How can such a slight book, a mere 48 pages, including the full page illustrations and an Afterword, convey such pathos, history, and emotion, while also providing an entrée into the study of the Holocaust and the meaning of Hillel’s dictum: “Do Unto Others...” but it does.
A classroom of middle grade boys, who attend a shabby boarding yeshiva taught by an elderly rabbi, are unhappy at being interrupted from their ball game to return to the classroom. Their elderly teacher is crying. The boys are neither sympathetic nor curious. Instead, they are annoyed and start to make fun of the teacher. He has called them in to announce the arrival of 20 boys whose parents have perished in the concentration camps of World War II, and who are now going to attend the boarding school with them. The rabbi weeps because, despite these boys having somehow survived the Shoah in Poland, their parents have not; nor is it specified what travail the boys might have undergone. Oddly, the students of the yeshiva appear to be practically clueless regarding the Shoah. One wonders what year it might be. Furthermore, the bullies of the school resent having to share their quarters with these Yiddish-speaking strangers. Only one, Aaron, a stutterer who, up to now has been the bullies’ target, befriends and defends the new boy who clutches a little ti n box tightly, refusing to show its contents to the others. One wrestles him to the floor, revealing the box’s contents and mandating an action resisted by the boy. How these dual motifs: the Shoah and bullying play out are for the reader to discover and perhaps invite to further study. Based on a true story, it is a perfect introduction to learning about the Holocaust and, incidentally, critiquing “Man’s Behavior Towards Man,” (one-half of the 613 Commandments). Miriam Nerlove’s illustrations are fine, but only the one on page 29 was emotionally stirring. A glossary is appended. Recommended for ages 9-12.
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