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The Borrowed House
During World War II a young German girl, member of the Hitler Youth, joins her parents in occupied Amsterdam and comes to realize that the war is about more than national pride and destiny; for some it means starvation, separation from loved ones, and gas chambers.Twelve-year-old Janna joins her actor parents in the requisitioned Amsterdam home of the Van Arkels, and her discoveries concerning the evicted family and their occupied country conflict more and more with her Hitler Youth teachings
215 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1975
96 people are currently reading
1315 people want to read
About the author
Hilda van Stockum
55 books76 followersBorn February 9, 1908, in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Hilda van Stockum was a noted author, illustrator and painter, whose work has won the Newbery Honor and the National Conference of Christians and Jews Brotherhood Award. She was also a charter member of the Children's Book Guild and the only person to have served as its president for two consecutive terms.
Van Stockum was raised partly in Ireland, and also in Ymuiden, the seaport of Amsterdam, where her father was port commander. With no car and few companions, she recalled turning to writing out of boredom. She was also a talented artist. A penchant for art evidently ran in the family, which counted the van Goghs as distant relatives.
In the 1920s, she worked as an illustrator for the Dublin-based publishing house, Browne & Nolan. She illustrated her first book, an Irish reader, in 1930, and her last book in 2001, giving her a 71-year career as a book-illustrator.
Van Stockum attended art school in Amsterdam and later in Dublin, where she met and later married Ervin Ross "Spike" Marlin, who at the time was her brother Willem's roommate at Trinity College. Willem Van Stockum was killed piloting a bomber over France in 1944. Van Stockum memorialized him in her book The Mitchells (1945), about the travails of raising a family in Washington, D.C., during the war. She often used her family as models for the written and illustrated characters in her books.
Not surprisingly then, Van Stockum was, in fact, raising a family in Washington, D.C., at the time, having married Marlin, who by 1935 was a Roosevelt administration official.
She had written and illustrated her first book for children, A Day on Skates , in 1934. It had a foreword by her aunt-by-marriage, Edna St. Vincent Millay, and won a Newbery Honor. During the next four decades she averaged one book per year written, illustrated, translated or some combination.
Van Stockum and the couple's six children were in tow for Marlin's peripatetic assignments, and it seems nothing short of miraculous that she managed to write and illustrate a score of children's books. In addition, she translated and illustrated editions of many other authors.
Asked in 1942 by the Washington Post how she did it, Van Stockum replied with characteristic aplomb, "By neglecting my other duties." Highly organized in her work, she illustrated and painted in the winter and wrote in the summer, when she could get her children out of the house.
Known for their warm, vivid, and realistic depictions of family life in the face of danger and difficulties, van Stockum's books typically featured families and were set wherever she happened to be living; Francie on the Run (1939), about a child who escapes from a hospital, was set in Ireland. Friendly Gables (1958) completed the Mitchells' saga — by then they had moved to Montreal from Washington.
Her most popular book, The Winged Watchman (1962) is the story of two Dutch boys who help the Resistance during the German occupation of the Netherlands in World War II. The book is based on letters Hilda received from relatives in the Netherlands, and has been praised for conveying an accurate sense of life under Nazi occupation.
Hilda van Stockum died in 2006 at the age of 98.
Van Stockum was raised partly in Ireland, and also in Ymuiden, the seaport of Amsterdam, where her father was port commander. With no car and few companions, she recalled turning to writing out of boredom. She was also a talented artist. A penchant for art evidently ran in the family, which counted the van Goghs as distant relatives.
In the 1920s, she worked as an illustrator for the Dublin-based publishing house, Browne & Nolan. She illustrated her first book, an Irish reader, in 1930, and her last book in 2001, giving her a 71-year career as a book-illustrator.
Van Stockum attended art school in Amsterdam and later in Dublin, where she met and later married Ervin Ross "Spike" Marlin, who at the time was her brother Willem's roommate at Trinity College. Willem Van Stockum was killed piloting a bomber over France in 1944. Van Stockum memorialized him in her book The Mitchells (1945), about the travails of raising a family in Washington, D.C., during the war. She often used her family as models for the written and illustrated characters in her books.
Not surprisingly then, Van Stockum was, in fact, raising a family in Washington, D.C., at the time, having married Marlin, who by 1935 was a Roosevelt administration official.
She had written and illustrated her first book for children, A Day on Skates , in 1934. It had a foreword by her aunt-by-marriage, Edna St. Vincent Millay, and won a Newbery Honor. During the next four decades she averaged one book per year written, illustrated, translated or some combination.
