The Ark

The Ark #1

by Margot Benary-Isbert

Drama of a family in post war Germany while the father, if still alive, might be in a POW camp in Russia or he might be making his way back to his family.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Childrens, Young Adult, World War II, Germany, Animals

246 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1948

About the author

German-born children’s author known for her "depictions of humane, realistic characters."

Benary-Isbert attended the College St. Carolus and the University of Frankfurt. She worked as a secretary at the Museum of Ethnology and Anthropology in Frankfurt, Germany from 1910-1917, when she married Wilhelm Benary. They settled in Erfurt, in East Germany.

When the Russians took over Germany, she fled to the apartment of a friend in West Germany. In 1948 she wrote Die Arche Noah (The Ark). In 1953 it received a first prize at the New York Herald Tribune's Spring Book Festival. Post-war Germany became a common theme in most of her works.

In 1952 she moved to the United States, where she was naturalized in 1957 and worked as a writer until her death. She received the Jane Addams Children's Book Award from the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom in 1957 for "Annegret und Cara".

Most of Benary-Isbert's books were originally written and published in German; some were later translated into English and published again.

Reviews

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so much!! Margot Benary-Isbert is a new favorite author. I read her wonderful young adult novel, 'Under a Changing Moon', at the end of 2024 and it went right onto my favorites list for the year. The Ark has a very different setting to begin with but there similiarities with 'Under a Changing Moon' that make them both my perfect kind of middle grade.

In The Ark, we start in post-WWII Germany with a family who has been shuttled around to camps after being ousted from their home in German-occupied Poland. The Lechow family is Mrs. Lechow, 14 yo Margret and two younger children Andrea and Joey. They are refugees now in west Germany and have arrived with almost nothing to board with a woman named Mrs. Verduz who expected a couple with no children. Though west Germany is better off than east Germany, there is still so much hardship, destruction, and scarcity. Benary-Isbert knew all this firsthand from her own experience and there are details here to make one weep, but she tells it all with a great gentleness.

Soon, the oldest child in the family, Matthias, returns and joins his family. He's just 15, but he's sent to work in construction, though he longs to be an astronomer. Andrea and Joey are able to go to school. Mrs. Lechow uses her sewing skills to help the family slowly get back to a semblance of normalcy. Mrs. Verduz begins to see how her lodgers may actually help her and the family is making good things from the wreckage of war. They all long to know if their doctor father, who was a prisoner in a camp, is still alive.

While the others find friends and places to belong, Margret is still struggling. She's too old for school and doesn't feel much hope about finding something to do that she loves. Enter a spunky older woman named Mrs. Almut who lives on a farm outside of town. The kids visit her farm when they go Christmas caroling and Margret gets a glimpse of a life she longs for...working with animals and in the open air. And the story goes on from there!

I buddy read this with Kate, Libby, and Lisa for Middle Grade March 2025 and it's just so wonderful. It's a story of people helping each other, of the goodness of the land, and of how hope is as tenacious as the earth itself. Spring always returns. Into the lives of each of the characters, all of whom have suffered loss, comes the promise and the fruition of goodness and beauty.

[Clara Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books of all time! I love the rich descriptions, whether of the natural beauty of the countryside or of the little rooms the refugee family stays in after the war, and the characters are so well-portrayed that I feel I truly know them and have grown to love them so much. This is a story of a family who has been displaced by war and is now trying to find a new place of belonging in West Germany. Eventually each of the family members finds new joy and hope and the family eventually finds the home they are longing for as part of a working farm in the country. Animals, Christmas caroling, rambunctious boys digging for treasure, and getting to live in an old boxcar - such wonderful scenes have been imprinted in my mind from this wonderful book! Margot Benary-Isbert is one of my favorite writers. I love how she makes her characters come to life and how she fills her books with so much hope and joy and healing, even in the midst of difficult times. I read this book at a time when I myself was finding healing from past hurts, and that makes me love it even more. A book that can deal with past pain and yet leave you feeling uplifted, joyful and at peace is a rare book, and The Ark is just that kind of book!

