Milkweed

by Jerry Spinelli

He’s a boy called Jew. Gypsy. Stopthief. Runt. Happy. Fast. Filthy son of Abraham.

He’s a boy who lives in the streets of Warsaw. He’s a boy who steals food for himself and the other orphans. He’s a boy who believes in bread, and mothers, and angels. He’s a boy who wants to be a Nazi some day, with tall shiny jackboots and a gleaming Eagle hat of his own. Until the day that suddenly makes him change his mind. And when the trains come to empty the Jews from the ghetto of the damned, he’s a boy who realizes it’s safest of all to be nobody.

Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli takes us to one of the most devastating settings imaginable—Nazi-occupied Warsaw of World War II—and tells a tale of heartbreak, hope, and survival through the bright eyes of a young orphan.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Fiction, Holocaust, Historical, World War II, Middle Grade

208 pages, Hardcover

First published September 9, 2003

About the author

When Jerry Spinelli was a kid, he wanted to grow up to be either a cowboy or a baseball player. Lucky for us he became a writer instead.

He grew up in rural Pennsylvania and went to college at Gettysburg College and Johns Hopkins University. He has published more than 25 books and has six children and 16 grandchildren.
Jerry Spinelli began writing when he was 16 — not much older than the hero of his book Maniac Magee. After his high school football team won a big game, his classmates ran cheering through the streets — all except Spinelli, who went home and wrote a poem about the victory. When his poem was published in the local paper, Spinelli decided to become a writer instead of a major-league shortstop.

In most of his books, Spinelli writes about events and feelings from his own childhood. He also gets a lot of material from his seven adventurous kids! Spinelli and his wife, Eileen, also a children's book author, live in Pennsylvania.

Reviews

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I initially read this book to determine whether it was appropriate for my 11 year-old daughter to read. Although it is considered a YA novel, any book (fiction or non-fiction) with a theme centered around the holocaust, is a novel I want to preview before allowing my child to absorb.

I was immediately drawn to the short sentence structure and quick action. From the beginning, the reader is drawn into an eight year-old orphan boy's innocent view of a world where he must steal, and become virtually invisible, to survive.

It's a quick read; I read it in one day. It is the boy's innocent and honest view of the world around him during one of the most horrific times in history that kept me turning the pages.

The boy's innocence and naivete to the chaos and pure hatred surrounding him is touching, and rather humorous at times.

Although Milkweed is a work of fiction, it made me wonder how close it came to the inner workings of a child's mind during this time period.

While the central theme revolves around the time leading up to the holocaust, it only takes the reader through the time when Jews were relocated out of their homes to the ghetto. It touches briefly on the time of deportation, when those housed in ghettos were put on trains for human shipment to concentration camps. However, it never visits the horrors of an actual concentration camp.

Some of the prevalent messages that stood out for me in Milkweed were those of hope, love and inner happiness at a time when Nazi occupation colored the world gray with irrational hatred and unfair brutality.

I found myself lingering with thoughts of the book long after I read the final page.

After reading Milkweed, I would allow my daughter to read it. I think I would rather read it with her though, so if she had any thoughts or questions we could talk about it along the way.

[Becky · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hope that nobody will look at me funny when I say that I love reading WWII/Holocaust stories. I do. I'm drawn to the stories of the people - I want to know what it is in us that makes us so cruel to others. I'm fascinated by people's stories- real or fiction. I don't think that they should be ignored or forgotten, and acknowledging them makes me more thankful for the good things that I have in my life.

Milkweed is a story of an orphan in 1930s Poland who knows nothing but survival. Not who he is, who other people are, nothing of the world around him. He knows only that he is small and fast and able to snatch food right from under the noses of the people it belongs to. He is eventually taken in by a gang of orphan kids, and becomes the special ward of one in particular, Uri.

I really loved Uri's character. He's generous, kind, wise beyond his years, in tune with the world around him, and street smart. He teaches, or tries to teach our main character orphan (who he later names Misha), about life and how to keep it. His character is almost that of a mentor, or older brother to clean-slate Misha, and I loved that he was stern with Misha when Misha obliviously ran dangerous risks that would endanger both Uri's and Misha's lives. He makes sure that when they have a surplus of food, that other orphans receive it.