Van Stockum and the couple's six children were in tow for Marlin's peripatetic assignments, and it seems nothing short of miraculous that she managed to write and illustrate a score of children's books. In addition, she translated and illustrated editions of many other authors.
Asked in 1942 by the Washington Post how she did it, Van Stockum replied with characteristic aplomb, "By neglecting my other duties." Highly organized in her work, she illustrated and painted in the winter and wrote in the summer, when she could get her children out of the house.
Known for their warm, vivid, and realistic depictions of family life in the face of danger and difficulties, van Stockum's books typically featured families and were set wherever she happened to be living; Francie on the Run (1939), about a child who escapes from a hospital, was set in Ireland. Friendly Gables (1958) completed the Mitchells' saga — by then they had moved to Montreal from Washington.
Her most popular book, The Winged Watchman (1962) is the story of two Dutch boys who help the Resistance during the German occupation of the Netherlands in World War II. The book is based on letters Hilda received from relatives in the Netherlands, and has been praised for conveying an accurate sense of life under Nazi occupation.
Hilda van Stockum died in 2006 at the age of 98.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews
April 4, 2024
Oh my...such a gripping and heart rendering book based upon a true story/stories apparently. It felt so real to me as if I was there experiencing the devastating bleakness and misery that was so prevalent during the war. So many powerful and profound sentiments. A main character Janna slowly changes her mindset as she realizes the horrible attitudes and unfounded prejudices that were held against the Jewish and especially as her mother helped her see differently as well as becoming a friend to a Jewish teen. It stood out to me how sly and crafty the thinking was by Hitler and his cronies to indoctrinate the youngest and put the fear in the others. Janna's Mother felt the guilt but was afraid to stand up against her husband and other Nazi figures. She stated how the Jewish were gifted people, painters, composers, actors, writers, while Janna had been led to believe they were parasites and the cause for war losses in WW1 and all the misery. Her Mother reminded her how we are blessed with their creations, owing them the Bible, people such as Albert Einstein etc. Janna would see innocent jewish people harassed and beaten as they supposedly "deserved" what they got.....
My heart broke so many times during reading; a great insight. Well worth checking out.
My heart broke so many times during reading; a great insight. Well worth checking out.
August 17, 2021
*sighs* Disappointed...I wanted to like this one so much, but by the unsatisfying ending I'd had enough. The Borrowed House had strong potential, and I probably would have really liked it as a young teen, but it just didn't work for me now.
Expositional Dialogue™ gets The Borrowed House off to a slow start. van Stockum has the ability to write so well--explaining characters' emotions through body language--but often undercuts it in adjoining sentences by saying "So-and-so was sad." Yes, my dear, even teen/upper middle grade readers can be trusted to figure that out for themselves. The ending felt so cheap after what the novel was building up to.
The Borrowed House has one really strong point: it'd make a great exercise for age-appropriate readers in phenomenological reading. Few WWII novels for youth put them in the head space of the bad guys. This aspect of the novel could raise great discussion questions about indoctrination, the ethics of teaching multiple perspectives, and the importance of self-education. Also, I appreciated that van Stockum raised the issue of Germany's inhumane war guilt after WWI that crushed their economy and ripened the country for radical takeover.
Overall...not a bad book, just missed potential.
Content warnings: child abuse , sexual assault of a minor by an adult , Nazism in HD
Expositional Dialogue™ gets The Borrowed House off to a slow start. van Stockum has the ability to write so well--explaining characters' emotions through body language--but often undercuts it in adjoining sentences by saying "So-and-so was sad." Yes, my dear, even teen/upper middle grade readers can be trusted to figure that out for themselves. The ending felt so cheap after what the novel was building up to.
The Borrowed House has one really strong point: it'd make a great exercise for age-appropriate readers in phenomenological reading. Few WWII novels for youth put them in the head space of the bad guys. This aspect of the novel could raise great discussion questions about indoctrination, the ethics of teaching multiple perspectives, and the importance of self-education. Also, I appreciated that van Stockum raised the issue of Germany's inhumane war guilt after WWI that crushed their economy and ripened the country for radical takeover.
Overall...not a bad book, just missed potential.
Content warnings: child abuse , sexual assault of a minor by an adult , Nazism in HD
March 9, 2026
This book stressed me out because I cared so deeply about several characters and wanted them to survive and be well in a hostile environment. 😂 And that’s even having read a lot of WWII fiction and nonfiction. I’m also very intrigued by the underlying story in this of Wagner’s Ring cycle. I think knowing more about that story and how it was understood in Hilter’s Germany would add even more to the story. Our heroine thinks of herself as Brunhilde.
