Black Radishes

(Paperback)

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Sydney Taylor Honor Award Winner Black Radishes is asuspenseful WWII/Holocaust story, in which one boy learns what it means to be Jewish and French at a time when everything is changing. Gustave doesn't want to move from the exciting city to the boring countryside, far from his cousin Jean-Paul and his best friend, the mischievous Marcel. But he has no choice. It is March of 1940, and Paris is not a safe place for Jews. When Paris is captured by the Nazis, Gustave knows that Marcel, Jean-Paul, and their families must make it out of the occupied zone. And when he learns that his new friend Nicole works for the French Resistance, he comes up with a plan that just might work. But going into Occupied France is a risky thing to do when you are Jewish. And coming back alive That is nearly impossible. And don't miss Skating with the Statue of Liberty, the gripping and poignant companion to Black Radishes, which follows Gustave as he embarks on new adventures in New York City. Praise for Black Radishes "Full of tension, this coming-of-age story presents a picture of life during the early days of World War II."-Bulletin "An excellent recent novel that can introduce readers to a wider world. . . . Meyer builds the tension by using real-life events (detailed in an author's note) and creates in Gustave a very believable boy who behaves bravely when he must."-The Horn Book "Meyer shines light on the bravery of Resistance fighters, and her story... is a gripping read comparable to Marilyn Sachs's classic A Pocket Full of Seeds, Carol Matas's Greater Than Angels, and Norma Fox Mazer's Good Night, Maman."-SLJ "Partly based on Meyer's father's experiences, the story derives its credibility from the vivid details... a fine first novel."-Booklist "This debut novel, loosely based on the author's father's experiences,...raises important questions about nationalism, equality and identity and fills a void in Holocaust literature for this age group."-Kirkus Reviews A Sydney Taylor Honor Award Winner A Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Book of the Year An Instructor Magazine Best Kids' Historical Fiction Book A Massachusetts Book Awar Must-Read Book

Reviews

An excellent recent novel that can introduce readers to a wider world. . . . Meyer builds the tension by using real-life events (detailed in an authors note) and creates in Gustave a very believable boy who behaves bravely when he must.The Horn Book

"Meyer shines light on the bravery of Resistance fighters, and her story...[is] a gripping read comparable to Marilyn Sachs's classic A Pocket Full of Seeds, Carol Matas's Greater Than Angels, and Norma Fox Mazer's Good Night, Maman."-SLJ

"Partly based on Meyers fathers experiences, the story derives its credibility from the vivid details....This fine first novel could be read in conjunction with The Good Liar."-Booklist

"Meyer builds the tension by using real-life events (detailed in an author's note), creating in Gustave a very believable boy struggling to learn to cover up his emotions, who behaves bravely when he must."-Bulletin

"This debut novel, loosely based on the author's father's experiences,...raises important questions about nationalism, equality and identity and fills a void in Holocaust literature for this age group."-Kirkus Reviews

"More than an account of Jewish survival in Nazi-occupied France, Black Radishes is an empowering, suspenseful story of a unique young boy with cunning, patience, and courage."-Francisco X. Stork, winner of the Schneider Family Book Award for Marcelo in the Real World

"A fascinating, deftly gripping tale that reminds readers, young or old, of events we must never forget."-Zilpha Keatley Snyder, three-time Newbery Honor winner and author of The Eygpt Game

"Black Radishes is a vivid and moving story about a Jewish family's efforts to escape the Nazis, seen though the eyes of a clear-sighted and sensitive young boy. Susan Lynn Meyer manages to capture the reader's interest from the start and keeps up the suspense until the last pages."-Annika Thor, winner of the Mildred L. Batchelder Award for A Faraway Island

"Black Radishes transforms the past into a gripping story. Gustave's growing maturity and loss of innocence perfectly mirror the mounting horrors he and his family experience."-Kit Pearson, winner of the Governor General's Literary Award for Awake and Dreaming

A Sydney Taylor Honor Award Winner

A Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Book of the Year

An Instructor Magazine Best Kids' Historical Fiction Book

A Massachusetts Book Award Must-Read Book

Author Bio

SUSAN LYNN MEYER is the author of Black Radishes and, its companion, Skating with the Statue of Liberty. Meyer grew up in the United States, where her father, along with his sister and mother, found refuge after escaping Nazi-occupied France in 1942. Both books were inspired by stories she heard growing up. Black Radishes was Susan's debut novel and is based on Meyer's father's years in Saint-Georges and his family's eventual escape to America. It won a Sydney Taylor Honor Award and was named a Massachusetts Book Award finalist and a Bank Street College of Education Best Book of the Year. She lives with her family in Massachusetts and teaches literature and creative writing at Wellesley College. Learn more about Susan by following @SusanLynnMeyer on Twitter and finding her on susanlynnmeyer.com.