Run and Hide: How Jewish Youth Escaped the Holocaust: A Graphic Novel

by Don Brown

A gripping nonfiction graphic novel that follows the stories of Jewish children, separated from their parents, who escaped the horrors of the Holocaust. From the Sibert Honor and YALSA Award–winning creator behind  The Unwanted, Drowned City,  and others.  In the tightening grip of Hitler’s power, towns, cities, and ghettoes were emptied of Jews. Unless they could escape, Jewish children would not be spared their deadly fate in the Holocaust, a tragedy of unfathomable depth. Only 11% of the Jewish children living in Europe before 1939 survived the Second World War. Run and Hide tells the stories of these children, forced to leave their homes and families, as they escaped certain horror. Some children flee to England by train. Others are hidden from Nazis, sometimes in plain sight. Some are secreted away in attics and farmhouses. Still others make miraculous escapes, cresting over the snow-covered Pyrenees mountains to safety. Acclaimed nonfiction storyteller Don Brown brings his expertise for journalistic reporting to the deeply felt personal narratives of Jewish children who survived against overwhelming odds.  Read more books by Don

Genres: Graphic Novels, Nonfiction, History, Holocaust, Historical, Comics, Middle Grade

192 pages, Hardcover

Published October 10, 2023

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Don Brown is the award-winning author and illustrator of many picture book biographies. He has been widely praised for his resonant storytelling and his delicate watercolor paintings that evoke the excitement, humor, pain, and joy of lives lived with passion. School Library Journal has called him "a current pacesetter who has put the finishing touches on the standards for storyographies." He lives in New York with his family.

Reviews

[Inés Molina · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story did great giving a piece of what the Holocaust was. I don't see much of it but this would be great for kids to read and learn what happened. The art is fantastic and the story is powerful.

[Peacegal · Rating 4 out of 5]

The grim and unthinkable choice made by parents whose families are targeted by the Nazis is presented in this graphic memoir/history. Their stories are harrowing and memorable.

[Carolyn Scarcella · Rating 5 out of 5]

The shortest book I’m reading is called “Run and Hide” by Don Brown. Don uses his experience to interview profoundly felt personal stories of Jewish children who have survived against odds, and this book is really hard to read. Since children were forced to leave their homes, family, friends, and school, I feel bad for them. The most difficult decision was the pressure on the parents to decide whether to send their kids into hiding or to another country. However, a lot of parents were aware that it was their only option. The book's illustrations, which resembled watercolours, were stunning. Very gentle, yet it captured the darkness of the moment.

[Erikka · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s always great to read about the lengths people went to to save people from the Nazis, especially children. A million children were killed in the Holocaust, a million, but that number could have been much higher were it not for amazing people. Two things drop the rating on this: the simply terrible art. I mean truly atrocious art. And the art was all so similar it was hard to follow at times. Also, the random insets of communication put into characters mouths that clearly aren’t something they said. It was very disjointed and disconnected and I’d rather it had all been text instead of 90% text and 10% not-quotes. It was odd. But still, great information.

[Lauren Stoolfire · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish this had a bit more of a direct narrative but otherwise this is a must read.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Devastating. These stories of peril can be taken in two ways—that of the obvious, the condemnation of the murderous exploits of the Nazi regime working their way through Europe bristling with genocidal intent, or that of the upstanding angels, glorifying those risking their lives in harrowing escapes, smuggling, paperwork forgery, and harboring refugees. I’ve read about Irena Sendler, the Polish woman personally responsible for saving scores of children during the Holocaust. This graphic adaptation does not focus on one courageous hero, rather the collective effort to save as many children as possible from the swath of imminent death. Narrative interspersed with quote bubbles, presumably from eyewitnesses, surrounded by intentionally drawn coarse figures in drab hues, makes for an ironclad argument for always speaking up, always doing the right thing in the face of authoritarianism/totalitarianism/fascism, always being an upstander. Aside from the innocuous title, this is arguably the most important graphic novel about the Holocaust since Maus or Yossel.

[Juniper Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book illustrates the somber, gripping reality of the Jewish children who escaped the Nazi regime.
I hadn’t known a whole lot about Jewish children’s experiences during WWII. I have mostly read biographies about adults experiencing the horrors of war; I neglected to think about the children. I felt compelled to read this book to honor their experiences.
I’m in awe of how people in the communities rallied to save the children from the Nazis. The section where adults would snatch children out of the round-ups, snip their stars off, and smuggle them to safety really compelled me.

