Die Suche

by Eric Heuvel, Ruud van der Rol, Lies Schippers

Graphic Novel
Fortsetzung von "Die Entdeckung".
Übersetzt aus Niederländisch von Waltraud Hüsmert

Genres: Graphic Novels, Historical Fiction, Comics, Young Adult, Holocaust, Historical, Fiction

62 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

ERIC HEUVEL is one of the top graphic artists in the Netherlands. He concentrates on writing and illustrating educational graphic novels—three of which, including A Family Secret and The Search, have won the Dutch Comics Association’s category award. He lives in Zaandam.

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Back in 2013, I was able to visit Amsterdam and the Anne Frank House. While perusing the bookshop, I stumbled upon this graphic novel and its series companion, "A Family Secret." Then I moved and completely forgot that I had these stories and they ended up in a bin.

" The Search" relates the story of Esther and her parents who had to flee Nazi Germany and take refuge in the Netherlands. Although Esther survived she tells her story so that her grandson Daniel and his friend Jeroen do not forget. Rich in historical detail and accompanied by vivid images, The Search is a compelling Holocaust narrative.

[RosaDG · Rating 5 out of 5]

A review of one of the most terrible events in the recent history of the 20th century, told in a comic format and in a personal and close style, that every adolescent and young reader should read, to get an idea of ​​the reality that was the mistreatment, deportation and mass murder of millions of people, for the simple idea of ​​a ruler in power. As terrible reality as its reading is recommended. Very detailed situations and illustrations.

XX mendeko historia hurbileko gertakari ikaragarrienetako baten errepasoa, komiki formatuan eta estilo pertsonal eta hurbilean kontatuta, irakurle nerabe eta gazte orok irakurri beharko lukeena, errealitatearen ideia bat izateko. milioika pertsonaren tratu txarrak, deportazioa eta hilketa masiboa izan ziren, boterean zegoen agintari baten ideia soilagatik. Bere irakurketa bezain errealitate izugarria gomendatzen da. Egoera eta ilustrazio oso zehatzak.

Un repaso a uno de los acontecimientos más terribles de la historia reciente del pasado siglo XX, contada en formato cómic y en un estilo personal y cercano, que todo adolescente y joven lector debería leer, para que se haga una idea de la realidad que fue el maltrato, deportación y asesinato masivo de millones de personas, por la simple idea de un gobernante en el poder. Tan terrible realidad como recomendable su lectura. Muy detalladas las situaciones y las ilustraciones.

Une revue de l'un des événements les plus terribles de l'histoire récente du XXe siècle, racontée sous forme de bande dessinée et dans un style proche et personnel, que chaque adolescent et jeune lecteur devrait lire, pour se faire une idée de la réalité qui était la maltraitance, la déportation et le meurtre de masse de millions de personnes, pour la simple idée d'un dirigeant au pouvoir. Une réalité aussi terrible que sa lecture est recommandée. Situations et illustrations très détaillées.

[Nancy Kotkin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story: 4 stars
Art: 4 stars

The story of the holocaust, told from the perspective of a Jewish grandmother looking back on when she was a young girl who narrowly escaped a concentration camp twice, first in Germany, then in the Netherlands. Her parents and neighbors were not as fortunate as she was, and only one neighbor survived Auschwitz. He tells her of her parents' struggles after she was separated from them, and how they died. This is shelved in the YA section of my library, but is not nearly as gentle as A Family Secret, another graphic novel from this creator also focused on WWII. Care is taken to avoid blatantly gruesome images, but some of the content is still rather disturbing. I am just as stricken, if not more so, by the rendering of Nazis wearing gas masks while pouring cyanide through the roof of the "showers" than I was by seeing the actual sufferers choking on the gas (which I have seen in other Holocaust literature). But this is important history to remember, and we can only soften the brutal truth so much.

[Aaron West · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty straightforward and whole look at the experience of victims of the Holocaust—in an accessible format for younger students.

