The War That Saved My Life discussion

The Novel The War that Saved my Life by Kimberley Brubaker Bradley was a moving story about a ten year old girl named Ada Smith who experienced some difficult times throughout her life because of how her mother treated her due to her disability. She was born handicapped and could not walk and her mother made her believe she was worthless because of it, making her think she was incapable of anything. Ada saw her chance to leave her cruel mother and escaped with her brother to the English countryside, due to WWII they were sending children that way. Ada’s strive to teach herself to walk to one day get away from her cruel mother was inspiring and showed that she was capable of much more than she had been told her whole life. A character who truly stood out to me was Susan Smith. Miss.Smith took in Ada and her brother despite the fact that she did not want any children. This showed to me that Miss.Smith was the type of person to step out of her comfort zone in order to help those who needed her help. This is a great quality to have as a human, be willing to try something different and always willing to put the needs of others before that of your own. It reminds me of the qualities that many parents carry with them, always helping their children and putting them first. Miss.Smith was more of a mother to Ada and her brother Jamie than their own mother ever was. This story shows that something good can always come of something bad, despite the horrible time of the war, it brought them to Susan Smith. The bombings brought them back to Miss.Smith they and were able to save her life. Ada and Jamie showed an example of returning the favor, Miss.Smith took them in and then they saved her. This is a sad yet moving story that would be good for young adults to read who do not mind a bit of heartache in their novels.