Thank you Netgalley for giving me an ARC of this book.

[Katie (hobbitthereader) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review Copy - This book was sent to me by the publisher.

Such an important book to read. Don Brown approaches the Holocaust with unflinching honesty and I don’t think it could have been done any better.

I can’t say I enjoyed this book, because it’s not a subject or history to be enjoyed, but the artwork was beautiful and it certainly hit harder that the words were spoken and written by real people.

I think everyone should read this book, perhaps it should even be mandatory in school, and I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking to understand and learn about the horrors that the Jewish people suffered during WW2.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Moody art in shades of washed out brown and blue evoke the mood of despair. The graphic novel is full of stories of Jewish children escaping the Nazi regime. The only problem is there is little information on dates. There's only one map, which can be confusing for children who aren't familiar with Western Europe geography.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.
It seems I always learn something new from reading WWII books and this graphic novel has potential to be a great book. The story is pretty good but I really don't care for the artwork. The author also has some people supposedly saying something but it really wasn't something that would've been said. I think it could've been better if the people were telling the story for part of the book.

[Reading With Yeti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sensitive and informative .

The first time I read an evocative, non-fictious graphic novel related to political issues was Samya Kullab's "Escape to Syria." The story had stirred up my awareness to explore others' misery that, in fact, it had me disturbed for days.
Similarly,  "Run and Hide" had given me that same vibe. The story was strongly affective with horror that i had difficulty going to sleep that night. Sure! It's happened over one hundred years ago, but the terrifying stories still remain to float hauntingly until today.
Don Brown's "Run and Hide" is a gripping, non-fictious graphic novel that tells the stories of children who had escaped the horrors of the holocaust . The stories speak of family separation, dislocation, unwilling emigration from their own land, and, of course,  the holocaust.
Although I dislike the author presenting such horrifying concept which has shook me inside out, Brown has done an excellent work retelling the stories so haunting. The story is presented in simple language so that the young audience can comprehend the devastating events. As you read, it creates a spooky atmosphere that it had me feel their pain and fear.
In addition,  the illustrations are simple pen -like figures, yet it seems haunting to keep staring at them.
In my opinion,  this outstanding book is a must-have resource to teach history for students.

[Richie Partington · Rating 5 out of 5]

Richie’s Picks: RUN AND HIDE: HOW JEWISH YOUTH ESCAPED THE HOLOCAUST by Don Brown, HarperCollins/Clarion, October 2023, 192p., ISBN: 978-0-35-853816-5

“In a land that’s known as freedom, how can such a thing be fair?”
– Graham Nash (1971)

“As chaos spread, the Nazis' power grew. Hitler promised to bring order, promote prosperity, and restore glory to the German military. People listened: a hundred thousand people thronged a Nazi rally and Hitler swore he’d make Germany great again.”

“If you’ve read the news lately, you’ll know that Trump went to New Hampshire on Veterans Day, and delivered a news-making speech that included a ‘pledge to root out the communists, Marxists, Fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country that lie, and steal and cheat on elections.’
As I argued in a recent Lucid essay, violence is now Trump’s brand. To that end he conjures existential threats to the nation from non–white immigrants and an expanding cast of internal enemies, calls the thugs who are in prison for assaulting the Capitol on Jan. 6 ‘political prisoners,’ and praises autocrats like Xi Jinping and and Vladimir Putin who depend on propaganda, corruption, and repression to stay in power. But to get people to lose their aversion to violence, savvy authoritarians also dehumanize their enemies. That’s what Trump is doing. Hitler used this ploy from the very start, calling Jews the “black parasites of the nation” in a 1920 speech.
– “Trump’s latest speech echoes fascist rhetoric” by Ruth Ben-Ghiat, ProtectDemocracy website (11/14/2023)

For more than a dozen years, Don Brown has been writing and illustrating award-winning, history-based nonfiction picture books for older readers. His latest historical nonfiction graphic novel, RUN AND HIDE is filled with anecdotes about how a large number of Jewish children escaped the Holocaust. (If you can call surviving, after seeing your parents for the last time before they are carted off and murdered, “escaping.”)

