Daniel's Story

by Carol Matas

Daniel barely remembers leading a normal life before the Nazis came to power in 1933. He can still picture once being happy and safe, but memories of those days are fading as he and his family face the dangers threatening Jews in Hitler's Germany in the late 1930's. No longer able to practice their religion, vote, own property, or even work, Daniel's family is forced from their home in Frankfurt and sent on a long and dangerous journey, first to the Lodz ghetto in Poland, and then to Auschwitz -, the Nazi death camp. Though many around him lose hope in the face of such terror, Daniel, supported by his courageous family, struggles for survival. He finds hope, life and even love in the midst of despair.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Holocaust, Young Adult, Fiction, Historical, War, School

144 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1993

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a story about a fictional, teenage, Jewish character, Daniel, as he is living during the Holocaust. Although Daniel has been created by the author, the situations, settings, nightmares and facts of life during the Holocaust are real. As a teacher, I highly recommend this book for teaching students about WWII, the Holocaust, hate and prejudice. My students were shocked and in disbelief to learn about the horrors Jews were forced into during this time period. A great DVD to supplement the reading or on its own is "Auschwitz: If You Cried, You Died". This movie shows students that the Holocaust started with small acts of hate, like many that take place today in schools (teasing, judging others, etc.). The movie is narrated by a Holocaust survivor.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book the first time I read it. Then I read it again when I was older and got a whole new look at it. The book realy makes you think about what happened back then.

[Grayson · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Daniel's Story" by Carol Matas is historical fiction but so realistic that the U.S. Holocaust Museum has a whole floor with an exhibit called Daniel's Story which follows the exact story from the book. My grandmother bought me the book while we were on a trip and saw the museum.

The books follows the story of Daniel who is Jewish and lives in Frankfurt, Germany in the 1930's. As Daniel tells his own story, you experience just a little bit of what it was like for Jewish kids who lived in Germany just before and during World War II with Adolf Hitler as their leader. Most everybody knows the history of World War II, specifically about Germany, Hitler, and the horrible stuff he did to Jewish people in Germany and other countries when the Germans took over them.

Daniel begins with a normal life but tells as Jews lose their rights going to their church, voting, owning houses, and others. Soon, Daniel and his family get moved to one of the Jewish ghettos that Hitler moved Jews to in Poland after they took over. Later, Daniel and his family are moved again to Auschwitz. Auschwitz is one of the camps where German Nazis did experiments on Jews and also killed them in gas chambers. Daniel tells about his experience in these moves and about his family. Some of his family die in the story and some are killed by the Nazis. Eventually, Daniel and some of his family are moved again to another camp called Buchenwald. Soon, the war ends and American troops go into the camps and free people and help so many who are hungry and sick including Daniel.

This book was amazing. I loved it because it tells about World War II and it shows how things looked from a kid right in Germany where so much bad stuff was happening. The book is fiction but could be real. Everybody should read this book even if you are not into World War II or history because reading this kind of stuff teaches us about important things like the Holocaust. It also teaches us what can happen if we just watch stuff happening and don't do anything. I hope you will read this book and enjoy it as much as I did. It's one of my favorites!

[Art · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed Daniel's Story in that it followed many of the other books that I had read about the Holocaust.
Books, "Night", "The Devil's Arithmetic" and the "Warsaw Ghetto", just to mention a few.
Matas did a good job collecting and researching the stories to put together for Daniel"s Story.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think Daniels Story was a really good book that I recommend reading.

You get to travel through Daniels memories of life before the war and before the Nazis came to power. Daniel is no longer able to live a normal life. Many people he loved lose hope and give up, but Daniel stays strong to pull through. He faces many challenges including darkness, evil and devastation. Luckily, he is able to keep hope, life and and even love during the dark times.

If you are looking for a book to read or are thinking about reading this book, I hope you join Daniel on his journey through his experience in the Holocaust.

[Maddie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one of the best books I have ever read! I absolutely loved it. Carol Matas did an amazing job of making Daniel feel real. While reading this I truly felt like I was alongside him and going through this with him. I thought the combination of history and a young boy's journey through work camps and ghettos was moving. I could feel his anger, hate, love, pain, and fear. It was a ll so real and kept me on the edge of my seat. I would recommend this book to people who have trouble sticking to a book because this book just hooks you. I would also recommend this book to people who love drama, fear, the unknown, and love.