My favorite thing about this story is the contrast between 12yo Janna Oster’s indoctrination as a German schoolgirl and member of the Hitler Youth and her own noticing, caring self below what her culture has made her. At the beginning of the story, Janna moves to Amsterdam to join her German actor parents there. Once she is out of Germany, the contrast between what she has been taught and what she observes becomes more and more glaring. Janna’s eyes are slowly opened to the horror of Nazism but she is courageous enough to look and not lie to herself about what she sees. That process of transformation in Janna is moving and causes those around her to act better in small ways too.
I do wish the novel had carried us through to the end of the war though or that Hilda van Stockum gave us a sequel. I want to KNOW what happens to the characters rather than just imagine. I do think Margot Benary-Isbert’s novels of WWII Germany (actually just post-war), The Ark and Rowan Farm, rise to the level of Literature in a way this story doesn’t quite manage but I love its point-of-view, the action, and the characters.
Spoilers below:
The Baron is such an interesting character, both likable and unlikable. I may never stop mourning for Hugo. As Katie said in her review, I also ship Janna and Sef. 😍
My favorite thing about this story is the contrast between 12yo Janna Oster’s indoctrination as a German schoolgirl and member of the Hitler Youth and her own noticing, caring self below what her culture has made her. At the beginning of the story, Janna moves to Amsterdam to join her German actor parents there. Once she is out of Germany, the contrast between what she has been taught and what she observes becomes more and more glaring. Janna’s eyes are slowly opened to the horror of Nazism but she is courageous enough to look and not lie to herself about what she sees. That process of transformation in Janna is moving and causes those around her to act better in small ways too.
I do wish the novel had carried us through to the end of the war though or that Hilda van Stockum gave us a sequel. I want to KNOW what happens to the characters rather than just imagine. I do think Margot Benary-Isbert’s novels of WWII Germany (actually just post-war), The Ark and Rowan Farm, rise to the level of Literature in a way this story doesn’t quite manage but I love its point-of-view, the action, and the characters.
Spoilers below:
The Baron is such an interesting character, both likable and unlikable. I may never stop mourning for Hugo. As Katie said in her review, I also ship Janna and Sef. 😍
July 28, 2016
Mixed emotions. ALL THE MIXED EMOTIONS.
Guys, I'm not really sure what to think about this book. It wasn't a bad book. It was really a good book, as books go . . . But here's the thing: It could have been better. It could have been SO MUCH BETTER. And it wasn't.
The whole premise--having the narrator be a young Hitler Youth girl who whole-heartedly believes the Nazis' lies because they're all she's ever known--that was a fantastic, awesome idea. And the main character herself, Janna--she's really strong and vibrant and life-like. You hate her for some of the stuff she says and does, especially at the beginning of the book; but when she starts realizing that all the adults she trusts have been lying to her for years and years . . . and embarks on her own hunt for the real truth about Hitler . . . you're cheering her on the entire time. I loved Janna, I really did. AND YET. Her story could have been so much MORE powerful if it wasn't mostly "told" instead of "shown." The writing is kind of flat, in other words; detached, rather than immediate and urgent. A ton of stuff happens in this book, stuff that should be super-gripping and exciting . . . but it's not, because you don't really FEEL it the way you're supposed to. It never quite becomes real in your mind.
I don't know why this particular novel was like that--I mean, I've read other books by Hilda van Stockum that were much, much more vivid. "The Winged Watchman," for example (which I would highly recommend) and "The Cottage at Bantry Bay." I guess this one just isn't quite up to standard. I was disappointed by it, because I usually expect much more from Hilda van Stockum; but I still enjoyed reading it.
Also . . . I ship Janna and Sef. A lot. :-)
Guys, I'm not really sure what to think about this book. It wasn't a bad book. It was really a good book, as books go . . . But here's the thing: It could have been better. It could have been SO MUCH BETTER. And it wasn't.
The whole premise--having the narrator be a young Hitler Youth girl who whole-heartedly believes the Nazis' lies because they're all she's ever known--that was a fantastic, awesome idea. And the main character herself, Janna--she's really strong and vibrant and life-like. You hate her for some of the stuff she says and does, especially at the beginning of the book; but when she starts realizing that all the adults she trusts have been lying to her for years and years . . . and embarks on her own hunt for the real truth about Hitler . . . you're cheering her on the entire time. I loved Janna, I really did. AND YET. Her story could have been so much MORE powerful if it wasn't mostly "told" instead of "shown." The writing is kind of flat, in other words; detached, rather than immediate and urgent. A ton of stuff happens in this book, stuff that should be super-gripping and exciting . . . but it's not, because you don't really FEEL it the way you're supposed to. It never quite becomes real in your mind.
