Judith Kerr (1923–2019)

I was surprised to find myself completely gripped by the third book in the trilogy. I think it was because although I have never been a Jewish refugee not have I lived through the horror of WW2, I could identify with both the mother and the daughter’s dilemmas. The mother feeling as if her life is over and it might as well end, and the daughter’s frustration that she was expected to look after her mother rather than the golden-boy son. And all stirred up within an atmosphere of love rather than jealousy_… (more)

First sentence: Anna was walking home from school with Elsbeth, a girl in her class. A lot of snow had fallen in Berlin that winter. It did not melt, so the street cleaners had swept it to the edge of the pavement, and there it had lain for weeks in sad, greying heaps.

Premise/plot: Anna and her family are Jewish. In the week leading up to elections, her father flees Germany just in case Hitler wins the election. If Hitler does win, his family will follow him to Switzerland. (The dad is a writer. His views will not be appreciated by Hitler and the Nazi party.) He tries to sell enough of his writing in Switzerland...and then France. But the economy of the 1930s isn't all that great. The family left everything behind--including Anna's pink rabbit--and are essentially penniless. By the end of the novel, Anna and her brother, Max, I believe have been sent to England.

The novel takes place circa 1933/1934.

My thoughts: This is my second time to read When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit. It is set in the early 1930s. Many of the policies had not come into play yet. There were warning signs which this family heeds. But it is very early days. It is set in Germany, Switzerland, France, and England. (The last chapter is set in England.) I believe this one is in part autobiography. I don't know how much is based on her experiences and how much is pure fiction. The novel's conflict is subtle and perhaps more about a family's economic and financial struggles as they are displaced. The novel is about learning new languages, trying to economize as much as possible, struggling to make ends meet. Perhaps subtle isn't the best word. I mean that this isn't so driven by external events happening--like so many books set during the second world war.… (more)