[Stephanie A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A universal story about a family pulling together in tough times, unflinchingly perfect from cover to cover. While aimed at a juvenile audience, it is still full of great detail about the struggle to live in post-WWII Germany, with refugees displaced from their homes by bombings and other forced evacuations, and everyone struggling to get by on meager ration cards amidst a scarcity of supplies. There is also interesting detail about the Labor Office and how people are assigned to whatever jobs are available, with a great deal of red tape making changes difficult. The authenticity is worth noting, as it was published in Germany just a few years after the war ended [edit: in 1948, confirmed].

Our family consists of a single mother, her husband still in a POW camp, and her four remaining children ranging in age from 7 to 16. Of the fifth, there are only heartbreaking references from Margaret, currently age 14, to her twin brother being shot along with the family dog by soldiers who came to seize their property in Prussia.

I love how they slowly but surely win over the elderly woman whose home they have been assigned to share, despite her grumblings that she is much too old and frail to live with children of all the things, as if having more than two extra people in her home wasn't bad enough. It's hard to resist such well behaved and friendly children, though, much less a hardworking mother who does her best to create a home out of essentially nothing. The way she creates a Christmas celebration is especially magical. Also, I'd be remiss not to mention the quasi-adoption of scrappy 7-year-old Hans Ulrich, a champion among plucky literary orphans.

The book really begins to shine when Mrs. Almut of Rowan Farm enters their lives, taking the two eldest children on as farm employees. Rowan Farm is like a bit of heaven, away from the overcrowded city to a place full of fresh air, well cared for animals, and a house that collects people like stray dogs to form a decidedly motley but tightly-knit community among themselves. In addition to the regular farm animals, there is a kennel for purebred Great Danes, a breed dear to Margaret's heart, and a set of driving ponies she loves almost as much. And of course, there's "The Ark" itself: an old railroad car on the property that she and her brother transform into a freestanding home.

For all the hardship they must experience, this book makes me want to crawl inside and never leave. First discovered on the shelves of my high school library, it was as magical when I read it today as it was back then. Copies are somewhat hard to find in the U.S., so if you have a good one, hold onto it!

[Melody Schwarting · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, what a marvelous book! It has a strong, deep root in human emotion and recovery after the war. I liked how Benary-Isbert focused on people trying to get by and moving forward after the war, honest about the realities, but hopeful all the same. The characters were delightful, and their movements captured the chaos of postwar refugee life without being too much for young readers (not so gritty as Ruta Sepetys, as it doesn't take place during wartime). The characters are just a wee bit younger than my grandmother and her siblings, and these events in West Germany took place about 15 years before my other grandparents had my father in West Germany in the early 1960s. I'm always eager to learn more about what life was like for them, since my grandfather is deceased and my grandmother has dementia. There's an element of Heidi too, but not so saccharine. I'm really looking forward to the sequel and am thankful Purple House Press put this deserving book back in print.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Historical fiction that feels immediate and relevant. I'll tell you what, the worst that covid-19 can do to us is nothing compared to what WWII did to the ordinary German people. And yet with a lot of love and hard work, and a little luck, ruined lives can be renewed. I very much enjoyed my time spent watching this plucky family deal with rationing, fear, loneliness, & hunger, and finally come into their own. I'm glad there's a sequel, though this does end satisfyingly if you can't find.

This one, at least, is on openlibrary.org, free to borrow a carefully scanned copy.

[Gina Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not sure I can even put into words how much I enjoyed this book or how often it touched me. Set in reconstruction Germany after WWII this book is a story of a family of refugees. It isn’t the ugly, war-torn world we usually see but neither is it pie in the sky. It deals with truth and goodness in such a beautiful way. It teaches lessons about life and death, about hard work, helping others even when you have nothing, accepting people who are different than you, patience, hard work, the joy of giving and so much more. Despite all these lessons the book doesn’t once “moralize” or preach, they are just woven into the fabric of the story. Fives stars and exclamation marks. This is one I will be searching for to add to our own home library.
(This is an AmblesideOnline year 6 free read)

[ladydusk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazingly heartwarming and hope-filled book, especially considering it is based on the author's own experiences after WWII. As soon as I finished reading this book aloud to them, my kids insisted I begin reading the sequel right away instead of reading something else in between.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

5+ ⭐️ This was so lovely and charming in every way, even when parts of the story were very hard. I have never read about German refugees after WWII and all the hardships they faced. The family and additional characters of this story and the settings were fascinating and the book very well written. I enjoyed it as a buddy read with Elizabeth, Libby (who had wonderful insights) and Kate. I will be reading more from this author for sure!