RUN AND HIDE: HOW JEWISH YOUTH ESCAPED THE HOLOCAUST begins with an overview of a century-ago Germany, when Adolf Hitler succeeded in rising to power:

“In the years after Germany’s loss of World War I in 1918, Communists and Nationalists battled for the future of the country.
Communists saw workers at the heart of society, deserving of all loyalty. Nationalists held loyalty to Germany to be central and beyond question. The difference was deadly; violence and murder followed.
The Kaiser, or king, had been swept aside after the war and replaced by a constitutional republic with elected officials, The new Weimar Republic–its name taken from the town where the new government was born–faced storm after political storm. Germany’s economy sank under the weight of the debt for war damage it owed the victorious powers, England, France, and America.
The mark–the German version of the dollar–lost so much value that a wheelbarrow filled with them…could barely buy a loaf of bread.
Children even made kites with marks.
[Germans] had lost their fortunes, their savings; they were dazed and inflation-shocked and did not understand how it had happened to them.
The leader of a small, splinter political party of the Nationalist movement blamed the misery on Weimar leaders. He declared a revolt and tried to seize power in 1923, but failed and was jailed for nine months.
Waiting for his release were his followers in the National Socialist German Workers Party: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei. From NAtionalsoZialistsche sprang its shorthand name, Nazi.
In jail, the Nazi’s leader wrote Mein Kamph (My Struggle), outlining political ideas, future plans, and hatred of Jewish people.
The ideas, plans, and hatred of the ‘modest looking, slender man of medium height’ would seal the fate of millions of people.
The man was Adolf Hitler.”

RUN AND HIDE recounts Hitler’s military successes, as Nazi Germany conquers a sizable portion of Europe and murders millions of Jews, before finally being defeated by the Allies. The tales enlighten young readers through depictions of the many ways in which people of good conscience risked and sometimes sacrificed their own lives in order to save the lives of young people whose only crime was being born Jewish.

“We can change the world, rearrange the world”
– Graham Nash

My hope is that RUN AND HIDE will engender empathy and inspire young people to consider someday sticking their necks out to help those who are being bullied at school, or are being demonized by Trump. Or by anyone seeking to achieve power through the scapegoating a segment of the population.

“In 1933, there were about nine million Jews in Europe. By 1945, two thirds–six million–of those, more than one million were children. Nearly 90 percent of Jewish European children did not survive the war.”

This bears repeating: “Nearly 90 percent of Jewish European children did not survive the war.”

In the afterword (“Uninterrupted”), the author/illustrator puts the story into a heartbreaking perspective, listing the most horrific genocides that have taken place since WWII. He also points out how Jewish Americans “comprise only about 2 percent of the population…but suffer 60 percent of [America’s] religious-based hate crimes.”

RUN AND HIDE is a quick-but-bitter read. It is an outstanding title for reluctant readers, and an important addition for all collections serving tweens and teens. It will also serve as an excellent supplemental resource for middle- and high-school world history curriculums.

Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.pbworks.com
https://www.facebook.com/richiespicks/
richiepartington@gmail.com

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

On one hand, an important piece of history, and this book is packed with stories. On the other, I just don't like the art. Everyone looks the same, which can sometimes be disorienting. Is the character on this page the same person as the one on the previous page, or are they just drawn the same? There's also a bunch of panels where a character on the page is given a speech bubble with something that is either not their own words at all or, more often, something they said way later. It's not bad, and I think the target audience will get more out of it, but I would have liked to see better art at least.

[Jurij Fedorov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don Brown has released some great history comic books. I have only just started reading them and this is another high quality one. He will refer to modern progressive politics which in some historical context may seem off so I subtract a star for this as I didn't like how he referred to various progressive US issues at the end instead of telling us anything about Israel or modern day Jews. He brings his politics into his other books too. It's never a ton, but enough to make you question everything else too. I see the same thing in some modern movies about WW2 Jews. Where half the movie will be about a gay couple or a Black man. Just weird, but Americans cannot see the Holocaust through a historical lens that no longer exists in their world.

