Nazi soldiers invade Lidice, Czechoslovakia, in 1942, and 11-year-old Milada is taken with other blond haired, blue-eyed children to a school in Poland to be trained as proper Germans, then adopted by German families. Inspired by real events, this fascinating novel sheds light on a little-known aspect of the Nazi agenda.

Recommended Ages: Gr. 5-8

Plot Summary: Milada and her best friend are planning their birthday parties when Nazis suddenly invade her town, take all of the women and children into the school gym, and send the men off (to be shot). Milada finds her blonde hair and blue eyes perfectly match the Aryan ideal, so she and her classmate Ruzha (a brash, honest girl), are sent to a center in Poland for Germanization. They learn German history, ideals, and values, but Eva is trying to remember her family, friends, native language, and real name. After 2 years in the center, Eva is adopted by the Werner family, Herr Werner being a high-ranking Nazi official in charge of running a local work camp. In 1945, Herr and his son Peter try to escape the Russian and American troups, while Eva, Elsbeth, and Mutter hide in the basement fallout shelter. Eventually, when the war ends, Eva is torn from the Werner family and reunited with her mother.

Setting: Starts in Ludice, Czechoslovakia, then Poland, then Germany

Characters: Milada - Eva, 11yo
Terezie - Milada's best friend
Jaroslav - Milada's brother, 15yo
Anechka - Milada's sister, 1yo
Babichka - Milada's grandmother
Ruzha - Milada's classmate, Franziska
Liesel - Milada's new friend in the center
Fraulein Kruger - in charge of center
Heidi - youngest girl taken for German training, was sent away after speaking in her native Polish and wetting the bed
Elsa - Heidi's older sister who was eventually sent away
Zelenka and Hana - Milada's other friends from her hometown
Papa - Milada's father
Herr Werner - Milada's adoptive father
Peter - Milada's new brother
Elsbeth - Milada's new sister
Kaiser - Werner's dog
Mutter - Milada's adoptive mother
Helga - maid
Erich - butler
Johann - chaffeur
Karl - groundskeeper
Inge - cook

Recurring Themes: Holocaust, World War II, Aryan race, Hitler, Nazis, work camps, food rations, home school, uniforms, Jews

Controversial Issues: explains the smell in Milada/Eva's new home is the result of burning bodies

Personal Thoughts: As a Jew who has visited many Holocaust museums, the story of Ludice, Czechoslovakia was new to me. This book was heartbreaking and troubling. Just like the author, I was surprised how many similarities there were between this fictionalized account of the true story and Marie.

This is a very good example of historical fiction because Eva's story really did happen to children during WWII. Children who met Hitler's standards for the "perfect race" were taken away from their families and put in school's to learn how to be good Germans. The location of the school where Eva was taken and the concentration camps where her family ended up were actual locations during WWII. ( )

Milada and her family are seized from their home in Czechoslovakia by Nazi soldiers. Milada, praised for her blonde hair and blue eyes, is raised as a German Youth, adopted by German parents, and forced to will herself to remember her true self - not the German girl 'Eva' everyone wants her to become. Fast-paced read. Grade 4-5. ( )

I read this while creating a subject guide for fiction on the Holocaust. This is a really excellent book that tells a different story then most World War II fiction. Aryan looking children are taken from their homes and placed in Nazi households to be indoctrinated into their way of life. ( )