He's a boy called Jew. Gypsy. Stopthief. Runt. Happy. Fast. Filthy son of Abraham. He's a boy who lives in the streets of Warsaw. He's a boy who steals food for himself and the other orphans. He's a boy who believes in bread, and mothers, and angels. He's a boy who wants to be a Nazi some day, with tall shiny jackboots and a gleaming Eagle hat of his own. Until the day that suddenly makes him change his mind. And when the trains come to empty the Jews from the ghetto of the damned, he's a boy who realizes it's safest of all to be nobody. Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli takes us to one of the most devastating settings imaginable--Nazi-occupied Warsaw of World War II--and tells a tale of heartbreak, hope, and survival through the bright eyes of a young orphan. From the Hardcover edition.
Newbery Medal-winning author Jerry Spinelli (Maniac McGee, Stargirl) paints a vivid picture of the streets of the Nazi-occupied Warsaw during World War II, as seen through the eyes of a curious, kind, heartbreakingly naïve orphan with many names. His name is Stopthief when people shout "Stop! Thief!" as he flees with stolen bread. Or it's Jew, "filthy son of Abraham," depending on who's talking to him. Or, maybe he's a Gypsy, because his eyes are black, his skin is dark, and he wears a mysterious yellow stone around his neck. His new friend and protector Uri forces him to take the name Misha Pilsudski and to memorize a made-up story about his Gypsy background so that no one will mistake him for a Jew and kill him. Misha, a very young boy, is slow to understand what's happening around him. When he sees people running, he thinks it's a race. Nazis (Jackboots, as the children call them) marching through the streets appear to him as a delightful parade of magnificent boots. He wants to be a Jackboot! (Uri smacks him for saying this.) He compares bombs to sauerkraut kettles, machine guns to praying mantises, and tanks to "colossal gray long-snouted beetles." The story of Misha and his band of orphans trying to survive on their own would have a deliciously Dickensian quality, if it weren't for the devastation around them--people hurrying to dig trenches to stop Nazi tanks, shops exploding in flames, the wailing of sirens, buzzing airplanes, bombs, and human torture. Spinelli has written a powerfully moving story of survival--readers will love Misha the dreamer and his wonderfully poetic observations of the world around him, his instinct to befriend a Jewish girl and her family, his impulse to steal food for a local orphanage and his friends in the ghetto, and his ability to delight in small things even surrounded by the horror of the Holocaust. A remarkable achievement. (Ages 11 and older) --Karin Snelson
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Amazing, insightful, chilling:
In this book, the Nazi invasion of Poland is seen through the eyes of a small homeless vagabond of a child, a child who is both too naive to understand properly what is going on around him, yet also more street-smart and much better at surviving the hard life than the adults around him. I found this book refreshingly unique, intelligently written, and compelling too - in fact, I found it so impossible to put down that I ended up staying up most of the night to finish it. However, it is a very... more info
Milkweed:
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys WWII and holocaust books. This story is about a boy. A boy who has no name, no family, no home. This boy is taken from place to place ripped from new friends and put into the hands of enemies. Put in jail cells one day, then living in the homes of strangers the next. It's always hard to find food, always a struggle to keep warm. He meets new people, and his told who he is countless times. He is called thief, Gypsy, Jew. He was called Misha. He is called... more info
Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli:
This is a great book. The way Jerry Spinelli developes the character, Misha Piludski, and makes it so that you really get a feel of what it was like to be Jewish during the Holocaust. This book is one of the best books i have ever read. It leads you through the story of a boy that with a little help will make it a long way. And learn to make with what he has. To be smart. And to care for others. Overall this is a great book for people looking for a page turner. The plot and the characters are so great... more info
Milkweed from a teen's perspective:
This book deals with a boy who has to deal with the time and events of the Jewish past. The main character (Misha or Stopthief) has to learn what's really happening in the present time and how to survive it. The incidents of the past might confuse him on what was really happening and what's in the world. But luckily he doesn't have to do it on his own. Throughout his adventure he'll get help from his friends Uri and Janina. Maybe all together they can crack the code which is his past. Reading this book... more info