I don't know why this particular novel was like that--I mean, I've read other books by Hilda van Stockum that were much, much more vivid. "The Winged Watchman," for example (which I would highly recommend) and "The Cottage at Bantry Bay." I guess this one just isn't quite up to standard. I was disappointed by it, because I usually expect much more from Hilda van Stockum; but I still enjoyed reading it.
Also . . . I ship Janna and Sef. A lot. :-)
May 5, 2020
Wow. There are enough layers to this seemingly-simple novel that I think I may need to reread it again later. How often can one say that of a story aimed at a middle-grade audience?
The Borrowed House starts off a little slowly. One of Hilda Van Stockum’s biggest strengths is her ability to build a delightfully three-dimensional cast, and it takes a little while for the characters in this book to be assembled. Once the book gets going, however, it’s quite powerful. I love the way the author humanizes everyone without relativizing moral truth.
We get to watch as the twelve-year-old German protagonist is forced to reexamine the racial and political beliefs she’s been taught. Janna is intelligent and good-hearted, and it’s relatively easy for her to recognize that what she is seeing in conquered Holland does not match what she’s heard in school. At the same time, however, she loves her flawed parents even though they are not able to acknowledge the truth; and in this book throwing one’s family by the wayside is not treated as a viable solution.
Even though the protagonist is young, this book deals with weighty subjects (Nazism and World War II, obviously, but also the fear of marital infidelity). Janna has mild crushes (very mild--she's definitely a child still, as far as boys are concerned) on two youths who would probably be considered too old for a twelve-year-old today, and the man who is courting her mother gives her gifts and occasional attention that seem a bit more courtly than fully appropriate. There is also a scene in which a soldier forces Janna sit on his lap and kiss him before she is able to run away. All of this material is handled in a way that truly furthers the story and fits the characters, but it might be too much for some young readers to handle.
A lot of books for kids about WWII tend to focus on making it clear the Nazis were evil. This book is focused less on the horrors of the Holocaust than on the quest for truth, and the wrongness of telling (or swallowing) lies. It also addresses the human desire to control others. The author explicitly connects this to belief in God, and suggests that the alternative to power-grabbing is trust that God exists.
For kids ready to think about the ways different human beings respond to good and evil, this book would provide a wonderful opportunity to discuss that question, without requiring immersion in the full horrors of the Holocaust.
The extended references to Wagner made me think of C.S. Lewis's autobiography.
The Borrowed House starts off a little slowly. One of Hilda Van Stockum’s biggest strengths is her ability to build a delightfully three-dimensional cast, and it takes a little while for the characters in this book to be assembled. Once the book gets going, however, it’s quite powerful. I love the way the author humanizes everyone without relativizing moral truth.
We get to watch as the twelve-year-old German protagonist is forced to reexamine the racial and political beliefs she’s been taught. Janna is intelligent and good-hearted, and it’s relatively easy for her to recognize that what she is seeing in conquered Holland does not match what she’s heard in school. At the same time, however, she loves her flawed parents even though they are not able to acknowledge the truth; and in this book throwing one’s family by the wayside is not treated as a viable solution.
Even though the protagonist is young, this book deals with weighty subjects (Nazism and World War II, obviously, but also the fear of marital infidelity). Janna has mild crushes (very mild--she's definitely a child still, as far as boys are concerned) on two youths who would probably be considered too old for a twelve-year-old today, and the man who is courting her mother gives her gifts and occasional attention that seem a bit more courtly than fully appropriate. There is also a scene in which a soldier forces Janna sit on his lap and kiss him before she is able to run away. All of this material is handled in a way that truly furthers the story and fits the characters, but it might be too much for some young readers to handle.
A lot of books for kids about WWII tend to focus on making it clear the Nazis were evil. This book is focused less on the horrors of the Holocaust than on the quest for truth, and the wrongness of telling (or swallowing) lies. It also addresses the human desire to control others. The author explicitly connects this to belief in God, and suggests that the alternative to power-grabbing is trust that God exists.
For kids ready to think about the ways different human beings respond to good and evil, this book would provide a wonderful opportunity to discuss that question, without requiring immersion in the full horrors of the Holocaust.
The extended references to Wagner made me think of C.S. Lewis's autobiography.