When Misha ends up branded as a Jew and living in a ghetto in Warsaw, the tables turn a bit and he begins to act the "older brother" role for a young girl named Janina. Janina's family was once wealthy and well-to-do, and living in the ghetto is a hard adjustment for her. Her father, Tobiasz, takes in Misha as one of the family, and Misha smuggles food in from outside the ghetto to help feed the family, and a house of orphans in the care of another man.

Janina takes to following Misha on these trips, which is frustrating to me as a reader, because she's the epitome of a spoiled brat. She refuses to do what she's told, or to stay inconspicuous. She willfully causes a scene to get her way, and refuses to accept that her situation has changed. I could not understand why Misha stuck by her. I understand that he now considered her and Tobiasz as his family, but I'd have probably beat her to a pulp in that situation.

Her father is a kind man, and next to Uri, the only character that I cared for. He tries to make sure that his daughter is safely away from the ghetto when he finds out that they are being "resettled" elsewhere - a concentration camp - but she stubbornly and selfishly refuses. I couldn't stand the little brat.

It's hard for me to enjoy a story where so much focus is put on stupid or annoying characters that I cannot relate to. Every decision that Misha or Janina made was contrary to the one that I'd have made in their place. Janina ended up right where I thought she would in the end, but until then, every time that she wasn't caught by the patrols, it was unrealistic and aggravating, because she was essentially doing everything she could to be caught, and just got insanely lucky time after time.

On top of that, I felt like the writing was just... off. I don't know how to describe it, but it felt simplistic to me, even for a YA book. But at the same time, it felt like it was supposed to be imparting some great truths, and while there were a few good quotes, I didn't think that there was anything especially profound here.

So, this was OK. Not anywhere close to the best book I've read on this subject, but not terrible. I just expected a bit more, I think.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first Jerry Spinelli book that I have read. I bought Stargirl at the same time and after reading Milkweed I am excited to start reading Stargirl. Spinelli does well to portray the voice of a young orphan boy in Warsaw. There are a lot of reviews about this and the book "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" that say that it is unbelievable that there were children that did not know what was going on around them. I really disagree with these statements. I have taught 5th graders and 6th graders that had no idea that we are at war with Iraq. So I do not, personally, find it hard to believe that this innocence or lack of knowledge occured even during the WWII Era with the Jews. This was a great book about friendship and the importance of families, no matter who they are make up of. I think that it also shows us the importance of belonging. Misha really didn't care about what group: thieves, orphans, Jews, Jackboots, he belonged in, he just wanted to belong.

[Catherine · Rating 1 out of 5]

I love both Maniac Magee and Stargirl, but this book left me cold. I found it unbelievable. I didn't really care about the characters. Spinelli is usually good to pull me into the story, but this story just made me feel yucky. I didn't get the whole "Candy man" in the Ghetto. Where did he come from. In every story I've ever read about the Holocaust the children (and adults) are always afraid of the soldiers. I found the idea of the Misha and Janina taunting the Mint man annoying. It wouldn't have happened that way.

I found the story annoying and trite. I expect better from Spinelli.

Edited to Add:

I think I figured out why this story bothers me so much. Spinelli tells of a boy who is fast, smart, and lucky enough to escape the Nazis. This story feeds into the fact that victims need to be better, stronger, faster, more clever, etc - and if they are, they can outsmart their abusers. I feel that stories like this perpetuate the myth that the victim is responsible for their own escape from abuse. This story is why so many who have not been abused or in horrible situations say things like, "Well, why didn't they just walk away. Why didn't they tell someone." Torture and abuse go so far beyond what normal people realize that normal reactions don't happen when a person is in the thick of horror. This story asks the questions: "Misha was able to walk away from the Ghetto - why didn't all those other Jews just walk away from the Ghetto?" It isn't realistic - I feel this story downplays the suffering of those who lived through the death camps and all of those who didn't. Why didn't all those other Jews steal food so they didn't starve to death? They should have been as smart as Misha (who is fictional).

Now that I've identified why I don't like this book, I feel better. (not about the book).