I appreciate that this graphic novel doesn’t shy away from discussing how many average citizens were complicit in this by being bystanders and remaining silent, arguably one of the most important lessons to take from this horrific portion of history.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goed vervolg op 'de ontdekking'. Het heeft mij niets nieuws geleerd, maar het legt helder en duidelijk uit wat er in de Tweede Wereldoorlog gebeurd is en welk effect dit heeft gehad op de levensloop van verschillende mensen.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Companion graphic novel to A Family Secret, completes the story from the Jewish side. Well worth reading together.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

It felt like the format graphic novel was just chosen to reach more/ different readers, very little consideration seemed to go into the format as an art form.

[Alex Baugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Esther always wondered about happened to her parents after they were picked up by the Nazis and she never saw or heard from them again. She assumed they had perished in the Holocaust just as 6 million other Jews had. Now, so many years later, she wants to visit her son in Amsterdam and attend her grandson's Bar Mitzvah, but she also wants to see her long time friend Helena.

After the Bar Mitzvah, Esther, her son and grandson, Daniel begin their trip into her past. As they travel, Esther begins to tels Daniel about her experiences as a Jew in Hitler's Europe.

When Hitler rose to power in Germany in the 1930s, life became very difficult and dangerous for all the German Jews living there. But after Kristalnacht, young Esther's parents decided to leave and move to the Netherlands. There, Esther became friends with Helena, a Christian girl her age. They both had crushes on Bob Canter, a handsome boy who lived in their apartment building. Things went well for Esther and her parents, until the Nazis invaded Holland.

Esther and Helena remained friends, but life became harder and harder once again. After her parents were picked up in a raid one night by the Gestapo in Amsterdam, young Esther is warned by Helena's father to get away. She went to a friend of her father's who helped her find a place to hide. There she met other Jews also being hidden, and is taught farm chores by the farmer's son Barend. One day the Nazis came but Esther managed to get away. As she run, she hears shots being fired but didn't know if anyone was hit.

Barend is the first perosn Esther and her son and grandson visit and her fills her in on what happened after she escaped.

After wandering around the forest for a while, Esther found people who welcomed her and she remained there until the end of the war. Returning to Amsterdam to look for her parents, she ran into Bob Canter, her old crush now a concentration camp survivor. Bob tells her that her parents both died in the Holocaust. Eventually, Esther migrated to the United States and lost touch with Bob.

Esther's grandson looks Bob up and finds him living in Israel. A few days later, they are on their way to visit Bob, who fills in all the blanks about her terrible parent's fate, a story well worth reading.
Feeling like she has now really lost her parents and her past, Esther leaves Bob's in absolute despair.

When she finally gets to meet Helena, there is more disturbing information but there is also a pleasant surprise waiting for her, thanks to the action of a true best friend.

The Search is a sensitive yet dynamic and informative graphic novel. Heuvel doesn't hold back on the plight of Esther to survive or atrocities Bob describes which were inflicted on the Jews in concentration camps by the Nazis, but he does temper it by framing the story in the present, and including the sons and grandsons of Esther and Helena. And even though the story jumps back and forth between past and present, it is not confusing in the least.

The other nice thing is that each character is distinct from the others, so there is no confusing who is who, which can often happen in graphic novels. In part, it is because they are also drawn distinctively and a large color palette is used.

The Search page 15
In fact, the illustrations help tell and carry the story along as they should since space is limited in graphic novels. This is a form that also appeals to young readers, making it a great way to introduce the Holocaust in either the classroom or for home schooling purposes.

The Search was originally written in Dutch, but I think that the translation done by Lorraine T. Miller is quite well done, since the story doesn't feel forced nor does any of the continuity feel lost, giving the whole story a nature feeling and flow that lets the story unfold without jarring the reader.

There is a companion book to The Search called A Family Secret, which is about Esther's friend Helena and which I will be reviewing soon, so watch this space.

