It Rained Warm Bread by Gloria Moskowitz-Sweet and Hope Anita Smith - ADVISABLE

It Rained Warm Bread: Moishe Moskowitz’s Story of Hope by Gloria Moskowitz-Sweet and Hope Anita Smith, illustrated by Lea Lyon, 148 pages.  NON-FICTION Christy Ottaviano Books (Henry Holt and Company), 2019.  $17.  

Content: Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: PG-13.  

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS – ADVISABLE  

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE  

When Moishe was thirteen years old, Poland was invaded by the Nazis.  His family stayed together as long as they could, but eventually they were all pulled in different directions and different concentration camps.  As Moishe endures violence, starvation and basic human depravity, his faith in humanity is shaken.  But one day while being transported by train, brave women throw bread into his boxcar on the train regardless of the Nazi’s warnings not to and it renews Moishe's hope and gives him strength to keep going.  

This is the true story of Moishe Moskowitz told through verse.  The emotions and hopelessness are beautifully conveyed through the short, yet impactful fictionalization of Moishe’s Holocaust experience.  I loved the ending which shows Moishe’s family and his enduring spirit.  The violence is war violence, including people being shot down on the street around him as well as mass graves.  

Reviewer, C. Peterson.