[littlemiao · Rating 1 out of 5]

Milkweed, by Jerry Spinelli, is another disappointing addition to recent Holocaust fiction which has made its way into classrooms, displacing more worthwhile and significant works of fiction and non-fiction. Perhaps that makes me resent it a little more than it deserves. The author means well. The author tried. Nonetheless, the author does not fulfill his responsibility to his chosen setting, what for many people is a history they live in their memories, in family’s memories, and in the memories that are missing, a history their family trees will never recover from. I gave the book 1.5 stars because it is better than The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, which set a low bar for Holocaust fiction. The two do share at least a few notable similarities. They won enough critical attention to become integrated into school curricula. The authors profess no personal connections to the Holocaust. And the protagonists of both books are young boys completely oblivious to their social contexts. Strangely enough, neither protagonist knows what a Jew is at the start of their story.

Milkweed, told from the perspective of a young orphan growing up on the streets in Warsaw and later in the Warsaw ghetto, has all the ingredients for a thought-provoking exploration of what would be challenging and important themes for readers for any age. It should be a story with great symbolism and significance. It should be tragic, moving, haunting. Indeed, the author loads the story with symbols - stone angels and milkweed pods being the most obvious - and does not sugarcoat the grimness of the setting. It is about a boy’s search for identity and belonging, about his introduction to human brutality, and about his hope and transcendence of suffering. It has potential. But the book is incredible in the most unfavorable sense of the term. Weighty symbolism and a tragic setting are not enough to carry a story.

The author is, to an extent, faithful to history. It was a brutal time and he does not shy away from the brutality. In fact, he shows us little else. Without outside knowledge, the reader would be ignorant that Warsaw was a vibrant center of Jewish life before the war. One might argue that the protagonist’s experiences did not extend that far, so it has no place in the narrative. But that reality is also a crucial element to understanding the Warsaw setting. Jews sprang into the protagonist’s consciousness only as the objects of self-hatred and societal derision, and the targets of violence from others and from each other. The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising barely earns a mention - it happens after the narrator escapes the city. The Jews in the ghetto come across as hardly more than doomed husks of humanity. But the narrator is different. He is not a Jew - that is one of the few things he knows about himself. He knows he is a Gypsy, though he has no concept of growing up as a member of a marginalized and stigmatized group. He also knows he is a thief - he calls himself Stopthief because that is what everyone else calls him. But he is not just any thief; he is a thief of Robin Hood-esque skill and bravado, gracing his starving Jewish friends in the ghetto with the fruits of his forays across the wall. His innate thieving skills give him the ability to smuggle food across the ghetto wall with an impunity that would have gotten anyone else killed. To whatever extent the author was successful in recreating the setting, he undermines it with the unbalanced view of Jewish life in Warsaw and with an unconvincing narrator.

The unrelenting parade of brutality against Jews that the narrator witnesses comes across as voyeuristic rather than educational. The protagonist’s unexplained cluelessness when it comes to these grotesque acts of violence and inhumanity seems like a disingenuous attempt to increase the shock value of the descriptions. Having lived on the streets for long enough to become a skilled thief, a survivor, the protagonist would be able to sense the difference between whatever activities normally took place on streets before the Nazi invasion and acts of violence targeted against Jews that followed the invasion. He must have developed some kind of interpretive framework to understand his world. Without any kind of explanation of the protagonist’s background, or any insight into how he might have lost his memories, the eyes of “innocence” through which he views Nazi violence are not believable.

I cannot help but ponder Spinelli’s use of a complete tabula rasa as his protagonist. He is not alone in this urge - the author of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas did the same. They both create a character who has grown up in a certain context but is, for unexplained reasons, completely oblivious to that context in their basic knowledge, beliefs and assumptions, and experiences. I would argue that if this is going to be one of the defining characteristics of a character, it should be interrogated and explored. How we become who we are is part of why we see things the way we do, and why we act as we do. There are compelling reasons why a character, regardless of age, might have no recollection of their past. Their past does not have to be explained or resolved, but it will filter into their present in meaningful ways. Their unknown past will influence the telling of the story. But when this blankness is used as the pretext for an otherwise inexplicable collection of traits, then it is lazy writing. How does Spinelli’s protagonist, who has no street sense, achieve his phenomenal acts of theft? As oblivious as he is, how did he even survive to the start of the story, let alone its end? Making the protagonist a blank slate is an easy way to disclaim responsibility to the historical setting. The author can, and does, avoid any real engagement with the issues he raises. And there are plenty of issues in this book worthy of deeper engagement - what it meant to be labeled a Jew or a Gypsy before or after the Nazi invasion; what it meant to be homeless or orphaned in urban Poland; what it means to have no memories of your own, no past, no sense of belonging; what impact witnessing pervasive violence has on growing up. Anything inaccurate or unbelievable can be explained away as a product of the protagonist’s lack of comprehension, or of their fragmented experience of their own life. The author frees himself from having to write a character who embodies the history, beliefs, and upbringing of their times. The character can thus serve as a stand-in for the author himself, a vehicle for whatever message or symbolism the author wants to express. That is not a responsible engagement with our past. Nor is it very good literature. All it can produce is a one-dimensional cut-and-paste version of history that uses real events like cheap props.

