I tend to avoid any novels about Jews in World War II. The biggest reason being they are way too depressing (The Diary of Anne Frank, anyone?) It’s not that they are poorly written or anything, it’s just something that I never really bothered to touch on except when I really have to. I broke with tradition and picked up one of those books called The War Within These Walls by Aline Sax with illustrations by Caryl Strzelecki.
Based on the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, Misha, and his family are forced to live in the ghetto with the rest of the Jews. After what seems like an eternity being abused by the Germans, Misha comes across a resistance group that decides to stand up against the Germans.
This book is told in the first person, but it’s presented like a poem but not really a poem. Confused? You have to read the book to know what I’m talking about. One thimg this book deos is that one page is white and the other is black. It seems like the black pages are more for writing that is supposed to be super shocking than on white pages, but it’s hard to decern with all the horrible things happening. One of the worst things that happen is Misha sees a German soldier kick over a baby carriage, pick up the baby, slam it against a way and then shoot the mother. That was the only time I stopped reading for a while.
Is the book any good? Well, it is cleverly written, has some nie illustrations and shocking, but it’s nothing groundbreaking. This may sound heartless, but these kind of stories are a dime a dozzen. Yes, World War II was hell for everyone involved and we must hear the voices of those involved, but the sheer number of these stories is staggering. While these stories are important and have historical significance and we must hear them in order to not repeat history, the genre is now tired.
It’s not a bad book, it’s just something we’ve heard many times, but it is one of the better-written books out there.
The War Within These Walls may be one of the better written World War II books about the Jews, it feels the same. Yes, I will say it is one of the more important books as well as Mause and The Diary of Anee Frank, but don’t expect anything different.
Categories: Novels
Tags: Jews in World War II, The War Within These Walls Review, The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising., World War II fiction
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