[Suzanne Roq · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a lovely story about rebuilding lives in West Germany after WW2.

[Melody · Rating 4 out of 5]

Immediate post-WWII Germany is the setting for this engaging book. The family consists of the mother and 4 children. One of the children lost her twin brother during the war, along with her dog. The father's last known location was a Russian camp. They've lost everything but each other, and have been foisted off by the refugee bureau on a reluctant widow who asked for a nice quiet couple. How they cope makes for a very interesting and ultimately hopeful story. Benary-Isbert is masterful at capturing bittersweet emotions in a few words. Highly recommended.

[Laura Oliver · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even better the second time around...

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book took me completely by surprise. I picked it up on a lark while at Goodwill, and can't believe I paid less than its 1953 75 cents cover price for it. It was written about the aftermath of World War II. Interesting to imagine how the children of post-war American, when Nazi-ism was still fresh, and the sins of the German people were strictly black and white. This book would have opened the door to the human side and human cost of war, and would have taken images of war from soldiers and war room, to the farms, fields, and life of children instead.

The story centers on the four Lechow children and their mother, refugees from Pomerania, who have, after nearly a year of wandering and shifting from camp to camp, been sent to the province of Hesse. Here, courtesy of the Housing office, they are sent to live in the attic of Mrs Verduz, (who wanted a quiet, childless couple and got the Lechow clan instead) at the delightful sounding Number 13 Parsley Street. Their father, who is a doctor, was drafted years before and sent to the Russian Front, where he was captured and sent off to Siberia. The children and their mother, a seamstress, settle in to life on Parsley Street. The portrayal of the children is well done; each are individuals and very real. Matthias (15 1/2) with the soul of an astronomer, finds himself working construction. Through the job he does meet another dispossessed boy, Dieter, who is a gifted musician (and has a band called the Cellar Rats, which I think is a brilliant name.) The youngest child is almost seven year old Joey, who, despite his leeriness about starting school, finds it not so bad when he meets up with orphaned refugee Hans Ulrich, who won my heart completely. The two little boys scamper the old ruins seeking treasure, and get into all sorts of little boy stuff. Andrea, (almost ten) gets a scholarship to the Lycee, befriends Lenchen, the daughter of the local sausage maker, and in general, flourishes. It is Margret, who will be fourteen in December, and who has a "gift" for animals, who is perhaps the most hardest hit by the changes of life. HEr twin brother Chirstian was killed (along with their beloved dog Costi) by Russian soldiers just before they left Pomerania. She is bereft without her other half, her best friend. Because she always had Christian and Costi she never felt the need to learn to make friends and now feels quite alone. She has also had to give up the dream of becoming a a veterinarian. Yet it's her love for animals that not only opens a crack in Mrs. Verduz's defenses but also brings the family to a new life at Mrs. Almut's farm outside the neighboring village of Hellborn.

Having recently read The Guests of War Trilogy, this was a fascinating follow-up. How sad that this book has fallen out of fashion. It is a valuable lesson in history.

FROM AMAZON:

This gently-paced novel is a bit of a sleeper, but charming in its homespun simplicity. The first portion of the book describes the difficult and painful existence of displaced German families--unwelcome refugees in their own country. THE ARK was written to enlighten American youth about the horrors of homelessness, separated families and unreasonable prejudice. This book contains no battle memories or war atrocities, but proves that German burocracy is second to none.


Before the War the German Railroad had offered old passengers cars for sale, which Mrs. Almut had purchased but not really used. Now it becomes the perfect place for the Lechow teens and is promptly christened, THE ARK. But how can it become a real home--which Margret is sure she will never have again--with half the family elsewhere--including their father, a POW in Russia? Will Margret learn to live with her personal loss, yet not be scarred for future happiness? This is an introspective gem for those who appreciate the importance of holding on to Family and learning how to release past Tragedy. So relax and savor the slower pace, the quiet humor, the cycles of the seasons for two years, and the ultimate time of harvest for the soul.