Milkweed has another characteristic which undermines the narrator’s effectiveness. The narrator interjects occasional bouts of omniscience with his obliviousness. The contrast undermines his portrayal as oblivious or innocent. By the end, it becomes clear that he is an old man looking back to his childhood. But throughout, it seemed that the author wanted to have it both ways - to write someone who is oblivious to everything except whatever facts the author felt he needed to advance the story. This unevenness in perspective does not do anything purposeful in a literary sense. If done right, a similar technique might destabilize our frames of reference to increase the effect of the protagonist’s dislocation in his violent and unpredictable environment. In this story, though, it only erases any potential of the narrator to be convincing or compelling.

The best I can say is that I found Milkweed to be an uninspiring foray into the horrors of history.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a powerful book. 4.5 stars

It's so hard to imagine thousands of people being murdered because of the religion they choose to practice. However, as we read today's headlines, and we see people, many of whom are in positions of great power, vilifying all Muslims because some are extremist terrorists, honestly the extremist "Christians" running America right now are a whole lot scarier. Let's hope justice catches up to them, and soon.

WWII in Poland, young and old starving, doing what they have to do to survive, thousands of Jews being imprisoned, massacred: This book brought that whole horrible time up close and personal. I lost myself completely in this world, and as brutal as it was, there were glimmers of hope in the kindness of men and women who risked punishment, even death, to stand up for what was right.

This is a book that will stay with me forever. A powerful read, and a beautifully performed audiobook, as well.

"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." --George Santayana

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved, loved this book. It was so well written and I completely fell in love with the characters. I wanted to leap through the pages and save them all. I have read some of this author’s other works with my boys when they were young. He writes youth fiction and is always age appropriate. But I haven’t loved his other books like I love this one. I wish I had come across this particular book when I used to read to my boys. It would have brought about a great discussion that would surely have given them food for thought regarding WWII and the lives of children.

I give this book 5 stars for many reasons: It was well written, it was age appropriate, it had a great message, it kept me interested, and the author nailed the basic nature of humans in each character, whether good or bad. I usually never read reviews before I have written my own. I can’t believe how many people have written that this wasn’t the best book they have ever read on the WWII and the persecution of Jews, when they were not the intended target audience for this book. It wasn't meant to be the best book ever written on WWII or the holocaust. I think Spinelli accomplished the telling of this awful time in history in a manner in which kids would understand and even sympathize with, without scaring them for life. And I think that is saying a lot, especially when I consider some the inappropriate books my kids have been given to read over the years. Just sayin'!

[Wendy Hudson · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's taken me a little while to put into words a review for this book. My son and I have been studying WW2 and the Holocaust. We have read and watched numerous stories, fiction and non fiction pertaining to our unit study. This book is one of the absolute best. Don't get me wrong, the content is difficult, unfathomable and just downright hard to read but if we want to understand history, we can't sugar coat it. My son is 11 and became so deeply enthralled by this story that we ended up reading it every day for hours and hours just to get through to the end. The story, even though it is a work of fiction, will stay with you for a very long time. We even went out and bought a Milkweed plant for our garden after reading this. It should be on every middle schoolers required reading list.

[Karlyflower *The Vampire Ninja, Luminescent Monster & Wendigo Nerd Goddess of Canada (according to The Hulk)* · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would venture that this is a read alike for The Boy in the Striped Pajamas.

