“Wars are supposed to be fought between soldiers. But this one was not. They slaughtered the innocents, pulled babies from their mothers’ arms, children from their teachers. I didn’t understand it then; I still don’t. It was madness, the end of a God-fearing world.”
(from The Shadow Children, page 63)
The Shadow Children is a short novel (under 90 pages) for middle-grade readers set shortly after World War II that follows 11-year-old Etienne on a visit to his grandfather’s farm in Mont Brulant, France, for the summer. Etienne has heard about the Jewish refugee children who hid in the woods to escape the Nazis, and he sees the hungry children on the side of the road as soon as he arrives. However, his grand-père doesn’t see them, and when Etienne begins talking about the children he has seen in the woods while riding the old farm horse, Reveuse, the butcher’s wife becomes fearful, and his grand-père doesn’t want to talk about it.
The Shadow Children is a haunting story that touches upon the guilt many felt about the Holocaust. Steven Schnur gives readers much to think about once the story of the refugee children is revealed in its entirety, but so many hints are given along the way that there are no surprises. Still, it is a very sad story, and one that could be useful in educating young readers about the Holocaust without bombarding them with graphic imagery.
The refugee children are written about as a group, with only a few given names and a bit of a back story. Schnur doesn’t flesh out these characters, making it hard to connect with them, but readers will care about their fate because they are innocent children who have done nothing wrong. Yet, by not focusing on individual children, he emphasizes the enormity of the tragedy.
What makes The Shadow Children a richer novel are the illustrations by Herbert Tauss. Without these illustrations, the book wouldn’t pack the same punch. They are black and white pictures that look to be a combination of charcoal sketches and watercolors. The prose fell a bit flat for me at times, but the illustrations were chilling, particularly the sinister skeletal features given to the Nazis. In my opinion, all of the emotion in this book is conveyed not in words but through pictures.
The Shadow Children isn’t the best middle-grade Holocaust novel I’ve read, but it’s certainly a worthy one. I thought it was interesting how Schnur didn’t personalize the victims so much as the witnesses. The Holocaust is something that is unexplainable and impossible to process, and it’s not surprising that so many people — those who tried to do something about it but failed or those who did nothing at all — would feel guilt after the fact. This book gets you thinking about an individual’s responsibility and how much of a sacrifice should be made to help those being persecuted. Although seen through a child’s eyes, adults will be haunted by the story, too.
Book 28 for the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge
Disclosure: I borrowed The Shadow Children from the local library. I am an Amazon associate.
© 2012 Anna Horner of Diary of an Eccentric. All Rights Reserved. Please do not reproduce or republish content without permission.
Wonderful, well-written review, as usual. The book sounds sensitive and touching.
It is touching. I’m glad to see so many books about the Holocaust for children.
Sounds like a good book for kids to read.
Yes, I’m thinking the 7 to 9 year range.
Sounds good, yes. And sad
It was very sad, but worth reading.
The hints that are so obvious to adults may not be to youngsters reading the book. It does sound like a good book.
I think the issue I had was with the library shelving it in the YA section, when it should have been in the children’s section. It’s probably geared more toward 7 to 9 year olds than teens.
I could see how that would be haunting. My son hasn’t read any WWII fiction yet. I’ll be curious to see how he handles it. I know I went through a long phase (that still continues in some ways) of reading WWII fiction and nonfiction. My first WWII read was The Hiding Place, when I was about 11 and I read it over and over again.
I still haven’t read The Hiding Place but it’s on my “some day” list. This would be a good book for easing children into learning about the Holocaust. It’s interesting to think about how to teach kids about it; my daughter has grown up with me reading and watching about the Holocaust so it seems like she’s always known about it.
I appreciate that authors are writing books for kids this age that deal with this dark period realistically.
I agree, and I especially love how they leave out the really shocking stuff (that can be saved for later) but don’t gloss over the horrors. It’s a tricky balance, but this book does a good job.
I have to read this one!
Yes! I’d love to hear if it’s in the school library and what your students think of it.
Interesting way to tell a story that certainly needs to be kept at the forefront.
Thanks Anna.
My pleasure! It’s so important that children learn about history, the good and the bad, so these books really are valuable in that respect.
[...] Louisa Young 26. A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway 27. Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein 28. The Shadow Children by Steven Schnur, illustrated by Herbert Tauss 29. Flight From Berlin by David John 30. Across the [...]