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librarydancer's review against another edition
2.0
Provides a fictional history of refugee Jews who fled to Shanghai during the beginning of WWII. The story is pretty flat, without emotional highs & lows. The plot doesn't always take the expected path, which makes for a slightly more interesting story, but not enough.
dharma_s's review against another edition
I had no idea about this part of the Holocaust, and I am glad that I learned about it. This book was able to incorporate the historical aspects of the book alongside the relationships between the characters. I felt the desperation and the sadness, and I appreciated how the relationships progressed in a realistic way that was relatable.
kennisn's review against another edition
3.0
Enjoyable read and but I found the ending completely unbelievable. I understand wanting a happy ending for the characters but it didnât feel realistic. I did however find it interesting to learn about a lesser known part of WWII history - Jewish refugees in China.
retiredlibrarylady's review against another edition
4.0
Very interesting historical fiction about Singapore in WWII. Jewish refugee family from Poland escapes to Singapore, one of the few place on the planet that accepts Jewish refugees. The mother gets left behind, but escapes later through the assistance of the Japanese consul who issued many visas to refugees. Poverty, hunger, people of all sorts doing what it takes to survive. A bit of a love story, very understated.
mindfullibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
Powerful historical fiction. The fact that I just read an excellent adult novel that was about this exact same topic and time period may have taken my appreciation of it from love to like, however ~ if you want an outstanding adult story of Jewish refugees in Shanghai during WWII, definitely read “The Song of the Jade Lily” by Kirsty Manning.
ETA: 2020 Sydney Taylor Award (Young Adult). The Sydney Taylor Book Award is presented annually to outstanding books for children and teens that authentically portray the Jewish experience.
ETA: 2020 Sydney Taylor Award (Young Adult). The Sydney Taylor Book Award is presented annually to outstanding books for children and teens that authentically portray the Jewish experience.
kiperoo's review against another edition
4.0
I love historical fiction about little-known patches of history, and now I want to know more about this one for sure.
jazzyjan94's review against another edition
4.0
15-year-old Lillia is living in Warsaw, Poland in 1940 which has become occupied by the Nazis. Her and her family about to flee Poland, but mere days before they do, her mother, Alenka disappears. However, they realize they need to follow through with their plan and hope that Alenka joins them eventually. Lillia and the rest of her family travel a long way to Shanghai, the only place that will allow Jewish refugees in without requiring a visa. However, when they arrive in Shanghai, they realize that life there is not going to be easy, especially with the presence of Japanese soldiers throughout the city. They find a home in the shelter, however tragedy strikes and Lillia must do what she can to take care of her family, while still holding on to the hope that her mother will join them.
Someday We Will Fly is an interesting story that covers a part of World War II history that might necessarily be known to a lot of people. This is a novel about survival and resiliency, even in the darks of times. We see this especially when both Lillia's father and her baby sister are sick and she does what she can to earn money, even if it means working in a brothel of sorts.
There is also an exploration of what it means to be human and how even those who might be misjudged as our enemies can be our greatest allies. For example, Mr. Takati, who is a Japanese businessman who befriends Lillia at the brothel and he treats her with decency. Later when the Japanese take over Shanghai he and his wife help Lillia by writing a letter to officials in Kobe, Japan -where her mother is stranded- to help her mother get the papers she needs in order to join her family in Shanghai.
This is also a story of hope and how something as simple as a puppet made out of trash can be used to bring a glimmer of hope to those in a very tough situation. However, the novel also does not shy away from showing the harsh realities that took place during World War II in the Pacific Theater, even the fact that the Japanese also put Americans in internment camps, which is something that isn't often talked about.
Overall, Someday We Will Fly is a reminder about the complexities of World War II and that is a lot that most people don't know because there is a lot that took place. But it is also a reminder of hope and compassion. 4/5 Stars.
Someday We Will Fly is an interesting story that covers a part of World War II history that might necessarily be known to a lot of people. This is a novel about survival and resiliency, even in the darks of times. We see this especially when both Lillia's father and her baby sister are sick and she does what she can to earn money, even if it means working in a brothel of sorts.
There is also an exploration of what it means to be human and how even those who might be misjudged as our enemies can be our greatest allies. For example, Mr. Takati, who is a Japanese businessman who befriends Lillia at the brothel and he treats her with decency. Later when the Japanese take over Shanghai he and his wife help Lillia by writing a letter to officials in Kobe, Japan -where her mother is stranded- to help her mother get the papers she needs in order to join her family in Shanghai.
This is also a story of hope and how something as simple as a puppet made out of trash can be used to bring a glimmer of hope to those in a very tough situation. However, the novel also does not shy away from showing the harsh realities that took place during World War II in the Pacific Theater, even the fact that the Japanese also put Americans in internment camps, which is something that isn't often talked about.
Overall, Someday We Will Fly is a reminder about the complexities of World War II and that is a lot that most people don't know because there is a lot that took place. But it is also a reminder of hope and compassion. 4/5 Stars.
rosiethespy's review against another edition
3.0
Sometimes lovely and hopeful, sometimes haunting and brutal. Fans of WWII historical fiction should love it for it's unique setting and exhaustive research. Really powerful messages that are still relevant today.
Spoiler
As much as I love a happy ending, I did feel like the last few chapters didn't seem to fit with the rest of the book. Very quickly, Mr. Takati comes through for Lillia, her mother returns, they put on their show, and they all happily move to America together (maybe?). I love to think about all these things happening for Lillia, but it's impossible not to dwell at least a little bit on all the people they didn't happen for. And it all just comes out of left field--for so much of the book, things keep getting and worse, until all of a sudden.librariann's review against another edition
3.0
Maybe it's my fault I've been reading too much WWII fiction lately. I enjoyed this book, but after The Girl in the Blue Coat and Grenade, it lacked drive. The premise was great - I had no idea Jews evacuated to Shanghai - but the focus meandered. It was a refugee story, a war story, a lost mother story, a baby with a developmental disability story, an almost-prostitution story, and then, in a bizarre plot twist, an [spoiler] abducted captive story [/spoiler].
A second tier recommendation.
A second tier recommendation.