[Sabrina Lange · Rating 5 out of 5]

I quite literally cried. The book wasn't just sad, it linked your heart with the text and characters. The book is a work of art, teaching us aspects we never knew. I learned, felt, and enjoyed this book.

[Charlotte · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the perspective that the author, Carol Matas, put the story in. It makes the story so easy to comprehend since we have a close connection with the characters. I also enjoyed the sensory details that were provided to make the story realistic.

[Maia · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book was amazing it was full of emotion and made me cry so many times I loved it!

[Bubba Lamberson · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was amaizing.

[Nancy G · Rating 4 out of 5]

My memory of the Daniel's Story exhibit at the National Holocaust Museum drew me to this book. Daniel is a fictional composite of many teenagers, sharing a story about life before the war, in a ghetto, and then in a concentration camp. The story is well-written and powerful.

[Jose · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is my all time favorite. Its a great book, for children all alike. This book will give children the basic overview of life for a jewish boy in Nazi germany before, during, and after the war. I recommend this book for all those who attend the grades 4-6. A great read for the adults as well.

[Casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first of many, many books I read about the children of the Holocaust. I still think it's the best. It's pretty brutal in parts, but parents shouldn't fear exposing their children to this wonderful book.

[Josiah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book when I first read it as part of a class project in sixth grade, and I still love it. In my thinking, this is one of the finest stories written on the sobering subject of the holocaust, right up there with the best of the classics.

[Justin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just re-read it after a reminder...saddest/happiest/well no maybe just saddest book ever.

[Syd [‘ᴥ’] · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was well written, buy personally some parts were a little too graphic. Really puts into perspective of how terrible the Holocaust was.

[Jshun Rushing · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daniel’s Story
Daniel’s Story is about a Jewish kid who wanted to be a photographer and him and his family tried to hide from the Germans. They hid for as long as they could inside the attic with little food, water and no bathroom. Daniel’s mother and brother were killed first out of the family because they tried to go to the hospital and get supplies and other stuff they needed. Daniel and his father were caught when they tried to go out and find Daniel's mother. When the they got put on a truck with a lot of other people they knew it was over for them. At the concentration camp, Daniel was given a job to take pictures of good things so the Germans can trick the Jews. The Jews kept getting killed off fast and were being transported from camp to camp because the war was ending. In Daniel’s camp they had overthrown the Germans and shot a soldier in the leg. No I gave very little detail of the book because it’s a good book and I didn’t want to give it all away. They survived the holocaust Daniel and his father both survived and live on to they both died of old age.

[Leah Mather · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very scary and emotional. It was very good, don't get me wrong, but it was just so sad and I could barely even finish it! This book is about the time when Hitler became president. A boy and his family are taken away to camps and are separated, Daniel finds his father and they fight against the camps and Hitler, they take out the first camp, and free hundreds of people. They go to another camp, and Daniel finds his sister, who was alone, the mother was killed. Soon enough, they break out. This book was great and I definitely liked it a lot! But, if you are going to read it, be ready to cry. I would recommend this book for 5th graders and up.

[Jenb16 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A heartbreaking story of the horrors of the Holocaust. Somehow, through all of the terror, this story manages to capture the spirit of hope that was necessary to survive this horrific tragedy. I couldn’t help but get emotional and enraged at the brutality that is depicted during the Holocaust from the perspective of a survivor.

[Katherine Meyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this book from the Holocaust museum and I'm so glad I did. This was an intriguing story about a Jewish teenage boy who survived the holocaust. It is eye opening, yet I would say it is appropriate for 6th grade on up. Just plan on some serious conversations.

[Lia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this book was amazing. I felt as if I was right next to him, going with him through his journey. It had love, terror, pain, etc. You could feel his emotions as well. One of the best books I've ever read. The journey through the settings. You could feel the embarrassment, or the hunger, and any other thing he felt.

[Lisi Tesher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the use of photography as a literary tool.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book. Even though Daniel's mental state is very terrible by the end, he still gets a happy ending! Carol Matas has a roller coaster of emotions(mostly on the negative side) in this book. I would definitely recommend it to historical fiction fans.

