Number the Stars
by Lois Lowry
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Book Reviews of Number the Stars
Book Review: Number The Stars
Summary: 5 Stars
World War II is raging all around Annemarie Johansen, and she is very frightened. Number the Stars by Louis Lowry is a historical fiction novel of a little girl who is very brave.The plot of Number The Stars is of a girl who is ten-years old while World War II is going on. There are food shortages, and the Nazi soldiers are coming. The Nazi's are marching all over Annemarie's hometown, Copenhagen. They are knocking at everyone's doors, and checking all of the houses for Jews there. If Jews are around, then the Nazi's will take them to a concentration camp, in other words a death camp to die. Annemarie and her family let her best friend, Ellen Rosen live with them because Ellen's parents are hiding from the Nazi's. Will Annemarie and her family save Ellen? Well that's one thing you'll have to find out on your own.
The main character, Annemarie Johansen, is ten-years old with short blonde hair and brown eyes. She is very brave not only because of the war, but also because the soldiers checked her house for Jews. Ellen is a Jew but... I can't tell you the ending!!
The setting takes place in Copenhagen around 1943, and when the story ends, the year is still the same. The story adds to the its theme, because you have to be brave during a war, I mean, you never know what will happen, you could even die.
I really liked Number The Stars because it was very exciting and I learned a lot from it about the war. As well as those reasons for my opinion, I have one more. They are, it was very interesting and very historical. I recommend this book to the ages between 10-13, because it might be a little challenging for younger children.
Book Review: Developing Personal Integrity
Summary: 4 Stars
"Developing Personal Integrity"
Various YA books tackle the theme of European resistance to the Nazi regime: Holland, France, Germany itself, Norway and here Denmark--easily accessible to the ferocious might of the Third Reich. In September of 1943 the Nazis invaded their small neighbor to the north and issued a decree closing all synagogues--which ushered in a time of terror, arrest, and the "Relocation" of the entire Jewish population to what we now know were death camps. This Holocaust period (until the Allied victory in WW2) was a time of brutality and moral testing of all normal adults--not a typical
setting for a YA novel.
In NUMBER THE STARS we meet ten-year-old Annemarie Johansen and her brave family. When Annemarie's best friend, Ellen Rosen, is in peril the Johansens reveal the courage of their personal convictions; they work together at great risk, to rescue the condemned girl and her family.
Nor did they stop there, for Peter, Annemarie's future brother-in-law, undertakes to shepherd 7000 Jews into Sweden. This gripping story demonstrates how friendship transcends both religious differences and totalitarian threats. All Germans and Europeans had to look into their own hearts and draw the line re how much they would stomach in the name of nationalism. But Annemarie is terrified when she discovers Ellen's necklace--a Star of David on a chain--in her room, while Nazi soldiers are searching their residence. Does the fate of thousands rest on the courage of a sweet little girl? Could this fragile necklace prove one star too many?
Book Review: I'll rather be in the woods in the middle of the night than to read the book.
Summary: 2 Stars
It's a good thing for me that I wasn't assigned the duty of reading Number the Stars when I was in school. I just happened to spot it on the shelf and wanted to see if I was missing anything. The answer in the end is: not much. Number the Stars adds another tale of many that occurred during World War II and most especially about the Jewish plight caused by the Nazis. Chapter 14: On the Dark Path pretty much sums up my feeling of the entire book. Lois Lowry basically, in this chapter, paints a description of how Annemarie walked along the trail in the woods with the goal of delivering the package to the people who needed it badly. At the same time, she is thinking of so many different thoughts while strolling along. Hey, that's what I did the whole time for the book. I liked the afterword better than the book, and it is interesting. As Lois Lowry makes Denmark so lovely and a magical place to live in, I caution you to not take the claim seriously. Denmark, what I know, is essentially a very socialist country with one of the highest, if not the highest, taxation in the world. The last time I checked, its tax rate runs at 25% and 200% if buying a car. Some have described the population as the people from the movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers or the book Brave New World (and it is absolutely true: just look up the Law of Jante). So, what does this information has to do with the book? In a short answer, not much. All in all, Number the Stars allowed my mind to wander aimlessly and made me instead to want to go in the woods in the middle of the night for an hour, and I would have gotten a better experience.Book Review: Thought Provoking Story of Courage
Summary: 5 Stars
I came across Numbering the Stars while clearing out a storeroom at the school where I teach. Since I had already read and reviewed The Giver, Gathering Blue, and Messenger by Lois Lowry, I took the book home and read it over the weekend.
Numbering the Stars won the 1990 Newbery Medal for most distinguished contribution to American literature for children. The story is set in Denmark during World War II. It centers on Annemarie Johansen and her friend Ellen Rosen and their families. The Rosen's, a Jewish family, live next door to the Johansen's. As with most parents, Annemarie's parents try to keep the harsh reality of the war far from their children. Lowry keeps her focus tight on the character of Annemarie. We see the occupation of Denmark through her eyes. However, Annemarie is at an age where she is curious but not always able to understand the world. As events move forward she, along with the rest of her family, are called upon to be brave.
This relatively short novel allows young people to see the Holocaust through events written for their age level. The story is told well with strong descriptions and good tension. Numbering the Stars deserves the Newbery Medal.
I have criticized the endings of other Lowry stories but this story has a logical start and finish point. As I read the last page, I had answers to my questions and wanted to know more. That is the mark of a story told well. Numbering the Stars is an enjoyable adolescent novel. I recommend it for any Middle School reading program.
Kyle Pratt
Book Review: Number The Stars
Summary: 5 Stars
Denmark Disaster
What would you do if you were a little Danish girl who had to save your
best friend and others? Would you cry and say you just couldn't do it or be brave
and rise to the occasion like little Annemarie Johansen? Annemarie Johansen is
the main character in the historical fiction novel Number the Stars by Lois Lowry.
With her younger sister Kirsti, and her best friend Ellen, they live in the
world of war during the 1940s in Denmark, and often try to escape the horrid
place by playing dolls and eventually taking a trip into the country where they
soon discover that life is not always the fairest place, and that taking risks is the
only way to stay alive and maintain your freedom.
Number the Stars is a fantastic tale of friendships, hardships, and finding
the truth. Lowry practically makes the story come alive around you. The story
literally unfolds right in front of your eyes. While reading this you feel as if Lowry
has given you a one way ticket into Denmark, allowing you to see Annemarie,
Ellen, and Kirsti walking home from school and visiting the country to see
Annemarie and Kirsti's Uncle.
Number the Stars is an exciting, creative, and moving novel. I recommend
this incredible book to girls between the ages of 10-13 who love to go back in
time and relive the lives of others with them.