Hidden Yellow Stars

Heart wrenching, chilling, triumphant! Hidden Yellow Stars is based on the courageous true stories of two young woman willing to defy the Nazis to save Jewish children in Belgium during WWII. In my humble opinion, it’s one of Rebecca Connolly’s best, most awe inspiring works to date and a must read for historical fiction fans.

Belgium 1942

Andree Geulen’s a young school teacher who helps her Jewish students hide their yellow stars when she sees the hurt, cruelty, & disruption the stars cause in her classroom. She wants to make a difference & help these children she feels so protective of, but how?

Ida Sterno is a Jewish social worker helping the Committee for the Defense of Jews. She recruits Andree not only because of her passionate show more defense of her students, but because she’s the blonde haired, blue-eyed epitome of an Aryan woman whom the Germans won’t suspect. Both risk their lives as they & others work to smuggle Jewish children & babies to safety.

I was so incredibly touched & inspired by this story. Both women were so admirable. They each struggle with faith and making sense of the senseless. I appreciated their struggles and the profound impact the children had on them. I was also amazed at the complex, ingenious system they devised for keeping track of each child to not only protect their identity but help locate their loved ones when the war was over. I found myself on pins and needles so many times when Andree is with children and questioned by the Nazis. I was also angered by the mistreatment of the children by some of the convent & orphanage workers who agreed to take them in.

Each chapter begins with real Nazi propaganda and it was disturbing to see how they dehumanized the Jews especially to children. I was inspired by those who were willing to disregard the propaganda and risk everything to take in the children and love them. One particularly touching moment for me occurred when a young Jewish boy is accused by his foster family of stealing. He finally admits to Andree that he didn’t steal, but hid the nativity figures of Mary & Baby Jesus because he heard they were Jewish too.

Read with a box of Kleenex handy! This story truly inspired me and will definitely stay with me for a long time. Highly recommend this beautiful, compelling tribute to two brave, amazing women who deserve all the accolades & admiration. I received an advanced complimentary copy from the publisher. All opinions are my own and voluntarily provided. show less

Despite the number of WWII historical fiction and nonfiction books books I have read, I am still astounded (floored, humbled, disgusted, saddened) at the atrocities and unfairness every time I read a new one.

Perhaps that makes me naive. Perhaps that makes me human. Or perhaps that shows the sheer scope of the Axis powers’ ability to brainwash their followers and treat other humans as animals. Worse than animals. And any book that specifically involves children really hits me hard. It’s rarely new information, but it’s heartbreaking every time.

The women in this story are incredible and I was awed by their sacrifices and the risks they took. Stories of good triumphing over evil exist in multitude because, I believe, most people want show more to see good win out. And this is a book of real people fighting back against an evil so persistent and dark it threatened everything. And yet they fought. Without thought to their own lives and safety, they helped rescue thousands of young children from the Nazi grip. That is powerful. That is incredible.

I was hooked from the very beginning of this book. I’m a huge fan of Rebecca Connolly’s writing style and the way she wrote this book was excellent. I was fascinated by the choices for the epigraphs. If I hadn’t already been appalled at N*zi propaganda, those quotes clinched it for me. But the Winston Churchill quote for the Afterward is the perfect embodiment of what the women in this book did. “This is the lesson: never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never…”

If you want additional perspectives of the horrible accounts of WWII, this book will give it to you. You’ll be inspired by Andrée and Ida, you’ll feel amazed at the resilience of children, you’ll believe in the goodness of people. And you’ll hope for ultimate good to triumph over all evil, because if it can happen in one story, it has to happen again.

This is an incredible book, easily gaining a spot on my top favorites list for the year, and it’s going to stay there. It deserves all the stars. Thank you for your amazing book, Rebecca. It’s beautiful.

**many thanks to the publisher, @shadowmountainpub, and book tour coordinator, @austenprose, for the copy. All thoughts are my own. show less

Despite the number of WWII historical fiction and nonfiction books books I have read, I am still astounded (floored, humbled, disgusted, saddened) at the atrocities and unfairness every time I read a new one.
Perhaps that makes me naive. Perhaps that makes me human. Or perhaps that shows the sheer scope of the Axis powers’ ability to brainwash their followers and treat other humans as animals. Worse than animals. And any book that specifically involves children really hits me hard. It’s rarely new information, but it’s heartbreaking every time.
The women in this story are incredible and I was awed by their sacrifices and the risks they took. Stories of good triumphing over evil exist in multitude because, I believe, most people show more want to see good win out. And this is a book of real people fighting back against an evil so persistent and dark it threatened everything. And yet they fought. Without thought to their own lives and safety, they helped rescue thousands of young children from the Nazi grip. That is powerful. That is incredible.
I was hooked from the very beginning of this book. I’m a huge fan of Rebecca Connolly’s writing style and the way she wrote this book was excellent. I was fascinated by the choices for the epigraphs. If I hadn’t already been appalled at Nazi propaganda, those quotes clinched it for me. But the Winston Churchill quote for the Afterward is the perfect embodiment of what the women in this book did. “This is the lesson: never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never…”
If you want additional perspectives of the horrible accounts of WWII, this book will give it to you. You’ll be inspired by Andrée and Ida, you’ll feel amazed at the resilience of children, you’ll believe in the goodness of people. And you’ll hope for ultimate good to triumph over all evil, because if it can happen in one story, it has to happen again.

This is an incredible book, easily gaining a spot on my top favorites list for the year, and it’s going to stay there. It deserves all the stars. Thank you for your amazing book, Rebecca. It’s beautiful.

AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: Narrated by Caroline Hewett—I felt that this narration was very tastefully done. I appreciated the different voices and the emotion clear in the narrator’s voice for the various scenes found throughout. The accents and ability to say the names correctly was also a bonus. Highly recommend as an audiobook.

**many thanks to the publisher, @shadowmountainpub, and book tour coordinator, @austenprose, for the copy. All thoughts are my own. show less

Hidden Yellow Stars is a compelling book based on a true story of two women in Belgium who joined a resistance movement to save Jewish children from the Germans in WWII. Schoolteacher Andree Geulen and Ida Sterno work together with others to hide the children, painstakingly changing their names and keeping track of them in order to, hopefully, reunite the families later. Knowing their very lives are at peril, they selflessly risk all to give these children a chance of surviving.

This poignant and heartbreaking story has been carefully researched by talented author Rebecca Connolly. I recommend this book to those who enjoy well-written historical fiction based on actual happenings. 4.5 stars

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy from show more Shadow Mountain Publishing through NetGalley. All opinions are my own. show less

This was a really great read, based on so much truth, but fictional. A book that at time had my heart in my throat, were they going to make it to safety.
This is based on two woman who gave everything to help the Jewish children of Belgium escape. Ingenious change of names, and four books to record when the evil was finally over. I loved that there were updates at the end of this read that told us what happened to those we quickly cared about! Then the authors notes of the extensive research she made and those who gave her the idea, and on the personal note her own family.
At the beginning of each chapter is a quote from the Evil propaganda that was being promoted and who did it. Sadly, by looking at the bibliography the books that were show more for children. Sick!
We need to remember and not forget!
I received this book through Shadow Mountain Publishing, and was not required to give a positive review. show less

5 stars, Pulls at the Heartstrings

HIDDEN YELLOW STARS
by Rebecca Connolly

This book affected me strongly. I was only able to read it in short spurts. Not that it is hard to read, but it pulls at the heartstrings. Books that have anything to do with children usually affect me more strongly, than others, that's a good thing.

A teacher tries to make everyone comfortable at school by hiding the new yellow stars that some children have to start wearing. She gets creative and makes a difference to her young students.

The resistance made up of different people, a lot of women gather together to do what they can to rescue the Jewish children from the horrors that are coming at them. Some of the new places the children are sent to are safe for the show more children, but some places are not safe.

"Children are not naturally vicious" and "...protecting those who were no longer able to defend themselves." are memorable quotes.

I specifically didn't care for Fat Jacques, a man who turned traitor to his own people and was aiding the Nazis by turning in Jewish families.

Thinking of the courage of the resistance taking the risks, the children and their parents putting their trust in the resistance to keep the children safe and to help reunite the families, after the war is over.

I received a complimentary copy of #HiddenYellowStars from #NetGalley #ShadowMountainPublishing I was under no obligation to post a review.

#WWII #Resistance #Traitors #StarOfDavid #RescuingChildren #HighlyRecommend #RebeccaConnelly #strongfemaleprotagonist show less