Middle Grade Monday: White Bird by R. J. Palacio

Image: Wonderthebooks website

White Bird by R. J. Palacio. 224 p. Knopf/ Random House Children's Books, October, 2019. 9780525645535. (Review of finished purchased copy.)

Middle Grade Monday features White Bird by R. J. Palacio. Did you know that Palacio is also a artist? She was an art director before she wrote Wonder and all its companion novels. She illustrated her picture book, We are All Wonders and makes her debut as a graphic novelist in, White Bird. Julian now attends a new school and must interview someone for a homework assignment. He chooses his beloved grandmère and asks her to tell him about his namesake, Julien. He was a classmate of Sara's who was afflicted with polio and a cruel nickname, "Tourteau," for the crab-like way he walked with crutches. 

Even Sara was complicit in this awful treatment of Julien. While she felt badly for him, she never stood up for him. In fact, she never learned his real name despite sitting next to him in class for years. That doesn't stop Julien from saving Sara when the Gestapo arrive at their school to round up the Jewish children. Julien's parents hid Sara in their barn at great peril to their own safety. 

If you loved Wonder, you will enjoy this graphic novel. Graphic novel fans looking for more serious fare will also enjoy White Bird.

Fact Friday: His Name was Raoul Wallenberg: courage rescue and mystery during World War II by Louise Borden

His Name was Raoul Wallenberg: courage rescue and mystery during World War II by Louise Borden. 136 p. Houghton Mifflin Books for Children/ Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, January, 2012. 9780618507559. (Own)

Raoul Wallenberg was born to wealthy Swedish parents in 1912. He was bright, kind, inquisitive and had a knack for languages. He spoke five fluently. He led a life of privilege and decided to use his talents and influence to provide safe passage for thousands of Hungarian Jews. His disappearance at the end of the war remains an unsolved mystery. He was last seen in the custody of the Russian Army. This verse biography is compelling reading. It's profusely illustrated with photographs and maps, and the author's scholarship is evident in the lengthy backmatter.

Non-Fiction Monday: His Name was Raoul Wallenberg: courage, rescue and mystery during World War II

by Louise Borden. 136 p. Houghton Mifflin Books for Children/ Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, January, 2012. 9780618507559. (Purchased.)

Raoul Wallenberg may not be the first name that comes to mind when contemplating righteous gentiles of the Holocaust, but students of the Holocaust would do well to learn about him and this gorgeously designed biography introduces the man memorably. 

Mr. Wallenberg was born into a wealthy family in Sweden. He never knew his father, who died of cancer three months before he was born. His fraternal grandfather Gustaf Oscar Wallenberg, who was at one time Sweden's minister to Japan, influenced Raoul's life immensely. It was he who arranged for Raoul to become a "citizen of the world." It was Raoul, with his insatiable curiosity, appreciation for the arts and intense interest in history and people who fulfilled his grandfather's wishes. 

The pace of this verse biography is leisurely in the beginning, and accompanied by many photographs of family and places. It took me a while to get into the rhythm of the "verse." It seemed to me to be more chopped up and artfully arranged sentences. I did a lot of rereading before I adjusted. 

At times, I also wished for more detail, like more than one line about his father dying of cancer or the one line about his step-father, Frederik von Dardel. But this is a minor and purely personal quibble. 

Tension definitely ratchets during the last half as Borden describes Sweden's role during World War II and the plan to send Mr. Wallenberg to Hungary. This reader was awed by the audacity of Mr. Wallenberg as well as his courage and commitment to rescuing Jews. 

Several pages of back matter provide more information about Mr. Wallenberg and the family he left behind. The author got to visit Sweden and interview family and friends. She provides a two-page bibliography, recommends several video recordings.

This unusual biography may take a little hand-selling to students, but should be recommended for any social studies unit on the Holocaust or the subject of righteous gentiles.

Other blog reviews:
The Children's War
Nonfiction Detectives
Ms. Yingling Reads

Non-Fiction Monday is hosted this week by Anastasia at Booktalking#Kidlit.