when I was twelve. It had taught me that people like to divvy one another up with names. Jew. Catholic. Germans. Poles. But these were the wrong names. They were the wrong dividing lines. Kindness. Cruelty. Love and hate. These were the borders that mattered.”
Sixteen year old Stefania Podgorska’s life changes when bombs fall on the Polish city of Przemyśl and the Germans invade. The kind Jewish family she worked for, the Diamants, are forced into the ghetto, and she and her younger sister Helena are left alone in a German occupied city that grows more dangerous by the day. Then Max Diamant appears at her door one night, having jumped from the train taking him to a death camp and begs her to hide him and his remaining family and friends. Fusia agrees, though she is risking both her life and her sister’s, and sets out to find a larger house and a job to support and feed them all. She soon finds herself hiding thirteen Jews in her attic, when the Nazis show up to requisition her house for the army.
I didn’t hear about this book until the week before it released, but it was an instant addition to my reading list. Based on a real life story, this moving read is reminiscent of The Diary of Anne Frank and Ruta Sepetys’ works. Despite the heavy subject matter, I found it impressive that it stayed to a level appropriate for YA. There was also quite a lot of information to cover, seeing as this spans a couple of years, and the pacing does vary, slowing down towards the middle and then becoming faster as the plot grew more tense, but at no point did the story ever seem to drag and it kept me engrossed throughout.
The added element that made this story interesting was that it was from Fusia’s perspective, who, not being Jewish, was safe from the Nazis – yet, not safe, since she refused to let the Diamants whom she considered as family die in the ghetto and regularly placed herself at terrible risk to take them food and supplies. This is a book that will keep you on the edge of your seat as things get worse and worse, and it really drives in the immensity of what Fusia and her sister are doing and at what cost. I really admire Fusia for her courage and willingness to do the right thing in very difficult circumstances. And I have to say, it was wonderful to finally read a World War II era story that had a happy ending despite how dark and heavy things get.
Don’t skip the author’s note in this one – it highlights the tremendous amount of research and effort that has gone into this novel and also contains some interesting notes about the characters’ life after the war. There is also a movie based on the events of Stefania Podgorska’s life during WWII called Hidden in Silence that is mentioned here. By the time I finished this book, I just needed to know more about her story and looked for the movie at once – and it’s definitely worth watching.
Overall, this was an emotional read, that truly brings to life not only the horrors of the time and how it affected the people who lived through it, but also how the circumstances led to the rise of some very unlikely heroes who risked their lives to save others. I would highly recommend this book for all readers, not necessarily just historical fiction fans that gives a voice to one of the lesser known heroes of the war.