Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Collection
Publication
Aladdin (2021), 352 pages
Description
Historical Fiction. Young Adult Fiction. Young Adult Literature. HTML:From the New York Times bestselling author of the Emily Windsnap series, Liz Kessler, comes a "brutally honest and totally believable" (Booklist, starred review) story of three young friends whose fates are intertwined during the devastation of the Holocaust�??based on a true story. Three friends. One memory. Vienna. 1936. Three young friends�??Leo, Elsa, and Max�??spend a perfect day together, unaware that around them Europe is descending into a growing darkness and that they will soon be cruelly ripped apart from one another. With their lives taking them across Europe�??to Germany, England, Prague, and Poland�??will they ever find their way back to one another? Will they want to? Inspired by a true story, When the World Was Ours is an extraordinary novel that is as powerful as it is heartbreaking and that shows how the bonds of love, family, and friendship allow glimmers of hope to flourish, even in the most hop… (more)
Awards
Sequoyah Book Award (Nominee — Intermediate — 2023)
National Jewish Book Award (Finalist — Young Adult Literature — 2021)
Green Mountain Book Award (Nominee — 2023)
USBBY Outstanding International Book (Grades 9-12 — 2022)
The Children's Book Award (Shortlist — Older Readers — 2022)
Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing (Nominee — 2022)
Black-Eyed Susan Book Award (Nominee — Grades 6-8 — 2024)
UKLA Book Award (Shortlist — 2022)
Evergreen Teen Book Award (Nominee — Middle School — 2024)
Hampshire Book Awards (Shortlist — Hampshire Book Award — 2023)
Sakura Medal (Middle School — 2023)
Maine Student Book Award (Reading List — 2023)
Grampian Children’s Book Award (Shortlist — 2023)
Read for Empathy Collections (2022)
Texas Lone Star Reading List (2022)
Language
User reviews
LibraryThing member HeatherLINC
I am gutted! I have just finished "When The World Was Ours" and now I am emotionally drained and mentally exhausted. I have read a number of YA novels set during the holocaust and this is definitely the best by far. It is one of those rare finds that will stay with me for a long, long time. I
"When The World Was Ours" is a must read for everyone to ensure history is never repeated. A powerful read.
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started this book with a sense of foreboding which continued to grow the more I read and I guessed how it would end. I kept hoping I would be wrong . . . I wasn't!"When The World Was Ours" is a must read for everyone to ensure history is never repeated. A powerful read.
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LibraryThing member susan0316
This is a powerful book about three young children and the ways that the Holocaust totally changed their lives.
It's based on the true story of the author's father's escape from Europe in 1939. The children are nine when the story begins and don't really understand what's going on in Vienna - they
Leo, Max and Elsa are best friends and are sure that their friendship will last forever. But Austria is in the midst of change after the Nazis take over the country and their friendship is sorely tested. Leo is Jewish and lives with his parents in a nice part of town. The family is very close to each other and as Leo starts seeing the results in the streets of the Germany hatred of the Jewish people, he becomes fearful, When his father is arrested, he and his mother try to find a way out of the country to safety. Their struggle to get out is unbelievable and difficult. Elsa is also Jewish and her family moves to Prague early in war because they feel that they will be safer there. But when the Germans invade, their lives become hell as they are moved into the ghetto. Leo is completely different - not only is he not Jewish but his father is a high ranking member of the Gestpo. Leo has always tried to get acceptance from his father and follows his example by changing his beliefs and learning to believe as his father does. Even though all three of the friends frequently think about each other, their lives have gone in totally different directions as they realize that the world is no longer theirs and that friendship will not endure forever.
This is a heartbreaking story seeing the innocence and friendship of the children is totally destroyed by the terrible happenings in their country. They went from being young and idealistic to being older than their years by what they experienced. This is a story of love and friendship, hate and war and the effects that it has on children. The three main characters were very well written and memorable. This novel is classified as YA but it would be meaningful to anyone to read the story of loss of innocence during a horrific time in our world history.
