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A review by cbarcenam
Daughters of the Fatherland by Jericho J Johnson
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I don't even know how to start this review. I guess I'm still trying to process everything that happened. In all fairness, I just finished the book.
Let's begin at the start. It is the beginning of World War II, and we follow 10-year-old Rosa and her family, who are Romani trying to get out of Germany. Unfortunately, when the war starts, they are captured in Köln and sent to prisoner camps. Rosa and her mother are sent to a women's prisoner camp in Austria, while her father is sent to Berlin. Early in the book, we learn that Rosa was adopted by the couple who found her mother dead during Germany’s Great Depression. To conceal her German appearance, she is forced to dye her hair black. Rosa is emotionally driven, and this trait often leads to a lack of self-control that gets her into trouble.
After facing particularly severe consequences for her actions, she decides to escape the camp to find her father. But before she can escape, she is recruited by Leni Riefenstahl to participate in the filming of her movie "Tiefland". And that is where her adventure begins.
The development of Rosa’s character is quite impressive; she grows and learns a great deal throughout the story. It's hard not to, in such challenging circumstances. Rosa is determined, and she tries to move heaven and earth to find her parents. It is important to note that she is also entering puberty, which makes her journey more complicated.
I’m not sure how to describe it, but this book broke my heart. It does show how resilient children can be, especially stubborn ones. It breaks my heart because we see the perspective of Rosa, a child who was persecuted during the war. At the same time, we have the perspective of younger German boys who were thrown into combat at the end of the war. And by younger I don't mean to teenagers I mean the 10-year-olds.
I have to say this is probably one of the best books I have read this year, if not the best so far. I would give it five stars. The author did a lot of research, which you can see, and has a way with words. There is a beautiful message about fairy tales and storytelling in the book that I believe is going to stay with me. We are all children at heart, especially when we are sad or crying. In the end, this is a story of survival.
I had the opportunity to listen to this book narrated by Alyona Popova, who nails every character. This is a personal preference, but I appreciate when an audiobook is easy to listen to, letting me multitask. And the way she did it, just nailed it.
Thank you, NetGalley and Interactive Publications for letting me listen to this audiobook, I enjoyed it immensely.
Let's begin at the start. It is the beginning of World War II, and we follow 10-year-old Rosa and her family, who are Romani trying to get out of Germany. Unfortunately, when the war starts, they are captured in Köln and sent to prisoner camps. Rosa and her mother are sent to a women's prisoner camp in Austria, while her father is sent to Berlin. Early in the book, we learn that Rosa was adopted by the couple who found her mother dead during Germany’s Great Depression. To conceal her German appearance, she is forced to dye her hair black. Rosa is emotionally driven, and this trait often leads to a lack of self-control that gets her into trouble.
After facing particularly severe consequences for her actions, she decides to escape the camp to find her father. But before she can escape, she is recruited by Leni Riefenstahl to participate in the filming of her movie "Tiefland". And that is where her adventure begins.
The development of Rosa’s character is quite impressive; she grows and learns a great deal throughout the story. It's hard not to, in such challenging circumstances. Rosa is determined, and she tries to move heaven and earth to find her parents. It is important to note that she is also entering puberty, which makes her journey more complicated.
I’m not sure how to describe it, but this book broke my heart. It does show how resilient children can be, especially stubborn ones. It breaks my heart because we see the perspective of Rosa, a child who was persecuted during the war. At the same time, we have the perspective of younger German boys who were thrown into combat at the end of the war. And by younger I don't mean to teenagers I mean the 10-year-olds.
I have to say this is probably one of the best books I have read this year, if not the best so far. I would give it five stars. The author did a lot of research, which you can see, and has a way with words. There is a beautiful message about fairy tales and storytelling in the book that I believe is going to stay with me. We are all children at heart, especially when we are sad or crying. In the end, this is a story of survival.
I had the opportunity to listen to this book narrated by Alyona Popova, who nails every character. This is a personal preference, but I appreciate when an audiobook is easy to listen to, letting me multitask. And the way she did it, just nailed it.
Thank you, NetGalley and Interactive Publications for letting me listen to this audiobook, I enjoyed it immensely.