It wasn’t that noticeable at first. But gradually, Klara began to feel a dislike towards her. First in the shops, then at school, then in the government commands over herself and her mother. They are Jewish.

According to Hitler, then local officials, and then the classmates or locals Klara has known all her life, she didn’t deserve to be served in shops, spoken to in class, or even have a desk in the school she has always attended. Their family business is sold out from under them, Klara has to go to a Jewish school, and then finally they are marched from their home with a suitcase each onto the back of a truck.

Brothers Lucien and Paul are fascinated by the War, believing it’s exciting and even pestering a teenage neighbour about being a soldier. They have watched the changes in their school and know what’s happening around them. It’s only when Lucien learns a hidden family secret that he really begins to worry.

As French citizens, they are horror struck when they too end up on a truck. After many miles they arrive at a French internment camp. They are hungry, tired and confused. When they meet two girls named Klara and Rachel, they begin to realise how much their lives have changed overnight.

The Year We Escaped is set at the time of the Holocaust – in France with French authorities collaborating with the German occupation.

Jewish persecution is clear in the novel, but without depiction of the terrible violence that occurs in other novels set in camps across Germany and Poland.

Told in two 3rd person early teen viewpoints – one of Klara in Germany and one of Lucien in France, The Year We Escaped shows the way lives changed for Jewish people in both countries, with stricter and stricter rules until forced transport to Gurs Internment Camp in South Western France.

As the title suggests, escapes are made – some with the kindness of French citizens and outside influences, and some with fear and courage. The fact that many situations that could have been depicted with much nastier consequences but found kindness instead, makes this a great novel for introducing the events of the Holocaust to interested young readers 10+ 

Author – Suzanne Leal

Age – 10+

Publisher – Harper Collins

Set – Germany / France Early 1940’s (WWII)

Viewpoint – 3rd person

Violence – Guns present / Yes

Real Life – Based on real events

Fantasy – No

Blend – Historical / War

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(2025, Harper Collins, War, World War 2, WWII, Family, Siblings, Brothers, Friendship, Kristallnacht, Pogrom, Jews, Jewish, Nazis, German, French Police, Gendarmerie, Internment Camp, Hunger, Escape, Kindness, Public Train travel, Escape, Courage, Historical, Racism, Prejudice, Holocaust, War, Real Life)