Fuga para Xangai

Gr 4-6- Filled with photographs, Shanghai Escape is an episodic novelization of Lily Toufar's real-life story growing up in Shanghai. Lily is four when her extended family flees Austria on Kristallnacht. They go to one of the few places accepting Jews-Shanghai. There Lily lives in the French concession and goes to school as her family tries to adjust to a new life. Shanghai is under Japanese control and after Pearl Harbor, things start to change. Eventually Lily, her family, and the rest of the stateless refugees who arrived after 1937 move into the Hongkew ghetto-a place already overcrowded with poor Jews and even poorer Chinese citizens. Once there, they hear the horror stories coming out of Europe and wonder what will happen next. Making Toufar's story accessible to middle-grade readers means that some of the realities of Asian geopolitics are not entirely accurate, and some of the horrors of the Holocaust are glossed over. As there is little written about the vibrant Jewish community in Shanghai, this does remain a good and different addition to Holocaust literature, especially for readers too young for Andrea Alban's Anya's War (Feiwel & Friends, 2011).-Jennifer Rothschild, Arlington County Public Libraries, VAα(c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

A good and different addition to Holocaust literature. ― School Library Journal Kacer writes from the child's perspective, which is often one of innocence and confusion, and allows us as readers to feel empathy for the children whose stories she shares. ― Canadian Children's Booknews I hope teachers from the junior grades to high school are using Kacer's books to support the history curriculum as they teach about the Holocaust and World War II. These are important stories to be shared and never forgotten. ― Canadian Children's Booknews Kathy Kacer has received many awards and award nominations for her previous books, and this, her eighth book in the “Holocaust Remembrance Series,” furthers her personal mandate to bring awareness of the injustices of this part of world history to young people. Its readability factor, insights, emotions and characterization make Shanghai Escape a magnetic book for readers aged nine to thirteen, as well as a great resource for Holocaust and Remembrance Day studies. -- Aileen Wortley ― CM Magazine Lovingly researched...Author Kathy Kacer uses the true story of Lily Toufar to show us what daily life was like as Jew in China as she endured poverty, starvation, and cruelty. We empathize with Lily and her extended family as we grow to love and respect their courage. ― Historical Novel Society Once again Kacer brings us into this turbulent time in history though the eyes of a child who was caught up in the horror and once again she does it with a finesse that portrays the suffering and pain without making it too graphic for young readers. This book would be another great addition to school and public libraries and a great supplement to social studies programs that focus on World War II and the Holocaust. -- Victoria Pennell ― Resource Links What is remarkable about this book is that through a young child’s eyes, the history and aura of Shanghai become immediate. The child-reader, identifying with Lily, will gain an understanding of the trials experienced by Lily’s and other Jewish families when they are ordered out of French Town to a filthy, shabby ghetto....The decision regarding when to introduce Holocaust literature to younger children has been debated for years, but Kathy Kacer makes it plausible to introduce it to readers from grade 3, using her excellent “A Holocaust Remembrance Series for Young Readers.” -- Marcia Weiss Posner ― Jewish Book World Kacer writes of a Jewish community determined to retain its identity and survive in the face of adversity. Young readers will share Lily's happiness as she celebrates Passover in the Ohel Moshe Synagogue and her joy when the war ends and her family leaves Shanghai for Toronto, "their tough and long struggle finally over." ― Hadassah Magazine