Review

Lena (short for Adalena) lives in Amsterdam, where she moved with her parents when conditions grew too difficult for Jews in Nazi Germany. She has fun with her friends, cycling and playing tricks, but eventually the Nazis occupy the Netherlands too. Things deteriorate, and Lena’s parents make the difficult decision to flee Amsterdam but leave Lena in the secret safekeeping of her kind, childless music teacher, Ilse. Lena can never leave the house and practises getting quickly into a hidden hiding space in the basement if people arrive unexpectedly. As she grows older, Lena begins to chafe against her restrictions and isolation and starts to take risks and make discoveries. But there is always danger: Jews are being betrayed, busybodies abound, and the German patrols are always ready to put Jews on trains to concentration camps. Meanwhile, the war continues and food is scarce…

*

This was an enjoyable WW2 historical novel by an Australian author. Bauer loosely based Lena on Hannah Goslar, a friend of Anne Frank’s, and this story would definitely appeal to students who like The Diary of a Young Girl, which is a perennial favourite in our library.

I read this because we are looking for a WW2 novel with a female protagonist for some year 8 mainstream English classes, and this fits the bill. It’s generally well written with some good imagery. While it has some slightly clunky elements (Lena has an alter ego — Adalena — who seems a little extra), it’s an interesting, reasonably straightforward narrative with plenty of historical detail and some nuanced, well-rounded characters. I think students will enjoy it and there’s plenty there for a mainstream English class to study.

It’s 380 pages long, but the print is quite large, so it’s probably more like 330 pages, and it’s an accessible read.

Suitable for year 7 and up.

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Set during the Holocaust, so contains persecution of Jews and others (in particular, the disabled), extremely perilous situations, injury and death: not graphic; serious illnesses and death; time of famine; betrayals, but also sacrifices and unexpected kindnesses; very brief mention of past suicidal intention by Ilse (in her backstory, after her husband died and she miscarried) — she decided to live when she heard children laughing and playing… see p. 136 & p. 275; death by fire (not graphic); deaths of friends; Lena enters puberty in hiding, so brief mentions of budding breasts and her first period; guilt of various sorts, including survivor guilt; difficult family relationships post-war; very brief mentions of Lena’s crush on a boy. A few sympathetic German characters, including a German officer.

*

Bauer, C. (2022). Tulips for breakfast. Ford Street Publishing.

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