[Sonia Gomes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every day, the news shows thousands of migrants from different parts of the country, trying to get home, No buses, no trains. Covid has left most of them stranded, with little or no savings...
But there is one difference; all these people are on their way Home. Somewhere a Home awaits them...
This was not the case for the millions of refugees who fled East Germany at the end of the Second World War; the Russians had occupied most of the territory, throwing out the Germans from their homes, sometimes shooting them. Thousands of orphans foraged for food in the woods.
These were terrible times and this is what Margot Benary-Isbert writes about in her two books ‘The Ark’ and ‘Rowan Farm’
The Ark, talks about displaced East Germans fleeing to West Germany, in this case the Lechows whose son Christian and Cosi their dog were both murdered by the Poles, who wanted to rob them.
What a terribly hard time Mother has bringing four children to West Germany. Queues for Identification Papers, queues for Ration Cards and most important no roof over their head. Think of winter in Germany.
Losing the War had disastrous consequences for the civilian population in Germany. Where could they live?
The Lechows had it pretty easy as compared to thousands of others; they were billeted in an elderly widow’s house, who was truly unhappy that she should accommodate a family with four children. But when the kids pitch in and help the widow, Mrs. Verduz, with all her household chores, she is immensely pleased...
The Lechows were thunderstruck, two rooms all to themselves? They would have gladly scrubbed the street for a roof over their head.
Sadly, they owned nothing; everything just about everything had to be borrowed from Mrs. Verduz, who lent them bed sheets, kitchen utensils and countless other things.
Slowly they came back to life although at the back of their minds there was always the thought of their Father in a POW Camp in Russia.
Magret, a shy girl worked very hard as did the Mother waiting in long queues for long hours for rations, the oldest of them Mathias works as a mason’s helper to clear all that rubble a legacy of the bombing, meanwhile Andrea and Joey attend school after ages.
Mother made house almost pretty because she was an extremely good seamstress. Slowly Mrs. Verduz warms up to the children, comes often to their two rooms.
The saddest but extremely stoic was little Hans Ulrich, who had no name, and no birthday. You see, Hans Ulrich and his Mother were bombed and his Mother was badly burnt and died on her way to the hospital before she could tell anything about Hans to anyone.
However luck was on their side and Margret and Mathias get jobs albeit with very little pay at the Almut’s to help in the stables and to rear Great Danes that Mrs. Almut raised to sell.
Eventually they are reunited with their Father and live in ‘The Ark’ an old railroad car on the farm converted into a home,

Margot Benary-Isbert, speaks in all honesty about her life as a refugee after the War, painting a realistic picture of the terrible aftermath of Germany, a country defeated in War.
But really it is a story of the courage of real people, who had no time for bitterness and looked at the future with just loads hope.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books from childhood. The part that I remember the most is the kids turning an old train car into a haven for the Great Danes. Can't remember much more. So, I dug it out today and plan to re-read it. Why did I love it so much? I think I got it in 4th grade at the school book sale. On the cover of my copy, the price is 75 cents!

If you Laura Ingalls Wilder's books, you'll like this one. It's about a German family's ability to overcome hardship after WWII. Very sentimental.

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the thick descriptions of the life of a German refugee family trying to survive after WW II, especially once they find sanctuary at a farm. But the characterization, especially of the central character, Margaret, falls just a tad short, so only four stars.

[Eliza Fitzgerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't wait to order the sequel from Purple House Press. I loved this story.
I'm using it as my "rebuilding after a catastrophe" category on the Reshelving Alexandria reading challenge.

[Julie Gentino · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is such a gem! I can’t believe after years and years of reading children’s lit I’m only just discovering it. Beautiful, heart breaking, redemptive story of a refugee family in post-WW2 Germany.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a sweet story. I really enjoyed it. I can’t wait to read the sequel.

[Abby Gaby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Found this out of print book "The Ark" on a used books bookstore. I didn't know if the story would be good, but the summary at the back plus the fact that it's a postwar YA novel grabbed my attention.

The story follows young refugee Margret Lechow and her family in postwar Germany. Written in 1953, the book is still very relevant up to now. I found myself crying and being joyful with Isbert's realistic sketch of refugee life, city life, and farm life in this era. We see how faith, love, and the human spirit triumphs over poverty and hopelessness. I love the book's tension on life and death, and the theme of how, when everything seems hopeless, life must still go on.

