One Thousand Tracings: Healing the Wounds of World War II

Cleaning out her grandmother's attic one day, picture-book author/artist Lita Judge found a dusty old box full of hundreds of yellowing envelopes, addressed to her grandparents from all over Europe. Opening them, she discovered countless foot tracings, and a story that her grandmother had never

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shared, and her mother had largely forgotten: the tale of a private relief effort - one of many - which saw American citizens sending care packages to desperately needy families in post-World War II Europe. Told from the perspective of Judge's mother - three years old when her father went away to fight, six when the war ended - One Thousand Tracings follows the efforts of the Hamerstrom family, who begin by responding to a single plea for help, from an old friend (and fellow ornithologist) in Germany, and end by spearheading a campaign that sent aid to more than three thousand people in fifteen countries.

More than just a tale of generosity, on the part of people who had little to spare themselves - Judge's mother recalls that all the local children went without shoes one summer, in order to send their used footwear to people who had none at all - this is a story of putting aside animosity, after a terrible and violent struggle, and seeking to rebuild the human and intercultural relationships that war violates. I assume, from the fact that Judge's grandmother could read German (taught by her own grandmother, the young narrator tells us), that this was a family with ties of some sort to that part of the world. Given that this was so, one might imagine that - war or no - they could be expected to have some sympathy with the German families who were (initially) pleading for their help. But what about the many other community members who - as the narrative makes clear - contributed to the Hamerstroms' efforts? How many had lost loved ones, in the recent fighting? How many were hurting themselves?

These and other similar questions occurred to me, as I read this story, which seemed all the more inspiring as a result. The accompanying illustrations - a mixture of beautiful paintings, reproductions of real letters and foot tracings, and images of actual 1940s food products that would have been sent in care packages - were appealing, and felt completely authentic. All in all, an excellent book, one I would recommend to anyone looking to explore, with children, what one does after a war or other conflict ends - how one goes about building peace.

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Very good book, one of the few books that I have read that can talk about a sad topic without making it too morbid for young children. Would make young children look outside of themselves and want to do more for others rather than thinking about only themselves.

After World War Two, a young girl helps her parents gather shoes, food, clothes and toys to send to Germany to help relieve the suffering of German civilians. The family received in the mail tracings of feet, so as to know what sizes shoes should be sent to which families.

This story is based on

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the author's mother's experience, who was young when the war ended, and who helped her own parents send supplies overseas. The book is illustrated with warm watercolor paintings, and also photographs of 1940s era goods and provisions, as well as photographs of some of the German children, and images of the foot tracings. The story is fairly short, but it is a wonderful depiction of ordinary people doing their best to help strangers through difficult times, and two countries trying to recover from a war during which they fought on opposing sides. This picture book for children ages six through ten shows a very human angle of World War Two.

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Reading this, I was left with a smile as I read the last page. An engaging tale for younger audiences, One Thousand Tracings: Healing the Wounds of World War II highlights the good that was done during World War II. An informational picture book, the story is told from the perspective of the

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author's mother. The photographs used are all authentic, coming from a trunk forgotten in the author's attic. When the question arises of whether or not a child can read a book listed as nonfiction and truly enjoy the tale, I believe One Thousand Tracings is a very good answer. I highly recommend it.

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One Thousand Tracings is narrative poetry disguised as a nonfiction narrative. The story of a family helping Germans who are in dire need after World War II is told in a simple, understated way that is more moving than a dramatic telling would be. The story is partly given to us by the narrator,

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and is partly epistolary, with the golden illustrations evoking a feeling of warmth in contrast with the plight of the people the family is hearing from in Germany. In what I would call the climax of the book, the room that the girl is sitting in is filled with foot tracings--they are all over the floor and even the walls. The little girl is working to fit them to the donated shoes. The problem is larger than this family can handle, but they ask for help, spending hours working and writing letters. In the end, they have helped many, many people, and hear that one of the families they helped got a happy ending when their father made it back home. The story, photos, and illustrations were wonderful, and the book was moving, telling a tale of one of the infinite ways that people who care can make a big difference. I would recommend this one.

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In December 1946 just before Christmas, a letter arrives from friends, the Kramers, in Germany telling of how bad things are after World War II, so Mama gathers food and clothing and sends the package to the family. Weeks later, another letter arrives, along with tracings of the feet of ten

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families, from Dr. Kramer thanking Mama for her help and asking her to help others. Soon, these foot tracings comes pouring in from families all over Germany seeking help from Mama.

This heartwarming story told from the point of view of Mama's little girl serves as a tribute to the author's grandmother, whose relief efforts after World War II saved many lives. Illustrations include both beautiful hand-drawn pictures as well as artifacts found by the author in her grandmother's attic. A lovely story of compassion!

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The genre of this book is historical fiction. We follow the story of a young girl whose mother begins to write letters to families in Germany after WWII ends. She finds that the children in Germany are very much less fortunate than her, and she tries very hard to send them things that they might

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need. Families in Germany sent shoe tracings for sizing for used shoes, and soon the girl's home was filled with a thousand tracings. Therefore, their friends and neighbors all banded together to help those in need, and sent many, many packages. This book would be appropriate for a 3rd grade classroom, in which the topic of study is wartime or letter-writing. There are many good examples of how to write simple letters in this book.

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This is a tender story of a German-American family who sent needed supplies to strangers in Germany, most needed were shoes. This story would give insight to children of how the innocents strive to survive in the aftermath of war. I would use this book in an upper elementary class to teach empathy

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for others.

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