Prisoner B-3087
By: Alan Gratz
Brutally honest need-to-read story
Kelly: ☻☻☻
Boy Reader: ☻☻☻☻
When Boy Reader asked me to read Prisoner B-3087 for Boyz Readz, I knew it was about the Holocaust, but I was expecting a degree of separation, a focus on the heroism of everyday people to balance out the realities of the time. Like Lois Lowry's Number the Stars or Markus Zusak's The Book Thief.
Be prepared.
Prisoner B-3087 is a raw fictionalized account based on the true story of a boy who survived ten concentration camps in Germany and Poland until he was liberated by the Allies from Dachau.
The atrocities of the camps are laid bare. Small kindnesses are the exception, and selfishness the only way to survive. Yet the book is eminently readable.
At first, the author juxtaposes common kid concerns against the uncommon political backdrop. The book starts with, "If I had known what the next six years of my life were going to be like, I would have eaten more." And when his family takes in other Jewish families after a forced resettlement, Yanek comments that, "...you'd think that soldiers in the streets, and synagogues burning, and days with nothing more than moldy potatoes would be more important than who got to play with the doll or who got to sleep by the window, but you'd be wrong."
But normal kid concerns disappear as soon as Yanek arrives at his first concentration camp, Plaszów. The camp commander, Amon Goeth, amuses himself by randomly killing prisoners. In this illogical and precarious world, Yanek quickly learns to relegate his nobler instincts in favor of survival.
Best for the pre-teen reader who is ready to ponder weighty topics.
At twelve, this was Boy Reader's first exposure to the Holocaust. He found the book powerful, compelling, and well worth reading.
Boy Reader: ☻☻☻☻
When Boy Reader asked me to read Prisoner B-3087 for Boyz Readz, I knew it was about the Holocaust, but I was expecting a degree of separation, a focus on the heroism of everyday people to balance out the realities of the time. Like Lois Lowry's Number the Stars or Markus Zusak's The Book Thief.
Be prepared.
Prisoner B-3087 is a raw fictionalized account based on the true story of a boy who survived ten concentration camps in Germany and Poland until he was liberated by the Allies from Dachau.
The atrocities of the camps are laid bare. Small kindnesses are the exception, and selfishness the only way to survive. Yet the book is eminently readable.
At first, the author juxtaposes common kid concerns against the uncommon political backdrop. The book starts with, "If I had known what the next six years of my life were going to be like, I would have eaten more." And when his family takes in other Jewish families after a forced resettlement, Yanek comments that, "...you'd think that soldiers in the streets, and synagogues burning, and days with nothing more than moldy potatoes would be more important than who got to play with the doll or who got to sleep by the window, but you'd be wrong."
But normal kid concerns disappear as soon as Yanek arrives at his first concentration camp, Plaszów. The camp commander, Amon Goeth, amuses himself by randomly killing prisoners. In this illogical and precarious world, Yanek quickly learns to relegate his nobler instincts in favor of survival.
Best for the pre-teen reader who is ready to ponder weighty topics.
At twelve, this was Boy Reader's first exposure to the Holocaust. He found the book powerful, compelling, and well worth reading.