We see tragedy around us every day in the news, and the world has been plunged into chaos at too many different times of humanity. Each time, children are forced to make heartbreaking sacrifices.
This month’s book selection has some of the most tragic stories of wars from the perspective of the youngest.
The Cake Tree in the Ruins, Akiyuki Nosaka
Collection of short stories
Published: 1975
Pages: 160
Author’s nationality: Japanese
When Akiyuki Nosaka was a child, he saw his adoptive parents killed in a bombing during World War II. Later, his sister died of starvation.
Nosaka wrote powerful books about his experience; the first, Grave of the Fireflies, was adapted by Studio Ghibli into one of the most striking and profound animated films in world cinema. Subsequently, in The Cake Tree in the Ruins, he brings together 12 harrowing, dark and disturbing short stories set in Japan.
Who’d like this?
People who want to read about the different faces of war.
Quote
“Too many undernourished people and animals appear in these stories, I know, but it was wartime, after all.”
Readers say
- “Every story explores another element of sadness for those who experienced WWII. No one escaped the force of war and no one was without suffer,” says an Amazon user.
- “Tragic, heartbreaking, yet beautiful,” says a Waterstones user.
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, John Boyne
Novel, Historical Fiction
Published: 2006
Pages: 256
Author’s nationality: Irish
It is impossible to read this book, or watch the movie, without crying. Bruno and Shmuel touch our hearts only to have them break into pieces later on.
One of the children has lived through the cruelties of the Holocaust, the other knows absolutely nothing, but is about to experience it firsthand.
Who’d like this?
Those who want to read a simple story with a powerful message.
Quote
“What exactly was the difference? He wondered to himself. And who decided which people wore the striped pajamas and which people wore the uniforms?”
Readers say
- “An amazing story, based on the innocence of a child,” says a Waterstones user.
- “This book is so simply written despite tackling a very dark and disturbing part of history,” says a Waterstones user.
The Diary of a Young Girl, Anne Frank
Autobiography
Published: 1947
Pages: 384
Author’s nationality: German
Anne wrote in her diaries from June 1942 to August 1944 as she stayed in hiding with her family during the Holocaust.
The girl matures, through time and circumstance, moving from more trivial thoughts to deeper questions about humanity.
Her father, Otto Frank, rescued the diaries and decided to publish them in 1947 as an honest account of this dark period of humanity. Today more than 25 million copies have been sold on this vivid testimony.
Who’d like this?
For those who want to hear a powerful personal perspective from a young voice.
Quote
“It’s really a wonder that I haven’t dropped all my ideals, because they seem so absurd and impossible to carry out. Yet I keep them, because in spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart.”
Readers say
- “A moving tribute to all those who suffered,” says a Waterstones user.
- “Anne Frank’s diary is a book that can really make you think and reevaluate what is actually important in life,” says a Waterstones user.
The Book Thief, Markus Zusak
Novel, Historical Fiction
Published: 2006
Pages: 584
Author’s nationality: Australian
While everyone holds their breath for the advancing war and dangerous times, Death, our omniscient narrator, reveals in a not-so-distant way what is happening to the villagers of a small town in Nazi Germany. They are torn between making important and equally difficult decisions.
Who’d like this?
For book lovers who believe in the power of literature and for those who want another angle on the victims of war.
Quote
“I wanted to tell the book thief many things, about beauty and brutality. But what could I tell her about those things that she didn’t already know? I wanted to explain that I am constantly overestimating and underestimating the human race-that rarely do I ever simply estimate it. I wanted to ask her how the same thing could be so ugly and so glorious, and its words and stories so damning and brilliant.”
Readers say
- “What makes this book so extraordinary is the author’s writing, which, at times, is more poetry than prose,” says an Amazon user.
- “A journey that will bring you joy and sadness! A perspective that you don’t expect but you will love it! I strongly recommend, it’s a book full of emotions,” says an Amazon user.