This book is recommended for readers age 11+
This book was purchased for my personal library

This review was originally posted at The Children's War

[Corky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Can't stop thinking about the fact she couldn't walk because she had been up in the barn so long unable to move around.

[Anthony.W · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book the search by Anne Frank House was a really good book. It's based around the 1930s when hitters rise to power began. This young girl is forced to move away from her home. The germans because they were hunting down all jews. Families were separated. The setting starts in Germany and moves to Amsterdam. It a very eye opening book It shows what the jews were made to do in the concentration camp. It makes me sick to my stomach to know how they were treated in the camps. There living spaces were terrible it was a bunch of beds all clumped together
and they weren't allowed showers so you can imagine the smell. I like the relationship between Bob and Esther because they had grown up together. And her other friend Helena van Dort when they got older and the holocaust was over they still hung out and shared good memories.

[Sally Sugarman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the companion book to A Family Secret in which Esther tells her story. Along the way we meet her grandson and a young man named Bob who grew up at the same time Esther and Helena did. Bob is important because he brings Esthere information about the death of her parents in the concentration camp. Esther tells about her family’s escape from Germany to the Netherlands, as well as about her encounter with Helena’s father who saved her. She was taken to a family out of town. They go out to meet the man whose family took her in to find out what happened to them, because at one point Esther had to run away when the Nazis came to check up on them. Most of this book focuses on Esther trying to find out what happened after she moved to the United States, got married and had children. She has come back to the Netherlands to find out about all the people she had known. Thanks to her grandson checking on the Internet, Esther gets to go to Israel to see Bob who then tells her in detail about what he and her family went through in the camps. There is a lot more mingling of the present and the past in this book than in the first. Esther is sad that she has no mementos of her family. Then Helena remembers that she had gone to Esther’s house after Esther had left. Helena goes upstairs and finds a family album that she had taken from Esther’s house to remember her by. The book is filled with pictures and she gives it to Esther. Both novels show the horrors but each ends with a resolution of sorts that brings peace to the survivors. The visuals are those that would appeal to children. They are bright, detailed appropriately, showing the struggles with the Nazis clearly, but not sensationally. The regularity of the nine panel page keeps control of the story. The panels may vary in size for emphasis, but the format provides a balance as one sees the horrors that were inflicted on the Jewish people. The images provide a pace that makes it possible for the viewer to absorb the material with clarity and control.

[Ms. Patterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A companion to A FAMILY SECRET, THE SEARCH tells Esther's story of what happened to her during World War II. As a German Jew, she and her family faced discrimination and abuse and finally chose to emigrate from Germany to Holland. There, she befriends Helena, a Dutch girl and neighbor. When the Nazis invade the Netherlands, Esther and her family face many of the same discrimination as they had in Germany and worry about being transported to labor camps, so they decide to go into hiding. Before they can arrange for the hiding places, Esther's parents are picked up by the Germans in a mass sweep of the neighborhood. Esther then tells the story of how she goes into hiding alone and what happened to her during and after the war.

Told in graphic novel format, THE SEARCH tells about the horrible events of the Holocaust. The pictures aren't overly gruesome or violent, but the reader does get a sense of how despicable the events truly were. For example, when talking about how many Soviet Jews were rounded up, shot in the forests and dumped in mass graves, the reader sees the pit with the Jewish people by it and German soldiers with weapons, then a close-up of the terror on the faces of the Jewish people, then in the next frame the German soldiers by the pit with a mound of clothing behind it. You get the idea of what happened, but you don't actually see it.

THE SEARCH and A FAMILY SECRET used together will be a great introduction to the world of Anne Frank. Students who are not familiar with the events of Anne's day will get a glimpse of what life was like for her and many others. By using the graphic novel format, this story will be accessible to many students of all levels, including reluctant readers.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an older woman, Esther decides it's time she revisit the locations of her past and find the people who meant much to her. The story follows Esther's life in Germany, her family's move to Holland to escape persecution, and eventually Esther's settlement in the United States after the war.

