Then

When Felix discovers a whole carrot in his bowl of soup, he is convinced it is a sign that his parents, Jewish booksellers, are coming for him. It is 1942, and for three years and eight months Felix has lived a secret life in the Catholic orphanage where they hoped he would be safe. But when Mother Minka sadly tells Felix that the carrot is not a sign from his parents and they are not coming for him, he does not believe her. He decides he has to warn them that Nazis are burning Jewish books. Early the next morning, he slips out through the main gate and begins to follow the river home. At first, Felix makes excuses for the horrors he sees along the way. He tells himself, for example, that the soldier who fired at him didn't mean to and that maybe the half-naked people crammed into trucks are just going for a swim. Eventually, he understands it is not just Jewish books the Nazis hate--it is Jews. On his harrowing journey, Felix rescues Zelda, an orphaned six-year-old, and the two of them, along with other children, are sheltered briefly by a Jewish dentist who treats high-ranking Nazis. Inevitably, though, they all are locked into a boxcar and know they are on their way to a death camp. When a hole is accidentally punched through some rotted boards, they realize they have a chance to escape. Miraculously, Felix and Zelda survive their jump from the moving train. Lying in a field somewhere in Poland, Felix doesn't know what the rest of his story will be--"It could end in a few minutes, or tomorrow, or next year. . ., " but however it turns out, he believes he has been lucky--more than once. For ages 12 and up. Susan Kantor

Recommended for ages 12 and up I have to say I was more than surprised when I picked up this slim volume by Morris Gleitzman. Wait a minute, I said to myself, isn't he the wacky Australian author who writes those wickedly funny books about cane toads? Not the first author one would think of to write a book on one of the most tragic events in human history. Then I remembered The Entertainer and the Dybbuk, written by the very funny Sid Fleischman, and I knew that reading Once was a must for me. I must start by saying there are no toads in this story, but Gleitzman does manage to make the book both comic and tragic at the same time, no mean feat for any writer tackling this difficult subject matter. The story is narrated by Felix, a young boy who has lived hidden for the past 3 1/2 years at a Catholic orphanage in Poland not far from the village where his parents had a bookstore. The book starts: "Once I was living in an orphanage in the mountains and I shouldn't have been and I almost caused a riot. It was because of the carrot." Felix believes that the incredible fact that his thin bowl of soup contains a whole carrot just for him is a secret sign that his parents are about to come to take him home. Instead of his parents, however, a "bunch of men in suits with armbands" arrive, and soon there's a bonfire in the orphanage courtyard. What is burning? Felix convinces himself that Mother Minka, the head of the orphanage, must have "called in profesional librarians in professional librarian armbands. They've reorganized the library, and now they're burning the books that are left over." Felix decides he must try to find his parents and tell them that the Nazis are burning Jewish books. But first he decides to return to his village and hide the books from the store. Despite the fact that one of the other children tries to tell him that the Nazis are dangerous and that he shouldn't leave the safety of the orphanage, Felix responds, "I know what they're doing. They're burning books." Until he leaves the orphanage, he has no understanding at all as to what is happening in his homeland. The naivete of Felix resembles Bruno, the German boy in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas as well as the main character in Jerry Spinelli's Milkweed. On his journey back to his village, Felix hears gunshots and thinks people are out hunting. The reader knows the sound is probably Nazis shooting Jews. When Felix arrives at his village, he discovers that not only has another family moved into his parents' store and house, but all the books are gone as well. When a sympathetic Polish neighbor finds him, he tells Felix that all the Jews are gone, relocated to the city, and gives Felix some food and water. As Felix continues his journey, he encounters a burning house, where he rescues a little girl whose parents have been murdered and who has been left for dead. Gleitzman manages to mix some humor into this otherwise horrific scenario. Zelda, the rescued girl, is a spunk

What an amazing book. Hearing the story of the holocaust told in the voice of a 10 year old child is heart breaking. Felix is a boy of amazing imagination and he wears his imaginative story telling ability like a suit of armour that protects him from the atrocities that he sees around him. He makes up stories about why his parents would have left him at a Catholic orphanage, about why a nazi soldier would shoot at him, and why the nazis would hate the jewish people. His attempts to make sense of something that doesn't make sense is a chilling reminder of all the innocent children who lost their lives. Watching Felix lose his innocence and realize the horrible truth about what probably happened to his parents will bring tears to your eyes. The strength of this book is Felix's narrative voice. He is so incredibly believable that it's somewhat surprising to read in the author's note that Felix wasn't a real boy. The most startling thing is that through it all, Felix is steadfast in his belief in good - that he has something good in his life and has all along. This is an inspiring read that I believe would be perfect for young middle schoolers. It would be a great way to introduce this time period to 5th or 6th graders. Just as compelling and well written as The Boy Who Dared (geared toward a bit older audience).

Booktalk: Once there was a boy named Felix who lived at an orphanage in Poland, only he wasn't an orphan. Almost four years ago Felix's secret alive parents left him with Mother Minka, at the orphanage, so they could travel and find out why their bookstore had to close. Once Nazis came to the orphanage and burned all the Jewish books in the library. Then Felix knew the answer to his parents' problem. See, Felix not only has secret alive parents, he's also secretly Jewish. Maybe if his parents sold more books that the Nazis liked, their bookstore wouldn't have to close. Armed with this revelation, Felix leaves the orphanage to find his parents. Instead of them helping and protecting him, maybe Felix can save them, just this Once. Review: Doesn't the whole premise of this book stress you out? It stressed me out. For a book of 163 pages* I had to put it down more than a couple of times because I was just too nervous for Felix. He was so young when his parents left him at the orphanage. This is, presumably, why they didn't tell him why they were really leaving him in the hands of a bunch of nuns, and the nuns certainly didn't tell him either. How could they? How could they explain that to 6 year old Felix when he entered the orphanage? Besides, if Felix didn't pray to God, Jesus, the Virgin Mary, the Pope and Adolf Hitler like the rest of the orphans, he'd stand out. It was heartbreaking to watch Felix do things like return to his family's home in what used to be a Jewish neighborhood, try to flag down a truckload of soldiers when he needs help, or pray to Adolf Hitler to keep him safe, as he's been taught to do. He really has no idea what is going on in Poland and the rest of Europe. He has no idea that at ten years old he is a hunted man. His realization that it is not Jewish books that the Nazis hate, but Jews themselves, is painfully slow, and yet I never once doubted the authenticity of Felix's thought processes and take on the situation around him. As Felix's naivety lessens to make room for the huge weight of his new knowledge, it is sometimes hard to believe that he is only ten, or even that he is the same boy that I met at the beginning of the book. This is not to say that Felix's voice lost any of its authenticity, he is just aged so much by what he has to go through. Even given the subject matter, and the violence does get a bit graphic by the end, this is a beautiful book. The stories that Felix makes up for himself and others to get them through the really hard times, the people that help Felix along the way, and the hope and compassion that Felix just never loses make this an (almost) uplifting story. The ending is not horrific or magically happy. The sequel, Then, is available in the UK and will hopefully be available in the US soon. Book source: Review copy from publisher *This page count is from an uncorrected proof and may not match the published copy.

As a teacher who loves to read to the class I have been bowled over by the response to this book by the children in my class. It is a funny and sad tale all in one. A young Jewish boy, Felix, leaves the orphanage in Poland where his parents have hidden him to save the families book shop. Experience tells me that Year 4 children need explanation of some of the concepts in the book, but they love it. Worth a look if you want to talk about the impact of war and its futility.