Hidden Yellow Stars Review

About the Book

 Based on the true story of two World War II heroines who risked everything to save Jewish children from the Gestapo by hiding them throughout Belgium.

Belgium, 1942

Young schoolteacher Andrée Geulen secretly defies the Nazis in Belgium, who are forcing Jews to wear a yellow Star of David. Andrée is not Jewish, but she feels a maternal connection to her students, who are living in constant fear, and decides to take action. No child should have to suffer under such persecution. But what can one woman do against an entire army?

Ida Sterno is a Jewish woman who works with the Committee for the Defense of Jews in Belgium, a clandestine resistance group tasked with hiding children from the Gestapo. She wants to recruit Andrée because her Aryan appearance can provide crucial security measures for their efforts. Andrée agrees to join and begins work immediately by adopting a code name: Claude Fournier.

Together, Andrée and Ida, and their undercover operatives, work around the clock to move Jewish children from their families and smuggle them to safety through the secret channels established by the resistance. As each child is hidden, Andrée commits to memory their true name and history. Someday, she vows, she will help reunite as many of these families as she can.

But with the Gestapo closing in and the traitorous Fat Jacques who has turned from ally to enemy and is threatening to identify and expose any Jew he meets, Andrée and Ida must work even harder against increasingly impossible odds to save as many children as possible and keep them safely hidden—even if it might cost them their own lives. (Goodreads)

BUY HERE

My Thoughts

This story holds so much it is difficult to put my thoughts into a review. The ladies in this book are remarkable and it still astounds me how resilient people can be and more evident when you can peek into the past. The research that went into this book is well done and while this is a heavy time in history and a difficult story to read it is necessary. I thought the different perspectives from each woman was well written. I didn't get lost in the back and forth and I thought it added a lot to the plot. The start of each chapter has some type of Nazi quote that shows how awful and evil their thought process was. That really brought the reality of this time to the forefront because this wasn't made up, it was reality. This book really shines a light on how hard it was for families to be split a part, specifically mothers and their children. I can't even imagine and yet so many did in order to protect their child. The ending wrapped it up as best as could be expected and for World War II history I highly recommend! 

Five Stars. 

"I received this book from Shadow Mountain Publishers for free. All opinions are my own and I was not required to write a positive review." 

The Long March Home-A Story I Won't Soon Forget

 

 

 About the Book

 Jimmy Propfield joined the army for two reasons: to get out of Mobile, Alabama, with his best friends Hank and Billy and to forget his high school sweetheart, Claire.

Life in the Philippines seems like paradise--until the morning of December 8, 1941, when news comes from Manila: the Japanese have bombed Pearl Harbor. Within hours, the teenage friends are plunged into war as Japanese warplanes attack Luzon, beginning a battle for control of the Pacific Theater that will culminate with a last stand on the Bataan Peninsula and end with the largest surrender of American troops in history.

What follows will become known as one of the worst atrocities in modern warfare: the Bataan Death March. With no hope of rescue, the three friends vow to make it back home together. But the ordeal is only the beginning of their nearly four-year fight to survive.

Inspired by true stories, The Long March Home is a gripping coming-of-age tale of friendship, sacrifice, and the power of unrelenting hope. (Goodreads)

 

BUY HERE

 

My Thoughts

 

Wow! This book is not what I was expecting! I really didn't have any knowledge on the Pacific Theater, the Philippines or the Bataan Death March prior to reading it. This book is written in such a way that I could not put it down. It takes you right into the middle of what happened in the Philippines during WWII. It is gut wrenching to read what happened to these people and to think about how they survived or how they died and the people they left behind. While reading I was thinking about how these things would have an impact the men who survived and how could they possibly go back to live a "normal" life?! It truly is astonishing. One of the other unique and also excellent plot points in this book is the dual timeline. The reader gets to go back and read how Jimmy grew up and how the group of friends was created. The entire book takes you back and forth from the front lines and POW camp to flashbacks of a much simpler and happier time prior to the war. This was a great idea because this story doesn't shy away from the gruesome atrocities that these men experienced. This is a heavy read with a lot of description on what actually happens. I found it really interesting how the sickness and overcrowding and bad food and limited resources really changed the picture in my mind. Of course I knew there was sickness and people died, but after reading this story with its many details, I have a much different perspective on that now. 

This is a heart wrenching story that I won't soon forget. I applaud the authors and I am thankful for people who shed a light on lesser known history. 

Five Stars. 

" I received this book from Revell for free. All opinions are my own and I was not required to write a positive review."

Top Ten Tuesday - My Top Ten World War II Books

I have read so many World War II books, as it is heavily written about in historical fiction. These are some of my favorites! Also, I couldn't come up with anything for the original Top Ten Tuesday idea (books I decided to not finish) so this is what I decided instead!

Clicking on the covers will take you to Amazon via my affiliate link. This isn't an extra cost.

 

 

 

 While there are many more I could add to this list, these are the few that I thought about first! I highly recommend them all.

Catching the Wind- Wonderful Book!

 About the Book

What happened to Brigitte Berthold?

That question has haunted Daniel Knight since he was thirteen, when he and ten-year-old Brigitte escaped the Gestapo agents who arrested both their parents. They survived a harrowing journey from Germany to England, only to be separated upon their arrival. Daniel vowed to find Brigitte after the war, a promise he has fought to fulfill for more than seventy years.

Now a wealthy old man, Daniel's final hope in finding Brigitte rests with Quenby Vaughn, an American journalist working in London. He believes Quenby's tenacity to find missing people and her personal investment in a related WWII espionage story will help her succeed where previous investigators have failed. Though Quenby is wrestling her own demons--and wary at the idea of teaming up with Daniel's lawyer, Lucas Hough--the lure of Brigitte's story is too much to resist. Together, Quenby and Lucas delve deep into the past, following a trail of deception, sacrifice, and healing that could change all of their futures. (Goodreads)

BUY HERE

My Thoughts

 

Melanie Dobson has yet to write a book I didn't love. I have read my fair share of WWII novels but somehow Dobson has a way of making each story its own, completely different. This novel has two different time periods that go back and forth, which are written so well you won't even be confused! I loved all the characters in this book, but I think Brigitte will always have a special place in my heart. The history is fascinating and once again I learned a ton that I will have to do more research on. Wonderful side romance story and real life heart issues when it comes to abandonment. There is a pretty big twist near the end that I have mixed feelings about but you must read for yourself on that note.

There were a couple of things (small little insignificant things) that I thought were perhaps a little far fetched or over the top for this particular story. Otherwise this is one of the best books I have read so far this year! 

Five stars. 

"I received this book from Tyndale Publishing for free. All opinions are my own."