The first few pages show who the main characters are, both in the early timeline (in black and white) and the more modern timeline (in color). Despite those pictures for reference, it was incredibly difficult to read and understand the way the timeline of the story overall jumped around. Even as an experienced reader of graphic novels, who notices things like difference in clothing and hair cuts and the change in scenery from one panel to another, I still had a difficult time understanding the jumps in the story. Perhaps it would have been better if the timelines in the past were presented in black and white, like the characters at the beginning were shown.

Also, there were random panels that seemed unnecessary - they skipped entire days or weeks between them but didn't really advance the story in any way. I would have cut those, as an editor.

Overall, I don't think I want to put this in my classroom library, for students who are interested in learning more about the Holocaust, since I thought it was confusing. But it's an interesting read if you don't try to understand everything and experience the book viscerally.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Holocaust is not a topic that would seem to lend itself well to graphic novel format, but this book -- and it's prequel A Family Secret--are both very successful at making the story of Holocaust victims accessible to middle and high school students. The author certainly doesn't gloss over the atrocities, but they they are portrayed without excessive sensationalism. Based on the fact that these books have been sponsored by the Anne Frank House, I believe the historical details are accurate. The stories are told partly as flashbacks and I found the plots interesting and moving. The illustrations and graphic format bring the events and people to life in an effective way -- very different than just reading text, or even a photographic essay about life at that time. Sometimes all the characters and different time settings got a bit confusing, but the author provides a helpful guide at the beginning of each book.

[Diz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This graphic novel tells the story of two Holocaust survivors: a jewish girl who survives by hiding in the countryside and a jewish boy who survives the horrors of Auschwitz. The story is deeply moving, and you really develop an attachment to the characters that are portrayed. It may even bring some tears to your eyes. The art style is crisp and clean, which is typical of European comics, and it is very attractive. This style is maintained even in the concentration camp parts of the story, which helps you focus on the actions of the characters, both good and bad, rather than in the conditions of the camp.

[Marilyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better than the companion graphic novel, The Family Secret, though this employs the same point form format to tell the story which I still found removed me from feeling the emotions of the story. This story was much more focused in scope from The Family Secret as it really mostly told the story of Esther's parents in the Nazi camps and didn't try to tell the entire story of WWII (though it did give some extra info about the wider war). This tighter scope helped the story immensely and I was almost (but not quite) moved by the story.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ďalšia kniha, ktorú by som zaradila do povinnej literatúry na dejepis. Jedná sa o komiksovo spracovaný príbeh židovky Ester a jej príbuzných a priateľov. Napriek tomu, že komiks pôsobí na prvý pohľad detsky, tak dokáže veľmi presvedčivo ukázať hrôzy tej strašnej doby a jednotlivé ľudské charaktery.
Mne osobne sa veľmi páčil, chytil ma za srdce, celé spracovanie hodnorím veľmi kladne.

[Jay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Esther, now a grandmother was once a young girl living in the gruesome times of World War Two. One day while the family is together, Esther’s grandson Daniel is interested in specific detail of what happened around her and others during the time of war. They chat for hours on of how difficult it was. Daniel asks many questions which then lead into clues that haven’t been solved since then. These clues and questions lead to other people sharing their stories and Esther finding out things that happened to other people. She also meets up with an old friend from Israel and learns another side of the story that she has never heard of before.


This book is a very suspenseful book. You always want to know what will happen next, Will this person live? Will this person die? I really enjoyed this book because it kept me interested the whole time and I learned a lot of history from it such as the harsh conditions of the concentration camps. I would recommend this book to readers who like to figure out mysteries and learn information about historical events.

[Taelor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book for school and I have to say it personally didn't hold my attention. The book was very well written and was set up like a comic book so I read through the different panels and visually saw what was going on. This wasn't enough to keep my attention. The story follows a grandma who is telling her life story to her grandson about what it was like living in Germany with Hitler rising to power, she talks about the hardships and the struggle of hiding from the Germans,and she talks about how she meets lifelong friends.