It's based on the true story of the author's father's escape from Europe in 1939. The children are nine when the story begins and don't really understand what's going on in Vienna - they
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feel that they own the world as they know it.Leo, Max and Elsa are best friends and are sure that their friendship will last forever. But Austria is in the midst of change after the Nazis take over the country and their friendship is sorely tested. Leo is Jewish and lives with his parents in a nice part of town. The family is very close to each other and as Leo starts seeing the results in the streets of the Germany hatred of the Jewish people, he becomes fearful, When his father is arrested, he and his mother try to find a way out of the country to safety. Their struggle to get out is unbelievable and difficult. Elsa is also Jewish and her family moves to Prague early in war because they feel that they will be safer there. But when the Germans invade, their lives become hell as they are moved into the ghetto. Leo is completely different - not only is he not Jewish but his father is a high ranking member of the Gestpo. Leo has always tried to get acceptance from his father and follows his example by changing his beliefs and learning to believe as his father does. Even though all three of the friends frequently think about each other, their lives have gone in totally different directions as they realize that the world is no longer theirs and that friendship will not endure forever.
This is a heartbreaking story seeing the innocence and friendship of the children is totally destroyed by the terrible happenings in their country. They went from being young and idealistic to being older than their years by what they experienced. This is a story of love and friendship, hate and war and the effects that it has on children. The three main characters were very well written and memorable. This novel is classified as YA but it would be meaningful to anyone to read the story of loss of innocence during a horrific time in our world history.
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LibraryThing member acargile
When the World was Ours is a 2022 Lone Star selection. You'll need kleenexes.
The novel begin in Vienna in 1936 where Leo, Elsa, and Max are best friends. The ride a Ferris Wheel and feel on top of the world. Their smiles convey their carefree joy. Accidentally, Leo bumps into an English couple to
Eventually, the reality of war affects every character. The treatment of the Jews extends to Prague and Elsa discovers the cruelty that man can show to man as the war slowly drains her. Max succumbs to power and propaganda, while Leo finds refuge.
Many students love Alan Gratz's novels, especially Refugee, but I think this novel really puts the reader right in the heart of World War II from the point of view of the teenage jew and the Hitler Youth, explaining the pull of power and group thinking. Hate spreads easily; the novel displays the results of such a hate. Kindness is also shown with the British couple met so many years ago at the ferris wheel. The image that pulls the story together despite location differences and different ideologies is that of the three kids smiling with joy and innocence on a ferris wheel. Ultimately, the lesson is to speak up and defend people from human abuse. Recognize the pull of power over humanity and chose mankind over self. The end of the novel will have you crying, so have tissues nearby.
The novel begin in Vienna in 1936 where Leo, Elsa, and Max are best friends. The ride a Ferris Wheel and feel on top of the world. Their smiles convey their carefree joy. Accidentally, Leo bumps into an English couple to
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whom he quickly apologizes. Leo's father invites them home and they have a lovely evening. Shortly after this perfect day, Elsa's family decide that Vienna is dangerous for Jews and move to Prague. Meanwhile, Max's father demands more and more of Max to be a man as he rises in power at his job, asking Max to find new friends. Leo's Jewish family decide to wait things out. As the two years pass, Elsa worries about Leo as she learns about the way Jews are treated in Vienna. Leo's father faces cruel abuse by the Nazi, one of whom is Max's father. Max, smaller than most, finds the desire to please his father and fit in more important to his self esteem than supporting Leo. He loves the Hitler Youth where he excels. He's never been praised or respected by his father or been a leader. He now finds leadership potential and the ability to fit in within the regimented system. Eventually, the reality of war affects every character. The treatment of the Jews extends to Prague and Elsa discovers the cruelty that man can show to man as the war slowly drains her. Max succumbs to power and propaganda, while Leo finds refuge.
Many students love Alan Gratz's novels, especially Refugee, but I think this novel really puts the reader right in the heart of World War II from the point of view of the teenage jew and the Hitler Youth, explaining the pull of power and group thinking. Hate spreads easily; the novel displays the results of such a hate. Kindness is also shown with the British couple met so many years ago at the ferris wheel. The image that pulls the story together despite location differences and different ideologies is that of the three kids smiling with joy and innocence on a ferris wheel. Ultimately, the lesson is to speak up and defend people from human abuse. Recognize the pull of power over humanity and chose mankind over self. The end of the novel will have you crying, so have tissues nearby.
Show Less
ISBN
1534499652 / 9781534499652