As always, I have a stack of books home from my 7 -12 library this summer to read. Time to actually reading during the school year seems always at a premium.

I have long been eager to read Elizabeth Wein’s Rose Under Fire, in part because I just loved Code Name Verity so much. Well worth the wait – a simply stunning novel. The characters are honest and relatable even in extreme circumstances. I would love to sit down with these ladies. The plot is complex and compelling. The language is lyrical at times and painfully brutal at others.

Summary from Wein’s website:

Rose Justice is a young pilot with the Air Transport Auxiliary during the Second World War. On her way back from a semi-secret flight in the waning days of the war, Rose is captured by the Germans and ends up in Ravensbrück, the notorious Nazi women's concentration camp. There, she meets an unforgettable group of women, including a once glamorous and celebrated French detective novelist whose Jewish husband and three young sons have been killed; a resilient young girl who was a human guinea pig for Nazi doctors trying to learn how to treat German war wounds; and a Nachthexen, or Night Witch, a female fighter pilot and military ace for the Soviet air force. These damaged women must bond together to help each other survive. (http://www.elizabethwein.com/rose-under-fire)

Why should young adult readers choose the book? So many engaging reasons.

· The heroine is a young girl from Pennsylvania who hails from near Hershey. A beautiful scene exists where she eats to Hershey Bars, not knowing this will be the last “real” food she will have for months. I have never shared candy in a book talk – might be a powerful tool here.

· Most have previous Holocaust reading and study experiences and could be asked to imagine this American girl—whose childhood so resembles their own with Girl Scout meetings, birthday parties, and trips to the beach – finding herself smack in the middle of the notorious Ravensbrűck concentration camp.

· We will talk about Emily Dickinson and “Hope is the Thing with Feathers.” The students are well aware of my fandom of ED and won’t be shocked to learn how drawn I am to this heroine’s poetry and the profound resemblance of one of her poems to ED’s.

· The horrifying look at Polish rabbits and those hideous medical experiments.

· The courage and resilience of these young women inspires and begs the question, “What would you do?” or “What challenges have you faced this week?”

What will I pair this title with? Again, so many choices.

·         Code Name Verity – Elizabeth Wein, of course
·         Surviving the Angel of Death: the Story of a Mengele Twin in Auschwitz –Eva Mozes Kor, because of the connection to the Polish rabbits
·         Code Name Pauline: Memoirs of a World War II Special Agent—Pearl Withington Cornioley, the true story of a woman much like Wein’s fictional heroine,

Additionally, the book talk should include some stories of modern young people who are amazing and courageous. Our kids should always be encouraged to stretch themselves and Rose Under Fire provides just such a platform.