The characters are very human and the writing is sincere and compassionate. Death and life in a coming of age novel is a hard topic to write about, but I think Isbert has done it excellently, maybe because she herself has experienced much of what she had written.

This is one of my best rare book finds to date. My favorite YA novel written in the same vein was "The Book Thief", but the Ark has now definitely taken the top spot. I just wish I could also find its sequel Rowan Farm soon.

[Ariel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just re-read for the millionth time and I loved it just as much as ever. If only all the people who want to demonize all Germans and believe that the "national character" of Germany is evil, could be handed a copy of this book (and forced to read it)! This is the first one of BI's books about the Lechow family, refugees after WWII, and their struggles to re-establish themselves and find peace after wartime. A great comfort read for me.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this as a kid and was fascinated with the idea of living in an old train car. This German family, some of whose members were, as I recall, killed in World War II, try to re-establish themselves as a family after the war.

[JoAnn Hallum · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book is wonderful, it’s one I would have all my boys read because it deals with refugees from East Germany after WW2 in a beautiful but realistic way. Plus there are Great Danes!

[Eden · Rating 5 out of 5]

2021 bk 281. One of my childhood favorites, needing a comfort read I decided to pull this out from the shelves I was reading and return again to the region of Hesse, Germany in the years immediately following World War II. The family of refugees from Pomerania have been able to hold together despite time in labor camps (Mother and Matthias), one in a Russian P.O.W. camp (father),loss of one of them and their dog (Christopher and Cosi) and are finally leaving refugee camp and barracks life behind for two rooms in a house. The owner doesn't want them, but throughout the story gradually comes to rely on their help. The oldest daughter, the central figure, becomes the housekeeper for the 2 households until the day she has an encounter with Mrs. Almut of Rowan Farm. Needing help, Mrs. Almut first hires and moves Matthias to the country, then Margaret goes to become her kennel assistant. On the farm the two teens work to convert an old railway car into an Ark for their family.
A gentle book that describes what life was like for refugees after a horrible war, how resilence is taught and maintained in a family, and of how hope endures nightmares.

[Chloë Mali · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one of my favorites ever. <3 I read it in school years ago, and have loved it ever since my first read.
The Ark is different from most WW2 fiction I've read in the sense that it covers the aftermath of the war, not the war itself. It's a story of rebuilding, new beginnings, healing, and hope. I've always appreciated it for that, but the older I get, the more those themes hit home and I definitely cried several times during this reread.
The Ark and its sequel, Rowan Farm, used to be incredibly hard to find copies of- I was lucky to find a first edition of The Ark and that was all I could find for years. But luckily, it was reprinted in 2021 by Purple House Press and can now be found on Amazon. (When I tell you I was so happy to get my hands on Rowan Farm after so long of wanting it... The Ark has a lovely ending but Rowan Farm ties off some ends I really wanted to know more about. <3)
I wish more people knew about this book so that I could discuss it!

[Ruth Uhlemann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was maybe the best book I have read all year. We mourned the end and saying goodbye to a lovely family that became good friends of ours.
It was a beautifully written story of one families struggle to survive in post war Germany. I had never read much about this period of history and it was fascinating to hear about ration cards, assigned post war jobs regardless of interests, and assigned cities and towns for refugees regardless of where relatives may be. My American spirit of independence and self direction was humbled hearing how few choices these people has. The privations refugees and citizens struggled through after surviving years of war were sobering and gave us a new appreciation for the blessings we take for granted. Highly recommend this one- we love love loved it!

[Lila Mable · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cozy and delightful, and a lovely yet realistic picture of farm life.

One moment in particular was when Margaret poured her heart into tending a sick litter of puppies, and held a couple pups in her arms as they died, and immediately followed this event by crying at the wonder of a newborn colt.

It was harsh and beautiful, and left me hungering for life on an old-fashioned farm.

[Britt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

This was a re-read, but it has been a very long time since I've read it. This story is heartwarming, with laughter and tears. Post world war East Germany and the refugee families trying to survive, and hoping for loved ones to return. Beautiful.

[Shanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful listen with the kids!

[Myersandburnsie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this aloud. A beautiful, sometimes hard, story of post WWII Germany.