I liked the stories. It was mostly about children during Holocaust and how some avoided capture. Often by paying off people and just being lucky. You need to run and hide and Nazis would hunt any Jew and shoot anyone trying to run away. Often they would hide in tiny rooms before an escape attempt. If anyone knew about their location they would give it up and there were plenty of Nazi sympathizers even in Holland and France. You couldn't trust anyone. Some kids would have new identification papers made. But Nazis often could uncover scam attempts. Furthermore nations like Switzerland and England took in Jewish children. Adults escaping into Switzerland would be sent back to France. USA didn't want to take in Jews. He also forgot to mention the Muslims in Palestine didn't want too many Jews to go there either and they worked with Nazis. The book overall is focused on anecdotes about single children and I assume those are true stories? We don't get too much background info. There are a few maps and numbers. But it still feels a tad hazy.

I'm glad it's not just a lazy overview. We follow single people. The drawings are still crude. And at times his books feel quite dull. He doesn't really want to write long stories, but rather explanations. It can get technical and unemotional like him just stating facts about events. I still like the style, but it's definitely not always super fun reads unlikely many other historical comic books. Because I didn't know these stories I liked the book quite a bit. I must say I want to force myself to like Holocaust as a reading topic. I keep forcing myself to watch and read about it. But most literature on it is not particularly engaging. So new stories are always welcome.

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this hard to follow. Some might be because I didn’t read graphic novels till I was an adult. But looking at other reviews, it seems this wasn’t just me. It was hard to understand when one person’s story ended and another’s began. I also felt like the artwork more or less blurred a lot of the time, when it should have provided clues when the next person’s story began. Sometime the artwork was striking, for example, when a child was snatched out of a line, the Star of David cut off the clothes and the child was hidden. Another time when a mother told her blonde haired daughter to run, that she expected to live on in the child’s survival. Dan Brown also pointed out the heroism of families that chose to give up their children, knowing that the parents were likely doomed. Nonetheless, much of the artwork just blurred together for me.
I also take offense to Brown’s list of other events trying to show that the Jewish slogan of “Never again!” Is false. The Holocaust, was exceptional. As Brown points out, 90% of Jewish children in Europe died. Equating this to other wars is offensive. I’m not denying other Holocausts have occurred: they have. But not every war is an equivalent. I’m both glad and sad that he completely skipped the most famous youth of the Holocaust: Anne Frank. Glad in that the millions of other children deserve to be remembered, sad that it was incomplete by not including her. And I just realized, that is part of my issue with this book. So much was left out! The children who wrote remarkable poems and drawings in Terezin are excluded, for example (look for the remarkable book titled “… I never saw another butterfly: Children’s Drawings and Poems from Terezín Concentration Camp 1942 - 1944”). While I think Brown was trying to show that some people went out of their way to help, he took away much of the agency of these children. Virtually all, other than babies and toddlers had some understanding and actively saved themselves, along with help.

However, living in the United States where we currently have a President who seems to admire Hitler and other dictators, I think books like this for teenagers are needed! So, recommended, especially if this can be combined with another Holocaust account that is more comprehensive and respectful of the children’s agency and will to survive.

[Sheila O'Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Holocaust is a topic that can be handled delicately or with more realism in a graphic novel. Don Brown, the author and illustrator, captures the expressions of the people in a very strange and disturbing way. His use of color also presents very striking images. The use of a gray tones throughout the book remind a reader of the sadness that surrounds this time in human history. The pops of brown, yellow, or red really stand out and make a reader take a closer look at the illustrations. The text is thought provoking and the focus on children make this a good choice if you have a young adult reader in your classroom or family. This author clearly did extensive research for this project and the list of references is very helpful if you want to check sources or look into the specific recollections of the rescuers or survivors. I recommend this book to teenagers who have had some exposure to WWII and the Holocaust. As a teacher, I would also prepare for many questions and some difficult conversations.

The first section presents the Kindertransport and the train station scenes. This section shows how difficult it was for families to split up. It also explains that many of the children never saw their parents again. The citizens of the European nations did not realize what would happen in the future or the trauma that could be created by this separation of families. It provides an overview of the life of the Jewish children after their arrival in Britain and the types of homes where the children began their new phase of life. More than ten thousand children escaped the Nazis through the Kindertransport to Britain before this ended in 1939.

