Historical Fiction -- 3 1/2 stars
Berlin, 1930 -- Henrik and Greta are growing up with an Aryan mother and a Jewish father. Leaving their dying father behind, their mother takes them to her family in Poland, hoping they will be safe there. When a German officer takes Greta away, it is up to Henrik to find her and return her to her family. ----- The Third Reich's program of removing children from their families if they looked Aryan enough in order to strengthen their "master race" is a well documented historical fact. However, I did not get the feeling that Ms. Liviero had done any actual research into this Nazi program. Her references to it lack depth and insight. Written in the first person, beginning in short, simple sentences, that reflect a five year old's understanding about the war and his precarious position, his language becomes more sophisticated as he grows older, but never quite becomes natural or completely believable. Again, in Henrik's actual travels, it seemed that Ms. Liviero imagined his trials without any real investigation into what his quest would actually have involved. The result seems like an over simplification that lacks the necessary realism for a good historical fiction novel.
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