Falling somewhere between an odyssey and a saga, this is a tale of exile reminding us that kindness and humanity will radiate in the season of sorrow.
1942: The parents of Jacob and Moses have sent the boys to live with their aunt in Paris since the war is getting worse. On the streets, the boys get swept away in the Velodrome d’Hiver roundup in Paris. Choosing to escape, Jacob and Moses return to their aunt’s home, discover old letters from their parents, and decide to go find them.
Through Jacob and Moses’ journey to reunite with their parents, we see an assortment of people with their own ethnicity, history, ideals, and stories. The variety of people they encounter leave you seeing the variations of WWII through an array of lenses.
I really enjoyed that it centered around the viewpoint of children; two boys holding on to what remains of childhood. The relationship between Jacob and Moses is so sweet and childlike though war attempts to blockade their innocence.
“Observing the happiness of others always makes the world make a little more sense all of a sudden, makes suffering a little more bearable, makes grief a little less suffocating.”
“When you’re young, you dream about making the world a better place, overturning injustice and inequality. But within time you just settle for getting by.”
“Don’t ever change. Sometimes the world can turn us into something we shouldn’t be.”
“Humans are nothing more than the sum of their affections and the connections they make in life. When those ties break, loneliness destroys what little is left in an uninhabited heart.”
The author confirms the brothers, Jacob and Moses, are fictitious. However, they represent the real children who traveled across Europe as refugees during WWII. Historically, Mario Escobar gracefully blends facts with fiction. He addresses areas in Europe that are commonly suppressed amid a defying WWII history. Several authentic historical characters are involved that include Andre Trocme, Daniel Trome, and Edouard Theis.
4 out of 5 star rating explained: While tender and touching, there were some implausible situations and cliché conditions. Also, their voyage to find their parents continued relentlessly, so I always knew what to expect to happen…they would keep going to find their parents.
Overall, it is a feel-good novel that takes you across Europe with two children during war.There is a lot of historical content and I found myself Googling a lot of the names and places. There is mild violence, no vulgar language, and no sex. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
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More on this topic:
Andre and Magda Trocme
Le Chambon-sur-Lignon
Phillipe Petain and the Vichy puppets
Mario Escobar is the author of many novels including Auschwitz Lullaby. This title, Children of the Stars, was originally published in Spanish under the title Los niños de la estrella amarilla.