The graphic novel presents life in hiding through a series of real life stories about children who were hidden. This section tells stories about children from a variety of countries and focuses on children in different situations. Some of the children hid in cellars, farms, in the homes of immigrants, in churches, boarding schools, summer camps, or escaped to other countries. Large and small organizations worked to hide children. Individuals created networks and partisans hid children or took children from the round-up lines. This segment presents the stories of several people who became part of the resistance after they witnessed the cruelty of the Nazi soldiers. The Children's Aid Society in France worked to hide children before and after the round-ups in France. The organizations coached the children about their new identities and families. The role of women who took in infants and small children was another segment. Children who could hide their identity and accept their new families had a chance of survival.

Some of the stories explained that German soldiers ignored the escaping children. One story explained that a train stopped near a concentration camp and the parents of the escaping children interacted with their children from the train. The children sacrificed their meager supply of food to help the Jewish people in the camp. This event allowed for a look at the family dynamics and the quick changes that occurred in the family structures due to separation. Another story implied that German soldiers accepted lies told by the rescuers and allowed the Jewish children to escape.

Rescuers risked their own safety to help the children escape soldiers, dogs, and the physical environment. Some of the escapes occurred in the winter months or the groups needed to traverse mountain ranges to reach safety in Switzerland or Spain. Many of the children had to hike or walk for days to reach the next safe location. Some of the smugglers needed to be paid to help transport children across a border. Other people were more altruistic and helped out of a moral sense to protect innocent children.

It was a miracle for some of the rescued children to survive until the end of the war in 1945.

By the millions... towns, cities and ghettos were emptied and Jewish people were transported to work and concentration camps throughout Europe.

The graphic novel ends with the sentences, "Nearly 90 percent of Jewish European children did not survive the war. Their oblivion was... a Holocaust."

[Siobhain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Run and Hide is a difficult graphic novel to review and remain unbiased. Brown has masterfully captured the horrors that those persecuted by the Nazi’s had to face and not just the Jewish people but those who were disabled, homosexual and others who did not fit with the extreme groups views on ‘master race’. It does not hold back on showing and telling what these children and their protectors had to go through. How friends and neighbours turned on each other and in some cases (although far less) they turned the other way.

While presenting factual accounts it allows this hard hitting and heavy topic to be accessed by a younger audience, perfect for those studying at GCSE or A-Level, while not glossing over the atrocities that happened. I particularly liked the use of colours and art style. It was muted and bleak and the change in tone when depicting the concentration camps and was subtle but hard hitting. It really does make you stop and think of the horrors they faced but also how some people are facing similar persecution now.
I particularly liked the piece at the end where Don Brown highlights that how ‘Never Again’ seemingly has failed time and time again right up to present day. It highlights how learning from history does not guarantee we cannot and will not repeat it but how it can help people notice when it is happening and perhaps, if enough people do, we might reach a time when globally we can say ‘Never Again’.

[Julie Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don Brown excels at teaching you about a topic in an engaging, concise, and visual way. This was all about how children in the holocaust escaped death, whether it be the heroic efforts of individuals or underground organizations or just the kids escaping and surviving on their own. I definitely learned new content here, and I particularly love the beginning in which context is provided, especially the page with a large illustration of Hitler in front of a crowd accompanying this text: "A hundred thousand people thronged a Nazi Rally and Hitler swore he'd make Germany great again." Love that language.

After the reader is thoroughly shaken for the howeverth time about the devastation and horror of the Holocaust, Brown drops the graphics and tells you how "Hate and violence endure, uninterrupted", listing the genocides and mass killings that have happened since, including the invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2022 in which the "tally of death and suffering is still being calculated." He doesn't leave America off the hook; I was disheartened to read that "Although Jewish Americans comprise only about 2 percent of the population, they suffer 60 percent of religion-based hate crimes." The book includes ample citations for everything stated in the book.

Keep writing these books, Dan Brown. You are reaching an audience of typically non-readers, and they need to know.

[Amy Pickett · Rating 5 out of 5]