[Despina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Great story, I love how it's a sad book. There are a lot of deaths in a lot of the chapters and the ending was bittersweet. I love how he reunites with Rosa after they get released and I love how they get married. I'm pretty sad about the fact that Erika dies, which is why most people hate the ending, but I think it was bittersweet!

[Jasmyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

CONTAINS SPOILERS!!

I liked this book because it told me a lot about what it was like for a Jewish person in this time period. The only thing I didn't like was so much death, but I guess that's what it was like then. I was really upset that Erika died, but I was glad that he got back with Rosa.

[Rebecca]

I read this in school in 6th grade & it was one of my favorites, going to reread :)

[Kasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just finished this book this morning. I had a thought the other week that I should try to read my kids something about the holocaust. I remember that my first exposure to that time period happened in Middle school in the classroom. I would rather have some conversations about that with my children at home so that when they learn about that part of history they will not be....surprised. I'm not sure exactly why. I also feel like learning of that time period can spark many good conversations with my children about the dangers of hate and how quickly good people can begin to act abominably if they are not careful.

One of our family's favorite books on that topic is called "For those I Loved" by Martin Gray. This however would not be a great choice for a 9 and 11 year old. It's much too graphic, I think. I went online in search of a more age appropriate novel.

I found this book, Daniel's story. It isn't perfect, but it paints a clear picture of a concentration camp and the way life was for Jews living in Germany. The only criticism I have is that the author chose to tell the stories based on pictures taken by the protagonist. He is constantly saying things like, "You can see in the next picture..." when there are no pictures at all in the book. It just kind of bugged me to have Daniel constantly talking about pictures as if the reader were looking at them as well, when no pictures are included in the book. I realize that Daniel, having experienced something as horrific as a concentration camp, has memories that come back much as photographs would as well, and the idea of photography is kind of an underlying theme. I just feel like the kids will be a little confused listening to descriptions of photographs and not being able to look at any of them.

The other drawback to this book versus the Martin Gray book is that this book is fictitious. If you have not read "For Those I Loved" I highly recommend it. It is an amazing true story of a Jewish man's survival through Nazi Germany. You wouldn't believe the kinds of things he did to try to live through all the horrors of that time.

Daniel's story is geared towards 4th through 8th graders, and while I still think some of the content is a bit mature for that age group, I will be comfortable reading it to my kids since I will be able to have discussions with them about it as we go.

[Kenzie]

This book was amazing and gave an amazing perspective on the Holocaust.
The twists are amazing, and I enjoyed reading this.

[Nicole]

This book is just as good now as it was back in grade 5. The only difference is now I have a full grasp on what was actually going on. Back then I viewed it as a very scary book, and that was all. The fact that this book is fiction really makes no difference to me, it only really means that their was thousands of actual children who could have experienced what Carol Matas made up. This story is not as gruesome as other Holocaust books I have read but that does not mean it is any less disturbing. I found the Resistance preparations and back stories very interesting, and it is a little bit funny when you look back and see that they called the storage centers in the camps "Canada". But why if this nation was said to be "bountiful" and "free", did we not let more Jewish families in? Maybe because what we know happened now, wasn't even close to what we thought was going to happen then. If only a time machine had been built, but then again, that would solve A LOT of histories greatest mistakes.


I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the Holocaust from a child's perspective (fake as it may be, it is still very informative and realistic, I think the author did a fantastic job) I also truly believe this is the perfect book for teachers to use in their classrooms studies.

[Willliam G · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read “Daniel’s Story" by Carol Matas. I liked this book because it was a good way to learn more about the history of WWII and what it was like to be a Jew during this time. This book was suggested to me by a teacher.
“Daniel's Story” is about a 14 year old Jewish boy named Daniel. Daniel and his family lived in Germany during WWII. At the beginning of the story Daniel,s family lived in frankfurt. Then his family started getting sent around germany to all different concentration camps. Then on April 11 & 12, 1945, Buchenwald is liberated by the Allied forces so Daniel and his dad were free.
I think Daniel's story was a good book because it teaches you a lot about that time period and most of the events that happened in Germany during WWII. My favorite part of the book was when Daniel killed the Nazis guarding the camp because it showed how brave he was. “I was sweating so much, the gun felt slippery in my hands.”(Matas 115.)
I would recommend this book to teens and older because there were parts that are for mature audiences. I would also recommend this book to anyone that likes learning about the history of World War ll.