November 28, 2018
This is a great book. I read it when I was young, snd have reread it several times since. Really eye opening about life for a young girl during the war. A beautiful friendship story.
December 3, 2018
3.5 Stars
Review and Cleanliness Report coming soon.
Review and Cleanliness Report coming soon.
July 6, 2012
Like the Winged Watchman, this story by Hilda Van Stockum tells a great story and is under-recognized. These two books share a time and place: the Netherlands during Nazi occupation. The author captures the hardships of hunger, of fear, of extreme danger to Jewish residents and the Dutch underground of resistance fighters. Both books are told from a child's point of view. The difference is that this book is narrated by a young German girl thoroughly indoctrinated by the Hitler Youth propaganda in her hometown before joining her actor parents in Amsterdam, where they live in a fancy house requisitioned by the German government.
Janna, the 12-year-old narrator slowly begins to see the lies that have been forced on her and learns the truth through the people she meets and events she witnesses. And then she has to make her own decisions about what is right and where her loyalties should lie and what she needs to do to be heroic.
This book is well-written in terms of literary style (the story parallels Wagner's Ring Cycle, in which Janna's parents are acting) and in terms of pacing (both emotion and action). As I read it, I kept wondering why this book isn't better known and celebrated. Then I found out why: toward the end, the book is hard-hitting in religious language, which makes people queasy these days in juvenile fiction. I thought it was lovely though over-simplified. Besides, if we can deal with violence and sex in modern young adult fiction, why not religion?
I would recommend this for young adults (over age 11) due to some violence and Janna's concern that her mother might be having an affair (she's not).
Janna, the 12-year-old narrator slowly begins to see the lies that have been forced on her and learns the truth through the people she meets and events she witnesses. And then she has to make her own decisions about what is right and where her loyalties should lie and what she needs to do to be heroic.
This book is well-written in terms of literary style (the story parallels Wagner's Ring Cycle, in which Janna's parents are acting) and in terms of pacing (both emotion and action). As I read it, I kept wondering why this book isn't better known and celebrated. Then I found out why: toward the end, the book is hard-hitting in religious language, which makes people queasy these days in juvenile fiction. I thought it was lovely though over-simplified. Besides, if we can deal with violence and sex in modern young adult fiction, why not religion?
I would recommend this for young adults (over age 11) due to some violence and Janna's concern that her mother might be having an affair (she's not).
October 8, 2008
The Borrowed House by Hilda Van Stockum
Is a wonderful book that I think everyone should be able to read . It's about a girl who is a Hitler youth and through some friends (who aren't German) she learns what Hitler is really like. I read it about 3 times. I couldn't put it down!!
Is a wonderful book that I think everyone should be able to read . It's about a girl who is a Hitler youth and through some friends (who aren't German) she learns what Hitler is really like. I read it about 3 times. I couldn't put it down!!
September 28, 2015
Dit is zo een verhaal. Een verhaal met een blik op de andere kant zoals mijn oma zei. Mijn familie van moeders kant hebben het in de oorlogsjaren niet makkelijk gehad. Opa was gehandicapt (houten been) en ze werden naar Brabant geëvacueerd. Maar oma zei altijd: kinderen zijn de slachtoffers aan alle zijdes. Ze krijgen het maar in de schoenen geschoven. Dat wat de ouders hebben gedaan. De vraag die een kind stelt hoe kan dit allemaal?
Janna geniet van haar tijd in het Zwarte Woud, waar ze met de andere leden van de Hitler Jeugd allemaal leuke activiteiten doet. Haar ouders reizen de wereld rond als acteurs. Ze verhuizen naar Amsterdam en komen samen met een ander gezin in een prachtig huis te wonen. Jenna krijgt steeds meer vragen. Waarom worden er steeds mensen opgepakt bijvoorbeeld.
Janna geniet van haar tijd in het Zwarte Woud, waar ze met de andere leden van de Hitler Jeugd allemaal leuke activiteiten doet. Haar ouders reizen de wereld rond als acteurs. Ze verhuizen naar Amsterdam en komen samen met een ander gezin in een prachtig huis te wonen. Jenna krijgt steeds meer vragen. Waarom worden er steeds mensen opgepakt bijvoorbeeld.
October 6, 2022
Apparently Hilda van Stockum considered this her best book. I haven’t read all of them yet to know whether I agree, but it was excellent. WWII historical fiction primarily set in Holland, talks about the atrocities committed by the Nazis without going into too much detail for young readers. This is essentially a coming of age tale and does a good job dealing with a girl’s first love and her complicated relationship with her parents.