In his latest graphic history for young readers, author and illustrator Don Brown explores the history of World War II with a focus on the plight of young Jewish people and heroic efforts to save them. Brown has chronicled other disasters, both natural and manmade, in his previous works: 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, the Dust Bowl, and the flu of 1918, among others. His writing and artwork are particularly urgent in Run and Hide, perhaps because - as he writes in his Author’s Note - “Hate and violence endure, uninterrupted” (179). Here he covers Kristallnacht, the Kindertransport, the “final solution” and deportations, and more. In depicting each event, he incorporates first-person testimony in speech bubbles. This technique succeeds in both portraying and personalizing the complex events of the Holocaust. His grim, roughly drawn line art of concentration camps are especially effective. Throughout Run and Hide, Brown credits the bravery of Jewish youths and the heroic actions of resistance networks, but also leaves the reader with the stark fact that one million children were killed in Europe during WWII. Run and Hide is a remarkable work of graphic nonfiction. It presents our most difficult history in an approachable way that will inspire deeper research and action.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Run and HIde” is a graphic novel that tells the story of how Jewish children escaped Nazi persecution during World War II. This graphic novel contains not just one story of escape, but many, from the Kindertransport to walking across the Pyrenees Mountains to hiding in fields and barns. Quotes from survivors are throughout.

Author and illustrator Don Brown’s book starts with an overview of the end of World War I to the rise of the Nazis in Germany. Early efforts by parents to get their children to safety are chronicled with succinct text and haunting illustrations in muted colors. The illustrations effectively capture both urgent movement and terrified stillness.

There are extensive notes and a list of sources in the back of the book.

This book is great for those interested in learning about the Holocaust and the children who escaped. I would definitely recommend this to my students as a concise introduction to the topic.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book provided by NetGalley and the publisher, Clarion Books. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Hallie Winschuh · Rating 4 out of 5]

This graphic novel is a really well researched and compiled introduction to the Holocaust and the different ways that specifically youth were able to escape. Brown provides both overarching ideas of some large youth escape paths, like the Kindertransport, and also pulls from individuals' stories to show that there were a variety of paths to escape that all varied in just about every aspect. This is a great way to dip your toes into that knowledge, but don't stop there! Check out the original sources that Brown cites at the end of the book. These works will go more in depth. There were a couple spots in the novel that felt disjointed since there were so many different examples included, but overall it works. I think that the art work separates the reader from the events more than time already does. Again, used as a stepping stone into more in depth studies of the material, I really like this!
Thank you NetGalley and Clarion Books for an advance digital copy. All opinions are mine.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The heartbreak, violence and destruction caused by Nazi Germany is immeasurable, but Brown’s focus on the Jewish children swept up in the Holocaust gives readers a breathtaking glimpse into the abyss. Layering historic facts with first person quotes, readers are thrust into dozens of life and death situations, as individual kids and their helpers, seek to escape the Nazi death machine. Brown’s sketched figures and scenes are filled in with painterly washes of color in richly subdued tones. Bright splashes of red highlight the Nazi insignia, flames and blood. The balance and pace of three quarters of the book is flawless, but while visually strong, the opening handful of pages suffer from some wordy and repetitive language and one singularly unfortunate spelling error. (A hapless woman is forced to wear a humiliating sign mistranslated as “course pig”.) An author’s note balances the successful escapes with the statistic that 90% of European Jewish children did not survive. Source notes and bibliography are included.

[Stacey Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is Don Brown's latest graphic non-fiction book. Like his others, this one has fantastic illustrations and clear directive text. Students might be very interested to know that each of the characters words came from actual source information that can be found at the back. So although the book reads like a fiction story, each event is true and based on real people.

I like how Brown keeps the focus of the information related to how children were saved during the holocaust. He does provide enough background information for readers to understand what happened during the holocaust he does keep the action connected to who saved children, how they saved children and where children were saved throughout Europe.

I really like the section at the end called 'Uninterrupted' where he lists the holocaust events that have taken place since 1945. He also provides an incredible bibliography of articles, links, and video's that can be accessed during and after reading. I think for students who like the I Survived books, this might be a nice extension.

[Susan (The Book Bag) · Rating 4 out of 5]

To be totally honest, this type of book is not what I usually read. I typically don't read middle grade graphic novels, maybe I never have. But the publisher sent this one to me so I wanted to give it a try. I like reading historical fiction, especially pertaining to this time period. I was interested to see how this part of history was being presented to young readers.

I enjoyed this book, as much as one can enjoy something about such a horrible part of history. I thought the subject matter was presented well and was able to convey the harshness and danger of those days while also showing how people helped and supported one another. The illustrations were well done and I savored the art work on each page.

After reading and enjoying Run and Hide, I'm interested in checking out other books by this author. Who knows, maybe I've just opened a whole new reading world for me to explore.