Set in Poland during World War II Milkweed is told through the unique perspective of one of those lost-through-the-cracks kids.... Our MC - "Misha" for all intents and purposes - is a thief, a runner, an orphan, a gypsy with no memory of his life before the story begins.

He steals food to survive and has zero awareness of what is going on in his little world outside of the speeding images that he runs past daily. Misha stumbles upon a group of boys, thieves like himself, and learns a bit about what is happening and what it means.

The imagery is startling in it's youthful metaphors and innocence. Spinelli uses Misha's voice to show us what the world looked like and what it truly means to be invisible.

This is one of those books that reminds me I'm a monster, or that I have broken eyes, or some such thing..... I bet this book makes loads of people cry but not me, my eyes were bone dry.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 8th grade, kids pick a book to read about the holocaust from a list. All four so far have picked a book and then insisted that I read their pick after they finished. They are always heavy and wreck me every time but I am so grateful to be able to work through this part of history with my kids.

This book brought a level of empathy and tenderness out of my 14-year-old son and me that he and I will not soon forget. There was much to be learned from the characters and the writing but mostly this fictional account helped us with lessons in humanity. Thanks to the wonderful English teachers who keep putting great books in front of my kids so that they can recommend them to me!

[Esme · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only One Spoiler Alert sort of
This is an amazing book. This book shows that even in darkness their is color meaning even though it's a really hard situation keep on hoping.

This was an enjoyable book because it showed you can still help others even if you need the same help. For example Misha needed food but he still gave food to the orphans and his "family." This book can show you that not everyone is cruel.

[Tabi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this for school, and I was fascinated and couldn't put it down! I would highly recommend it

[Chloe Wang · Rating 4 out of 5]

Milkweed By: Jerry Spinelli

Milkweed is an amazing book written by Jerry Spinelli that takes you on an amazing journey of a young boy’s life during World War II, the holocaust. I would really recommend this book to anyone. To read this book, you don’t have to be a fan of historical fiction or WWII. This book just makes you want to dive into the book and help each one of the characters. I fell in love with all of the characters. This specific book was what made me love reading historical fictions because they’re not just stories. It could've been an actual journey for someone during the holocaust.

This book was real page turner because from the first page, it introduces the main character in the action of running away from a robbery. After every chapter, Misha faces new difficulties and things just get worse and worse from then on. This made me personally want to know what will happen in the end. There are many different stories written about the holocaust but never have I read one written through the perspective of a young orphaned around my age. Throughout the book, I got to witness the life of an ordinary Jewish boy that changed my perspective of what life was really like as a Jew.

Also, there were small details in the book like kids becoming jackboots that could’ve changed many lives during the holocaust. The theme of survival was developed amazingly throughout the book using a simple plant, the milkweed, to symbolize hope of survival for the Jews. Survival for everyone was hard during WWII. This book showed that many people would betray their loved ones to survive but some would give up their lives to save their loved ones.

[Megan Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Do I like this book? I don't know. Not really? Not in the way one normally likes books. There's a lot of brokenness and Spinelli doesn't know the real reason for Hope, so his attempts fall flat. Also, one is supposed to love Janina, but I really dislike her for most of the book. She's a very Peter-Pan-children-are-cruel type person and it irritates me greatly. Not that there's a lot of How-Humans-Should-Interact-Wholesomely in this book, until the very end.

I don't believe I'll probably keep this book.

However. The ending did make me cry. It's poetic and meaningful, even if it's missing Truth. The ending is why it's 3 stars instead of 2.

[Abigail Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very sweet and slightly heartbreaking read. Told from the perspective of a street rat growing up in the holocaust, this book invites you to question what it really means to be family, to love, and to lose.

I sometimes have trouble getting through holocaust books because, while heart-wrenching, many of them are similar in storyline. Spinelli kept my attention from the start and gave perspective into parts of the holocaust that I seldom see mentioned in historical fiction.

Highly recommend.

[Sherri Silvera · Rating 3 out of 5]

This would have been 4 stars if not for the way the story was handled after the war ended. The story and characters were so well developed up to that point. Although the ending was neatly wrapped up, it was rushed and felt incomplete.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 rounded up
Started off with but then it started to drag for me. I didn't really care for any of the characters and that was a factor.

[teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

Something I'd like to praise immediately is the actual authenticity in event portrayal here (side note: as authentic as someone like me can deem). Even though I have loudly declared the flattened affect in the main character here, I found the last section of the book to kind of wear the simplified affect and plain writing differently, if that makes sense. I didn't think this book had a censorship problem—despite the main character's mispronunciations, seemingly a trend amongst middle grade, Holocaust novels—but the latter portion of the story felt, to me, rawer and more touching. Before I move to why, let's talk about the entire aim of writing simply and being vaguer with descriptions of internal processes and emotion. My interpretation is that, by doing this, authors are letting the event or the thought or the feeling speak for itself through blander language. In this, writers are following the age-old rule of "show don't tell": Their tone conveys a "tell", but the actual effect of the phrasing, the way it conjures up detailed emotions and interpretations in the reader instead of obtusely disclosing them, is definitely a sign of "showing".

I find that many authors try to emulate this style in writing some of the more emotion-saturated works they put out. In fact, it's almost become repetitive for authors to rely on how the words might beautifully or impactfully manifest themselves in the readers' minds. (Maybe I've just been reading too much middle grade lately.) In Milkweed, the language is not necessarily a rice-porridge bland, but, especially with emotional description and expression, definitely on the simpler side. During most of the reading process, I was a bit annoyed with the writing. I thought it didn't really contribute to the story or character illumination and was overdone. I do realize now that you can't really escape it—every author uses simplicity in words as a tool for emphasis. But for most of this book, every sentence seemed like Spinelli was trying to set up a profound emotional revelation behind everyone-friendly writing, and it became too tasteless to pack any weight. However, the last fraction of the book made a complete one-eighty as almost every "set-up phrase" had some kind of impact, in my humble opinion. I don't know if this is due to a more varied concentration in these simple phrases as opposed to constant "impactful simplicity", or maybe I just understood more as the plot progressed, but towards the end, the writing style fulfills its purpose miles more effectively.

Next, I'd like to touch upon how well this story embodies, what I like to call, the charm of middle grade. To me, the peak of middle-grade authors know that the genre isn't marketed towards only younger children, but to everyone. They know to write in a way that caters to all age- and knowledge-groups. Spinelli does that. He crafts his figurative language so they can read as everything from pleasant descriptions to flow with the storyline to also the most weighted bits of symbolism against a perfectly accommodating backdrop. Everyone reads it differently—experience shapes the reading of this book. I know I made a show of critiquing his style, but this man's craft is sensational.

Lastly, I'll speak very briefly about the beauty of the main character's arc. It's impossible to be elaborate without spoiling anything, but this arc deserves praise. Specifically, I think it tackles an issue somewhat unheard of in the middle-grade realm, and one that may actually help the children of today's generation. With theme and takeaways, children's and middle-grade authors tend to adhere to the tried-and-true Aesop's morals of yesterday's stories. This isn't necessarily reprimandible—there's a reason certain arcs are so often exhibited. But the main arc here was fairly new and undeniably enlightening, a breath of fresh air, and not to mention, well done.

[Tawny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author: Jerry Spinelli
Title: Milkweed
Genre: historical fiction
Publication Info: Random House, New York, 2003
Recommended Age: 11 and older
Plot Summary: A pocket-picking orphan who thinks his name is “stopthief” tells of his experiences during the Holocaust. The story begins when he is about eight years old. A redheaded older boy named Uri finds Stopthief and takes him under his wing, introducing him to a whole group of young thieves. Uri gives Stopthief a new name and makes up his background, telling him he came from a large Russian gypsy family and was kidnapped and brought to Warsaw. He told him to remember that he was not a Jew. Despite Uri’s efforts to keep Misha (Stopthief’s new name) safe, the Polish and German soldiers relocated both the Jews and the pickpockets to the ghetto. Food was scarce and the soldiers were cruel. Misha’s small frame, quickness, and experience stealing came in handy for him and his friends. Each night he snuck out of the ghetto through a small, two-brick gap in the enormous wall that separated the Jews from the Polish. He brought back whatever food he could find and fit through the small hole. In this manner, he saved his friends from dying of starvation. Uri became a soldier and made sure Misha did not get on the trains headed for the concentration camps. Young and naive at the time all this was going on, Misha did not understand the gravity of the situation. His version of the Holocaust is innocent, cute, and horrifying at the same time.
Personal Notes: I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to read about history or the holocaust. There are definitely violent, morbid, and disgusting parts to the story, which I think is appropriate given the topic. I think it is wonderful that authors are writing these kinds of novels. Youth should be able to get a good picture of what happened during the Holocaust so that it never occurs again, even on a smaller scale. After reading this book, I would hope that young people would even try to treat each other a little bit better.
Evaluation: I think this book is on par with Elie Wiesel’s Night. It is not as forward or upfront, but when you read between the lines and make sense of Misha’s perspective, it is just as heart wrenching. What makes it really interesting is that readers catch a glimpse of Misha as an adult. He is still very innocent, but knows that what he went through was terrible. His life is totally affected by it. This is the first adolescent book I have read recently that has brought me to tears more than once.
Other Comments: This book is a nominee for the Utah Young Adults’ Book Award and recipient of the Golden Kite Award. I think adults should read this one…it is definitely worth the time.

[Janelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book because my son (Boy 2) asked me to. We decided to start a family book group. All 4 of us read the book and we invited a family friend who would be visiting from out of town to read it, too. We had a great discussion with 3 adults and 2 kids.

I've read a few Spinelli books and this one is set in a dramatically different setting than most of them. I enjoyed seeing how he addressed some of his usual themes - identity, self-worth, integrity, friendship - in 1940s Warsaw. I wondered how my child would react to learning about the oppression and deprivation faced by Jews during this period. All of this history was new to him. I read much of the book holding my breath, wondering what horrors he now knew about. Spinelli packs a lot into this book, but he employs his usual sparse writing style and doesn't draw a lot of attention to the bad stuff. For example, I marked a passage where our narrator, Misha, simply remarks "I saw a boy eating a newspaper" (148). In this way, Milkweed manages to provide an entry point for children to begin learning about this time period without initially turning away in disbelief.

We had a really good conversation that covered a lot of ground - religion, history, bullying, discrimination. My older son acknowledged that this wasn't the kind of writing he likes (he's more of a fantasy guy), but that "it was a really good story anyway."

I couldn't be more excited about having an in-house book group with my family of choice. Boy 1 is choosing next month's book!

[mstan · Rating 2 out of 5]

So very disappointing. I have high expectations of Holocaust literature - or any literature based on real historical events. I don't want to read writing that exploits the significance of such events, manipulates the reader's emotions, offers nothing new, and by doing so, trivialises not just the event, but the value of literature.

I found this book rather 'Life is Beautiful'-like - moving for the person who is encountering the facts of the Holocaust for the first time and can still be shocked by the disparity between the inhumanity of the minds that conceived it and the humanity of some of those who experienced it. Perhaps that is why this still works as a YA novel on some level.

The protagonist, an idiot savant and a genius at thievery, is an orphan child living in Warsaw during the Holocaust. He forges a series of friendships with other orphans, a bunch of thieves, and a Jewish family - relationships which I feel are (except for that with the Jewish family) too sketchy and shallow to be significant.

The ending of the novel is especially disappointing - I don't even remember it anymore, but do remember the feeling of bemusement mingled with relief.

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author - Jerry Spinelli

This is a young adult book - maybe even for middle schoolers.

It takes place during WWII in Warsaw, Poland. A young boy is stealing food and is caught by another boy who lives with a group of children who steal food and live on the streets. This boy knows nothing about himself - not his name, not where he lives, not even his age. The author uses very simple language and sentence structure in the beginning of the book so that we are drawn into this child's state of being.

His friends do not know what to make of him, but it is believed he might be a Gypsy, not a Jew. He makes a friend in Warsaw, a little girl who is Jewish. She and her family are herded into the walled Ghetto. Our hero follows and helps them survive.

The book follows their lives for the next few years - how they survive, how much harder it is to survive from day to day.

The ending is a surprise.

The book is beautifully written, touching, moving, sad and satisfying.

I HIGHLY recommend this book - for adults and kids alike.

[Melissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was not-not-NOT impressed with this story of the Warsaw ghettos told through the eyes of the town idiot.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A worthy addition to the list of Holocaust stories suitable for YA readers. Poignant and well written, about an 8-year-old orphan who survived the Warsaw ghetto during WWII.

[WF · Rating 4 out of 5]

A holocaust survival story from the point of view of a very small orphaned, "simple" boy with a big heart. Heartbreaking.

[Moran · Rating 2 out of 5]

Milkweed is about an orphan's experience within the Warsaw ghetto at the beginning of World War II.

While the story itself is good, I would repeatedly become frustrated with the narrator's approach to the telling of the story. The story is told from the perspective of the orphan, which is meant to reflect a certain childlike wonder to everything that is transpiring. Unfortunately, this results in some dangerous writing, such as the kid stating "I sure am glad I'm not a Jew" when he sees Jews subjected to public humiliations, or developing aspirations to join the Nazis because their boots are shiny and they're well groomed, or calling the light of a flamethrower used to trap and kill smugglers passing through underground sewers as "magnificent". While I understand that the author is attempting to convey a certain naïveté in the protagonist, an omniscient narrator would have been better at doing so while also balancing that perspective with less callous descriptions.

Somewhat in support of an omniscient narrator, I felt that some of the best scenes in the book occurred in the protagonist's interactions with different adults, such as the caretaker of the orphanage Doctor Korczak and his adopted father Mr. Milgrom. In those scenes, the stoicism of the adult characters shone through and grounded the otherwise chaotic narrative.

Another thing that the book did well was capture the horror of the Warsaw ghetto experience. The author achieves this by having so many things (big and small) happen quickly in succession. The quick pace creates a sense of chaos and a lack of control. When the book finally takes its first big leap forward ("I had been on the farm for three years.") and things start getting spaced out, the whole rush of the main plot feels like a bad nightmare that you're glad to have survived.

[❊ maddie kay ❊ · Rating 2 out of 5]

“𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐠𝐨.”

I am actually quite disappointed with this one. First, it's Jerry Spinelli. I loved his books as a kid and I thought that this one had promise. Second, I usually am a sucker for a good WWII historical fiction. They get me every single time. This one just did not land for me. Despite it being an interesting perspective to take, I just did not think it worked in the way it was done. I'm not even entirely sure why it didn't work - I just did not like much of anything about it.

The ending is the only reason for 2 stars.

[Shiloah]

DNF not my cup of tea

[Kari · Rating 3 out of 5]

I originally picked this book up because of the title; we're big monarch butterfly fans in my house. Well, it's about the holocaust and not butterflies, but it still interested me. I agree with another person (Patricia) who rated this book on a lot of things. I read the book in about two days and did like the story and was quite captivated by it.

I had trouble with two things. The first was where Stopthief came from. It seemed that he just materialized when he was 8. He couldn't remember his name and had only the slightest recollection of his family. That makes me think he had been seperated from them for quite some time. He was also quite comfortable with the city as were the other boys that he eventually met up with. I was left wondering why he hadn't come across the other boys before. I felt like that was unbelievable.

This is the second YA book written from a childs' perspective that I've read in in the past two weeks. The other was The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. My second problem with both stories was the lack of any understanding by the main characters of what was going on around them. Misha(Stopthief), like Bruno, seemed naive beyond what I considered reasonable.

[Lyndee · Rating 5 out of 5]

He's running. That is the first thing he remembers. He doesn't remember why he is running or where he is running to, all he knows is running. He has no name, no home and no family. He is a gypsy, a thief, but still a boy. A boy who doesn't know who or what he is until his friend, Uri, tells him. He is told his name is Misha Pilsudski. He is a gypsy. He is not to look guilty.

This story is about a young boy that finds himself in a small town that is under the Nazi power. He has no family or home, so he steals to survive. Uri, a slightly older boy, takes Misha under his wing and teaches him how to stay safe and fed. The war escalates and whether one is a Jew, Gypsy, orphan, or cripple they all go into the ghetto to try and survive.

I really liked this book. I think Jerry Spinelli is an amazing author that is able to weave words into a way that makes you fell as if you were there. He tells this story in a way where it seems like you are watching a movie rather than reading a book. The story itself is astounding and really causes one to think about their own identity and really appreciate the blessings that they have.