June 9, 2017
Finally Finally Finally found the name of this book, I read it in sixth grade and LOVED it! I'm sure this book came out far before 2000, I read it in the 70s.
February 22, 2026
Very sweet, sad, and mostly exciting, but the setting is quite limited. There were at least 3 different plot points that just kind of faded out after simmering for the whole book.
Overall, I enjoyed it, but I would have liked at least an epilogue to "tie up the loose ends" as every English teacher says.
Overall, I enjoyed it, but I would have liked at least an epilogue to "tie up the loose ends" as every English teacher says.
October 21, 2023
So, so good…until the ending!
December 18, 2022
A very powerful book, that explores the themes of truth and racism, regarding Nazi-occupied Amsterdam told from the perspective of a 14 year old German girl.
Two memorable quotes:
“How will I ever learn the truth then?" asked Janna despondently.
"The way other people learn it, " said Hugo. "Do you think newspaper reporters find it easy to learn the truth? They may have to interrogate many liars, sift the facts, and draw their own conclusions. Or judges.... think of their difficulties, yet a human life may depend on what they decide. Then take scientists, how many years of patient observation it takes them to find out the tiniest truth about our universe. You want to be spoon-fed. You've just learned that you may not have the true idea of what is going on, and you want to spend no thought and effort on it yourself. That's a bad attitude. There's a library full of information right here... with enough books in German for you to do some research. Besides, your Dutch is getting good. You have brains, use them.”
*******
“It is much easier to believe lies than the truth."
"Why?" asked Janna.
"Because lies are manufactured to satisfy the emotions. A mother would rather believe her pretty girl lazy than accept the fact that she's a dumb cluck. Germans would rather believe they were stabbed in the back than that they lost a fair fight. And anyone would rather blame someone else for his misfortunes. The truth is hard. Don't fool with it unless you realize that.”
Two memorable quotes:
“How will I ever learn the truth then?" asked Janna despondently.
"The way other people learn it, " said Hugo. "Do you think newspaper reporters find it easy to learn the truth? They may have to interrogate many liars, sift the facts, and draw their own conclusions. Or judges.... think of their difficulties, yet a human life may depend on what they decide. Then take scientists, how many years of patient observation it takes them to find out the tiniest truth about our universe. You want to be spoon-fed. You've just learned that you may not have the true idea of what is going on, and you want to spend no thought and effort on it yourself. That's a bad attitude. There's a library full of information right here... with enough books in German for you to do some research. Besides, your Dutch is getting good. You have brains, use them.”
*******
“It is much easier to believe lies than the truth."
"Why?" asked Janna.
"Because lies are manufactured to satisfy the emotions. A mother would rather believe her pretty girl lazy than accept the fact that she's a dumb cluck. Germans would rather believe they were stabbed in the back than that they lost a fair fight. And anyone would rather blame someone else for his misfortunes. The truth is hard. Don't fool with it unless you realize that.”
November 9, 2014
This story is about a young German girl experiencing occupied Holland as an occupier. It is based on a true story and opens realistically with the girl (Janna) for several pages soaking up German legends as part of Hitler Youth. It can be viewed as a sequel to The Winged Watchman, which is about two boys in rural Holland in World War joining the Resistance. The Winged Watchman has been praised for its handling of evil in a wholesome way, and is therefore appropriate for younger children in the fourth or fifth grade. Some families might not be ready to read out The Borrowed House until at least the sixth grade.
May 28, 2017
3 1/2 stars
The Borrowed House is a coming of age story that deals with the horrors of WWII in a gentle enough way to make this a good introduction for younger readers. As Janna and her family move to Holland and occupy the home of residents that were forced out to make room for German citizens, Janna begins to learn the truth behind the war through various relationships and encounters including a friendship with a Jewish boy who lives in hiding in the house. The transformation of the main character, from a product of the Nazi propaganda machine, to a freethinking, compassionate individual was believable and well portrayed.
The Borrowed House is a coming of age story that deals with the horrors of WWII in a gentle enough way to make this a good introduction for younger readers. As Janna and her family move to Holland and occupy the home of residents that were forced out to make room for German citizens, Janna begins to learn the truth behind the war through various relationships and encounters including a friendship with a Jewish boy who lives in hiding in the house. The transformation of the main character, from a product of the Nazi propaganda machine, to a freethinking, compassionate individual was believable and well portrayed.
February 12, 2018
Hilda van Stockum does an amazing job highlighting Hitler’s propaganda in comparison with the reality of everyday life.
