The True Story of Hansel and Gretel by Louise Murphy

The True Story of Hansel and Gretel by Louise Murphy
Number of Pages: 297
ISBN: 0-14-200307-7
Back of Book Description:

In the last months of the Nazi occupation of Poland, two children are left by their father and stepmother to find safety in a dense forest. because their real names will reveal their Jewishness, they are renamed "Hansel" and "Gretel." They wander in the woods until they are taken in by Magda, an eccentric and stubborn old woman called "witch" by the nearby villagers. Magda is determined to save them, even as a German officer arrives in the village with his own plans for the children.

My Rating: A+

First a warning. This book will not make you smile often. But when it does it will really come from the deepest part of you.
I was warned that this book was 'harsh' before I picked it up. Harsh is a word for it. The author does not shy away from the atrocities that happened during this time, but also wrote this book more about the characters than the war. The war is just one thing that is happening to them.

I fell in love with the characters in this book quickly, and give kudos to Murphy for writing 'bad' guys with a human side that pushes you too close to feeling for them for comfort, but not enough to make you feel guilty.

I highly recommend this book, not just for those that are interested in this era, but for all people.