Reading About the Holocaust
Since my summer reading game for 2024 included Germany, there were a number of books that dealt in one way or another with the Holocaust. I thought it might be worthwhile to consider some of these. I believe it is important to present history honestly, but a lot of history includes terrible things, so it’s also important to introduce difficult topics to kids in ways they can understand and that don’t make them feel overwhelmed.
Three Remarkable People
My column on non-fiction books about Germany and Holland left out three people I want to include here. First is Anne Frank, who, of course, is the famous diarist from Holland. Her diary, written as a Jew in hiding, is touching because of her eloquence and youth. Besides the diary itself, which is for good readers, there are a number of books about her.
David A. Adler’s A Picture Book of Anne Frank is just that: more pictures than words. It shows what happened to the Jews that led up to Anne’s family needing to hide, as well as what happened in the death camps (in her case, dying of disease). Behind the Bookcase, by Barbara Lowell, is also lavishly illustrated, and tells the story of Miep Gies, who had been “adopted” by people in the Netherlands when she was 11 years old and treated kindly. She was, in a way, returning the favor by helping to hide Anne and her family. The Story of Anne Frank, by Brenda Ralph Lewis, is for the middle reader and includes some photographs.
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Kathie Johnson has always had a love for children's books. She collected many as a teacher and began sharing them with other teachers. In 1986, she opened a children's library in her home, and it has continued to expand over the years. Many home-schooled and schooled children borrow books from it, and she takes great pleasure in finding the "right" book for a child. She attends First Presbyterian Church in Berkeley.
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