Wednesday, September 6, 2023

Courage to Dream by Neal Shusterman and Andres Vera Martinez - OPTIONAL

Courage to Dream: Tales of Hope in the Holocaust by Neal Shusterman, illustrated by Andres Vera Martinez, 245 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL Graphic (Scholastic), 2023. $15

Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: PG (Holocaust related deaths) Violence: PG (mild fighting) 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS - OPTIONAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

Explore the Holocaust and Jewish mythology through five stories. 

As someone who has read both a lot of books about the Holocaust and a fair amount of Jewish mythology, the book made sense. I don't think most children will understand much of what they are reading. This is a case where the background knowledge should have been given at the front of each story, instead of at the end of each as it is. Even then, the examples are not helpful. There isn't much from the cover to explain that the stories are all a mix of history and magic -- so this can't be used for a Holocaust historical fiction book, for example. If I taught a high school level Holocaust class or a Jewish studies class, this would be a rich book for exploring the two topics together. The characters are Jewish and German. 

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS 

No comments: