Jackie Minniti

I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

For me it is important to provide quality books for my students. My students will have a better grip on life during World War II from reading this book. The story brings the reader in and lets them walk in her shoes. Most of our students have never had to go through anything like this and so it is hard to imagine what life would be like or how they would handle the situation. The book is based on a story the author’s father told her. She was actually named after the Jacqueline in her father’s story. The reader is able to see how Jacqueline and her mother survived after losing her father to the war. This is another resource for students to read to help them understand what it was like for non-Jewish people who had friendships with their Jewish neighbors. This was a time that was dangerous for both Jews and non-Jews alike. Because this is historical fiction, students will be enticed to learn more to distinguish what was fact and what was fiction. Since I teach a unit with readings about the Holocaust, this is a welcome edition. Well done in writing a book that kids can relate to and adults will enjoy reading.… (més)

Do you know how children learn best? When their grandmothers, grandfathers, aunts, uncles, and other older family members sit down and tell them about their past. This is what Jackie Minniti has managed to accomplish with this novel – this is a story based on her father’s experience as an American soldier in 1944 while Rennes, France was under Nazi rule and devastated by WWII. He befriended Jacqueline, a very special ten-year-old girl. The story is told from Jacqueline’s perspective. Written for ages 8 to 14, Jackie’s character of Jacqueline can stand in for that great aunt and teach children about that time. They will never forget it.

It begins with Jacqueline’s mother crying from a notice she received. Her husband, Capitaine Jacques Falna, was assumed dead or captured as his plane had been shot down over Lorient. Against all odds, Jackie refuses to believe that he’s dead – she’s sure her father is alive and will eventually make his way home. Within their building, their Jewish neighbors, the Bergiers, are taken quite suddenly by the Nazis. But, the Bergier’s twelve-year-old son, David, was hidden. Jacqueline’s mother took him in and made him memorize his new identity as their cousin in order to keep him safe. When Jacqueline meets the American soldier, she assumes he will help her to find her father.

Jackie Minniti delivers exceptional, heart-warming characters and a suspenseful plot that pulls the reader completely into the story. Besides Jacqueline, her mother, and David, there is also a young woman, Yvonne Jamet, who dates a German soldier, and a tiny stray one-eyed kitten she names Clinoche. Without dwelling on the oppression, Minniti manages to make the reader see the impoverished lifestyle they must endure. Although a historical fiction for younger readers, adults will manage to get caught up in it as well. Rating: 5 out of 5.… (més)