[Robin Pharris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a treasure chest full of historical information! Kids are not taught about the fare of Jewish Children in school these days. As a matter of fact, the Holocaust is not widely taught at all anymore. I think it is so important for kids to see young characters that they can identify with in historical fiction. Most kids will question how parents can send their own kids away from them, often alone. After reading this book, they will understand some of the reasoning. As a parent, I would do anything within my power to try and save my children! Readers will learn to understand this better and realize the heartbreaking decision that the Jewish parents had to make. By sending their children away, they were trying to save them! This book shows school-age children the real horrors of the Holocaust and what the Jewish children went through. A very powerful book that I highly recommend!

[DeAnne · Rating 5 out of 5]

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

The further we get from the horrific events of the Holocaust, the more books and media like this are important. Not just for the cliché of learning from history so you don't repeat it, which shows up pretty much every day - but because events like this need to be taught and understood. This book did give an important timeline of events with the overall war, but specifically centered on the things that had to be done in order to try to save Jewish children during World War II. People had to go to extreme lengths and risk their lives in order to save children, often children they didn't know or have any personal connection to. In this format the information is more easily consumed and I think very accessible to anyone that wants to learn about different facets of World War II.

[amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don Brown gives a brief overview of the history leading up to the war and the atrocities committed against Jewish families during this dark time.

The stories are unspeakably heartbreaking. People had to make the most difficult decisions and were forced to sacrifice everything. Children are an incredibly vulnerable part of any population, and this was cruelly taken advantage of.

The bravery and heroism of those that risked their lives for the Jewish people should never be forgotten. It should inspire us to be better and fight injustices around us.

Artistically, this graphic novel left something to be desired, but I hope that this medium will interest young people to learn about this horrific history, learn from the mistakes of the past, and help shape a better future for us all.❤️

[Michelle Tuite · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading 2025
Book 46: Run and Hide: How Jewish Youth Escaped the Holocaust by Don Brown

Have read other books by this author, and not sure where I found this book. I did grab it at the library and binge it. A middle grade, though I would say 7th grade and up, nonfiction graphic novel depicting how kids escaped certain death.

Synopsis: A gripping nonfiction graphic novel that follows the stories of Jewish children, separated from their parents, who escaped the horrors of the Holocaust.

Review: Some harrowing stories of survival from the youngest of humans. True stories of escape, and sacrifice on the part of parents, neighbors and the community at large to save the kids. I don't remember a lot of what happened in this book, there were a couple of the stories that stood out. My rating 3.5⭐️.

[H. Woodward · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am so utterly grateful for Don Brown’s work. This book portrays some of the best and worst of humanity. Even though it’s a slim, graphic novel this would totally work for my high school classes. WWII is hard to wrap your mind around and I think it’s good that this book is focused on children and their experiences. I love how it zooms out to see the big picture of the war and then back into hear the specific stories of young survivors. I had the privilege of spending time with a man who was one of those rescued on a Kindertransport, he has left us now. I’m relived and pleased to see that the story of him and his rescuers is here, in a wonderfully organized and engaging format. This one is sure to prove a wonderful teaching tool in our classrooms.

[Holland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you Net gallery for the opportunity to read this compelling graphic novel in exchange for an honest review.
I’ve introduced my students to a light introduction of with a holocost in the occupation was(in an age appropriate way) graphic novels in this case have been my go to, and when I saw this book available to read, naturally, I picked it up to see if this is something I could use and teach in a classroom setting.
The graphic novel reads like a timeline of World War II‘s history, rather than a story that I could connect with. The fax that were presented with the visual aids could be something I would find online. With the personal stories about survivors, was read fast and ended abruptly. I had to double take turned back to pages to make sure I didn’t miss something more than once. I didn’t care for that layout. I invested in a few stories, but couldn’t go deeper because of the the story was brief. This book could have gone deeper into the stories. As a reader, I wanted to connect and feel the emotions and investment with the protagonists. In truth, I was disappointed.
I could see classrooms using this as a quick introduction to World War II. This probably would not be my first choice though.
The drawings are bold and minimal. Definitely a unique style.
In the end of the book, I understand the authors intention with the end the notes titled uninterrupted I see the point they are trying to make but I do feel it fell flat, their appointment was quick brief and not delivered in a strong presentation. The intention was there and give this book 3 out of 5 stars.
That being said, I do believe this book is worth the time to pick up and read. Everyone should give it a chance.