Seen through the eyes of young Janna who leaves Germany and the propaganda of Hitler’s Youth to live with her parents in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam. In Amsterdam, Janna comes face-to-face with Hitlers’ embellishments, real Dutch resistors, real Jews and her own families opinions and wrongdoings.
Done through the eyes of a youth, this book is appropriate for young people. It shows the wrestling of a young heart for truth. And truth wins.
Seen through the eyes of young Janna who leaves Germany and the propaganda of Hitler’s Youth to live with her parents in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam. In Amsterdam, Janna comes face-to-face with Hitlers’ embellishments, real Dutch resistors, real Jews and her own families opinions and wrongdoings.
Done through the eyes of a youth, this book is appropriate for young people. It shows the wrestling of a young heart for truth. And truth wins.
August 28, 2023
the central premise of the story is that the main character spent her formative years in Nazi Germany being brainwashed, but learns better in she starts to see things for herself. This change of heart came with out any particular difficulty, but since the reader knows already how wrong she was at first, it's not that engrossing to read about....probably I would have enjoyed it much much more as a child.
January 8, 2022
This book started out very slow to me but slowly built the head of steam that I was expecting. It was such a sad tale and I really thought the writing was done brilliantly.
I found the borrowed house such a strain and I felt that it really made me anxious as these people really were living a life in a glass house.
I found the change of mind of the main character on what she thought after her indoctrination into Hitler's Youth.
It was a harrowing plight when in Amsterdam and I really found it enlightening to see the culture from the eyes of two younger people in different places in their lives.
I found the borrowed house such a strain and I felt that it really made me anxious as these people really were living a life in a glass house.
I found the change of mind of the main character on what she thought after her indoctrination into Hitler's Youth.
It was a harrowing plight when in Amsterdam and I really found it enlightening to see the culture from the eyes of two younger people in different places in their lives.
August 18, 2025
Great book on a German family living in Amsterdam during WWII. I would recommend it for middle schoolers and up. bc of th CCs listed below...
CCs are the 12 year old girl is forced to sit on a Nazi officer's lap and he kisses her hard (she bites him, cries and runs away), the girl's mother is having an affair and the girl is worried about her mother running off with the other man and thus leaving her and her father, and some very mild romance/crush talk between a 17 year old boy and a 12 year old girl.
CCs are the 12 year old girl is forced to sit on a Nazi officer's lap and he kisses her hard (she bites him, cries and runs away), the girl's mother is having an affair and the girl is worried about her mother running off with the other man and thus leaving her and her father, and some very mild romance/crush talk between a 17 year old boy and a 12 year old girl.
April 25, 2023
I really enjoyed reading about Janna's growth in this book as she gradually discovers the truth behind Nazi philosophy.
Content warning: this book isn't like other van Stockum books I've read. There are some more mature happenings in it, like a man in love with a married woman; an adult trying to kiss, and briefly succeeding at it, a young girl; and a man beating his family. These are all on top of the normal things you'd expect to read from a WWII novel. However, the author handles the mature themes well and I am comfortable letting my 6th grade and older kids read it.
Content warning: this book isn't like other van Stockum books I've read. There are some more mature happenings in it, like a man in love with a married woman; an adult trying to kiss, and briefly succeeding at it, a young girl; and a man beating his family. These are all on top of the normal things you'd expect to read from a WWII novel. However, the author handles the mature themes well and I am comfortable letting my 6th grade and older kids read it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 23, 2025
A really charming middle grade book that adults will also enjoy. I love reading books set during WWII and this one was so interesting being from the POV of a German nazi youth set in occupied Amsterdam and how the realities of the war unfold around her and cause her to question everything she’s been told. The writing was so descriptive and emotional, it really pulled me in from the start.
June 10, 2025
4.5
Really enjoyed the POV of a German girl during WW2.
Wish the mother's infidelity (or assumed relationship) with the Baron was portrayed in a more negative view though.
Really enjoyed the POV of a German girl during WW2.
Wish the mother's infidelity (or assumed relationship) with the Baron was portrayed in a more negative view though.
March 2, 2026
This book is incredible. You rarely see historical fiction that tells much of the German side of events—especially how people were raised to believe in “their truth.” It was beautiful to follow little Janna as she moves from Germany to Amsterdam and begins to learn that what she once believed to be true… isn’t.
She is a very strong girl, and her urge to make a difference and help others is truly inspiring
She is a very strong girl, and her urge to make a difference and help others is truly inspiring
April 23, 2020
Teaching character
Set during Nazi occupation of Amsterdam during WWII, this book gives children insight into the human aspect of that war, especially the idealization of the Aryan race, and the injustices that ensued as a result. There is one scene worth pre-reading to decide whether appropriate for young readers around 50% through. Also, no gory details, but executions, gas chambers, and other horrific acts are mentioned.
Set during Nazi occupation of Amsterdam during WWII, this book gives children insight into the human aspect of that war, especially the idealization of the Aryan race, and the injustices that ensued as a result. There is one scene worth pre-reading to decide whether appropriate for young readers around 50% through. Also, no gory details, but executions, gas chambers, and other horrific acts are mentioned.
September 14, 2009
This is a really well-written book which contains so many elements attractive to the middle-school and up reader; history, mystery, romance, conflict.
The main character really begins to come of age in the book, as she learns to see for herself what life is like in her time and place.
I really like that the romance in the novel is chaste and that there is ultimately respect for the value of marriage.
The main character really begins to come of age in the book, as she learns to see for herself what life is like in her time and place.
I really like that the romance in the novel is chaste and that there is ultimately respect for the value of marriage.
June 12, 2010
I loved the snappy characters, engaging dialogue, and well-paced action and suspense of this novel. It also gave an interesting view on Hitler's side of WW2. Since the main character is one of the brainwashed children the things she says really open up your eyes to what they were being convinced was right and true. Highly recommended!
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March 20, 2011This author is so wonderful, and this is another book of hers that I love. It's written from a very interesting point of view. A young German girl is in the Hitler Youth Organization as she faces the tragedy of World War II.
February 6, 2020
A German girl moves to Nazi-occupied Holland and finds things are not as she thought.
Janna is proud to be part of Germany, the best country in the world. She goes to her Hitler's Youth meetings and works on the farms, learns her racial supremacy lessons ("When you don't know the answer to a question [on a racial supremacy test], just say something bad about the Jews and they'll give you a good mark."), and writes diligently to her mother and father, acting in plays in Holland. But when they finally send for her, her world is turned upside down-- not only because her parents are different than she'd remembered, but also because what she's seeing is making her disobedient, making her doubt her leader's knowledge... And who is right? Adolf Hitler or her heart?
This book, in some ways, reminded me of Every Falling Star: The True Story of How I Survived and Escaped North Korea by Sungju Lee with the simple writing and clear indoctrination with phrases like, Hitler is invincible, a man of destiny. With him we can do anything; and The Rhine was an especially German river. Many tales and legends were connected with it. Janna remembered Herr Schultz, the geography teacher, telling the class, "Because the Rhine starts in Switzerland and ends in Holland, those countries really belong to us."; and Today we own Germany, tomorrow the world...".
Admittedly, the writing was a bit dry, childish, I felt. Not childish in the way that the author, Hilda van Stockum, was childish, but that perhaps she was quite used to telling stories to children and those habits carried over into her writing. Her style of writing, then, lent no drama to the story, and actually seemed to flatten it a bit, which disappointed me.
Hitler is not only commander-in-chief of all the armed forces, he is also the supreme ruler of the civilians. He is the 'sole judge of what is good for the German people without being bound by legal regulations'.
Janna is proud to be part of Germany, the best country in the world. She goes to her Hitler's Youth meetings and works on the farms, learns her racial supremacy lessons ("When you don't know the answer to a question [on a racial supremacy test], just say something bad about the Jews and they'll give you a good mark."), and writes diligently to her mother and father, acting in plays in Holland. But when they finally send for her, her world is turned upside down-- not only because her parents are different than she'd remembered, but also because what she's seeing is making her disobedient, making her doubt her leader's knowledge... And who is right? Adolf Hitler or her heart?
This book, in some ways, reminded me of Every Falling Star: The True Story of How I Survived and Escaped North Korea by Sungju Lee with the simple writing and clear indoctrination with phrases like, Hitler is invincible, a man of destiny. With him we can do anything; and The Rhine was an especially German river. Many tales and legends were connected with it. Janna remembered Herr Schultz, the geography teacher, telling the class, "Because the Rhine starts in Switzerland and ends in Holland, those countries really belong to us."; and Today we own Germany, tomorrow the world...".
Admittedly, the writing was a bit dry, childish, I felt. Not childish in the way that the author, Hilda van Stockum, was childish, but that perhaps she was quite used to telling stories to children and those habits carried over into her writing. Her style of writing, then, lent no drama to the story, and actually seemed to flatten it a bit, which disappointed me.
Hitler is not only commander-in-chief of all the armed forces, he is also the supreme ruler of the civilians. He is the 'sole judge of what is good for the German people without being bound by legal regulations'.
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