Once We Were Brothers: A Novel, by Ronald H. Balson, 2013. New York: St. Martin’s Griffin.
Review by Thomas Hansen, Ph.D.
This is yet another wonderful book with great writing and captivating action—but it is a book about a terrible story. It describes the close friendship between a German/Polish Christian boy who is raised by a Jewish family in a small village in Poland. The time is World War II, and the story is based on–and connects to–historical points of the time.
It is said to be a book that is “hard to put down.” Indeed it is. Balson’s first novel, this book contains good writing, suitable pacing and forward movement, plus a lot of information about what was happening in rural Poland in that period. There is also some direct teaching involved, with characters explaining what certain terms meant and what various Nazi policies entailed.
The book consists mainly of flashbacks to what was happening in Poland among the families and friends of Ben Solomon, the Jewish boy whose life is at the center of the story. Chicago readers will be interested to know that the modern-day sections include scenes from Winnetka, the Loop, and the lakefront also.
The book is a novel, with a huge amount of factual and historical foundation.
It dovetails into Common Core Standards college-readiness levels and college-use levels also.
I will recommend the book, but I remind readers that many of the scenes described and the action discussed will not be at all pleasurable. Like many stories of the Holocaust, this one is very disturbing yet one which we must read, discuss, and remember.
The book should be required reading for college students–in any major–and good for educators to read also. As always, educators should read the book closely to see if there are passages inappropriate for younger readers.
Review of Once We Were Brothers: A Novel, by Ronald H. Balson,
2013. New York: St. Martin’s Griffin.
Review by Thomas Hansen, Ph.D.
This is yet another wonderful book with great writing and captivating action—but it is a book about a terrible story. It describes the close friendship between a German/Polish Christian boy who is raised by a Jewish family in a small village in Poland. The time is World War II, and the story is based on–and connects to–historical points of the time.
It is said to be a book that is “hard to put down.” Indeed it is. Balson’s first novel, this book contains good writing, suitable pacing and forward movement, plus a lot of information about what was happening in rural Poland in that period. There is also some direct teaching involved, with characters explaining what certain terms meant and what various Nazi policies entailed.
The book consists mainly of flashbacks to what was happening in Poland among the families and friends of Ben Solomon, the Jewish boy whose life is at the center of the story. Chicago readers will be interested to know that the modern-day sections include scenes from Winnetka, the Loop, and the lakefront also.
The book is a novel, with a huge amount of factual and historical foundation.
It dovetails into Common Core Standards college-readiness levels and college-use levels also.
I will recommend the book, but I remind readers that many of the scenes described and the action discussed will not be at all pleasurable. Like many stories of the Holocaust, this one is very disturbing yet one which we must read, discuss, and remember.
The book should be required reading for college students–in any major–and good for educators to read also. As always, educators should read the book closely to see if there are passages inappropriate for younger readers.
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