Europe

Materials from Europe

The Boy Who Climbed into the Moon

Crackpot notions, community spirit, and sky-high aspirations transform a quiet boy’s life in this whimsical tale from the stellar team of David Almond and Polly Dunbar. There are some strange ideas floating around in Paul’s apartment block. There’s Mabel, who now calls herself Molly and whose brother hides under a paper bag. Then there’s Clarence, the poodle who thinks he can fly. But the strangest notion of all is Paul’s. You see, Paul believes that the moon is not the moon but a great hole in the sky. And he knows that sausages are better than war. How on earth (or not) will he find out if he is bonkers or a genius? With a few equally bonkers (or genius) helpers and a very long ladder, that’s how! From a master of magical realism and a celebrated artist comes another delightfully outrageous expedition.

Oops!

In a distinctive oversize package, Oops! follows a family through the streets of Paris as they try to get to the airport for their vacation. Back at their apartment, their house-sitting aunt slips on some soap, setting off a chain reaction of events that create some extreme roadblocks for the family’s trip. A movie shoot, a parade, policemen, rampaging bears, aliens, and much more collide in this remarkable new picture book adventure. The book includes a gatefold page at the end that explains in detail the train of chaos on the previous pages. 

Anno’s Spain

The imaginative Anno takes us through Spain in his newest journey book, depicting the enchanting cities and eras of this intriguing country. Wordless book.

Emil And Karl

This is a unique work. It is one of the first books written for young readers describing the early days of the event that has since come to be known as the Holocaust. Originally written in Yiddish in 1938, it isone of the most accomplished works of children’s literature in this language. It is also the only book for young readers by Glatshteyn, a major American Yiddish poet, novelist, and essayist. Written in the form of a suspense novel, Emil and Karl draws readers into the dilemmas faced by two young boys-one Jewish, the other not-when they suddenly find themselves without families or homes in Vienna on the eve of World War II. Because the book was written before World War II, and before the full revelations of the Third Reich’s persecution of Jews and other civilians, it offers a fascinating look at life during this period and the moral challenges people faced under Nazism. It is also a taut, gripping, page-turner of the first order.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume 3, Issue 2

Milkweed

A stunning novel of the Holocaust from a Newbery MedalistHe’s a boy called Jew. Gypsy. Stopthief. Filthy son of Abraham.He’s a boy who lives in the streets of Warsaw. He’s a boy who steals food for himself, and the other orphans. He’s a boy who believes in bread, and mothers, and angels.He’s a boy who wants to be a Nazi, with tall, shiny jackboots of his own-until the day that suddenly makes him change his mind.And when the trains come to empty the Jews from the ghetto of the damned, he’s a boy who realizes it’s safest of all to be nobody.Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli takes us to one of the most devastating settings imaginable-Nazi-occupied Warsaw during World War II-and tells a tale of heartbreak, hope, and survival through the bright eyes of a young Holocaust orphan.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume 3, Issue 2

Number The Stars

In 1943, during the German occupation of Denmark, ten-year-old Annemarie learns how to be courageous and resourceful as she helps shelter her Jewish friend from the Nazis. Reprint. Newbery Medal Winner. AB. SLJ. K. H.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume 3, Issue 2