For families introducing the difficult topic of the Holocaust, this memoir offers an accessible yet honest entry point. It tells the true story of two young, deaf Jewish sisters in Czechoslovakia who survive because their disability is misunderstood by the Nazis. The book focuses on their incredible resilience, their deep sisterly bond, and the constant fear they endured. Written for older elementary and middle school readers, it handles heavy themes without graphic detail, making a vast historical tragedy feel personal and understandable through the eyes of a child. It's a powerful choice for building empathy and starting a conversation about prejudice and perseverance.
Deaths of others are mentioned and grieved, but not depicted graphically.
Scary ScenesModerate
Scenes of hiding, near-capture, and life in a concentration camp are tense and frightening.
Sensitive Topics
The book deals directly with the Holocaust, including antisemitism, family separation, starvation, and the constant threat of death. The approach is direct but not graphic; the horror is conveyed through the child's perspective of fear, loss, and confusion. The resolution is hopeful, as the sisters and their parents miraculously survive and are reunited, but it acknowledges the deep and lasting trauma. The context is historical and central to the Jewish experience during WWII.
Ideal Reader
A child aged 10-13 who is ready to learn about the Holocaust but may be overwhelmed by more graphic accounts. This is a good fit for a sensitive reader interested in history, stories of survival, and powerful family relationships. It's an excellent bridge between fictional accounts like "Number the Stars" and more intense memoirs like Anne Frank's diary.
Parent Prep
A parent should be prepared to provide historical context about the Holocaust. The book is very personal, so linking the girls' experience to the larger events will be helpful. Previewing chapters about their journey to hiding (Chapter 7) and their time in Theresienstadt (Chapter 11) will help a parent gauge the emotional tenor and prepare for questions about concentration camps. A parent has noticed their child asking questions about World War II, Nazis, or prejudice. The child may have expressed a desire to understand this part of history, and the parent is looking for a resource that is truthful but not traumatizing, focusing on the human element of survival.
Age Experience
A younger reader (9-10) will likely focus on the incredible story of two sisters surviving against all odds, connecting deeply with their bond and resourcefulness. An older reader (11-14) will better grasp the historical injustice, the specifics of the persecution, and the complex ethical questions. They will see it not just as a survival story, but as a testimony to a genocide.
What Makes It Special
The perspective of deaf children is what makes this memoir wholly unique. It explores survival not just through the lens of being Jewish, but through the lens of disability. Their deafness is both a vulnerability and, paradoxically, their means of survival. This offers a powerful and rarely heard viewpoint in Holocaust literature.
Read plot summary
This is a memoir of Renee and Herta Hartman, two young Jewish sisters in Czechoslovakia during the Holocaust. Both sisters are deaf, and they communicate through their own unique sign language. When the Nazis occupy their country, their parents are forced to send them into hiding. The girls' survival is uniquely tied to their deafness, which Nazi officials misinterpret as a mental disability, sparing them from fates met by others. They endure hiding, hunger, and eventually internment in the Theresienstadt concentration camp, relying completely on each other to navigate their silent, terrifying world.
This overview was generated by AI based on the book's content and reviews, and may not capture every nuance.
Discussion Prompts
1
Renee and Herta used their own special sign language. How did their way of communicating help them survive in ways that speaking might not have?
2
The Scharfs, a non-Jewish family, risked their lives to hide Renee and Herta. Why do you think they made that dangerous choice? What makes people help others in scary times?
3
On page 87, Renee describes feeling a 'flicker of hope' even in Theresienstadt. Where did the sisters find hope and strength when everything around them was so bleak?
4
This is a true story, a memoir. How does knowing that these events really happened to the author change the way you read the book?