Some of the things that did catch my attention was seeing how the Germans who supported Hitler would turn on people they had known their whole life. One particular was how long time family friends wouldn't allow their son to play with the jewish girl. The Germans forced the Jewish children wear gold star pins in school. The story continues with the girl and her family's escape attempt from Hitlers rule. I don't want to spoil the story so if you're interested in this subject I recommend you read this book.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read The Search after finishing A Family Secret as recommended by a friend who had given both books 5 stars. The graphic novels were produced by the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. They tell the story of two families - one Jewish, one not - living in Amsterdam during the German occupation of the Netherlands in World War II.

I highly recommend these graphic novels to gain a better understanding of the roles that ordinary people played during this horrible period of history — whether they were victims, friends of victims, perpetrators, collaborators, or bystanders.

[Ad Astra · Rating 4 out of 5]

True story, I was reading this while working at the library when a patron asked me for a book about the Holocaust for her child who didn't enjoy reading. Perfect timing. I read a lot of Holocaust themed books in public school. This one was a nice addition to that. Having lived through the beginning of a fascist movement here in USA the last 5 years, I would say this was pretty scary to read as an adult and having a child who would need protection. We read these books to try and learn from our mistakes. Here in America we will have to wait and see.

[Liza]

Hi everyone! I'm working for a Russian website Papmambook.ru dedicated to children's books and children's reading. We've been building the English version of the website and recently published an article on The Search. The author talks about how the book made it possible for her to talk to her sons about the Holocaust. Here's the link if you want to check it out.

[Ilonka Sheleshko · Rating 3 out of 5]

у цьому коміксі нема нічого нового, все те, що всюди, жодного додаткового контексту. той же «Маус» додає шарів частково через біографічність. а тут те, що в новинах, те, що в підручниках з історії. тому якщо тільки відкривати для себе цю жахливу сторінку історії — воно підійде, бо сам формат коміксу дозволяє легше сприймати важкий матеріа�� і містить головне. але якщо вже є мінімальні початкові знання — беріть хоча б «Маус»

[Jody · Rating 5 out of 5]

This graphic novel tells the story of a family who fled to Holland to escape Hitler's Germany and roundup of the Jews, only to find themselves in the same predicament in Amsterdam. Published by the Anne Frank House, this book is a great entry point for middle school kids to learn and discuss what happened to the Jews in Holland during WW2.

[Sharon Erickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

From my 11 year old: "This is such a good book. I love graphic novels and think it's a fun way to read and grow your imagination. This book is about an older woman who retells her life through WWII and the Holocaust to her best friend's grandson and her great nephew. The images help you realize what is going on."

[Fatima · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. I feel like this gave an interesting and different POV of the holocaust. Having the grandma tell the kids the story and seeing their reaction and how honest she was and didn't sugar coat anything was great. Very sad, not super graphic...mostly sound fx. Highly recommend. I cant wait to read the other one.

[Katie Ruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent YA Graphic Novel depicting a Jewish woman looking back on her life during the Holocaust when she had to hide from the Nazis and lost her parents. The story traces what happened to her parents after they were separated from her.

[Carlos Úbeda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cómic de encargo sobre el holocausto resuelto con gran pericia tanto en la narración como en el dibujo, en la más característica línea clara franco-belga. Quizá algo esquemático y manido en algunos puntos, pero muy bien llevado y con suficiente personalidad.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me ha gustado mucho cómo está estructurado el comics ya que no solo te aporta la visión de una persona que ha sufrido por la IIGM sino también las demás visiones de los diferentes destinos de aquellos que fueron perseguidos, maltratos y asesinados.

[Ondra Král · Rating 3 out of 5]

U prvního dílu jsem se radoval, že máme válečný komiks bez koncentráku... a už je to tady. Dvojka stále výborně plní svoji úlohu seznámit děti s nacistickým svinstvem, ale vyprávění mi tu přišlo už dost generické. První část navíc jen opakuje události z jedničky.

3,5*