It’s another book from my book club!! I actually missed the previous book club pick (Atmosphere, I’m guessing most people will know the author since it’s a new release?) so I was determined to read this one. And even though I went into this book cold, like didn’t even read the synopsis cold, I found myself really loving it!
The Woman with the Blue Star is the story of two girls living in Poland during the Nazi occupation. Sadie is a Jew, forced from the ghetto into the sewers in order to hide from the Nazis. Ella is a relatively privileged girl who is chafing from her mean stepmother and her close relationship with the Nazi occupiers. One day, both these girls meet.
The Woman with the Blue Star is, at its core, a beautiful story about friendship. There is absolutely no reason for Sadie and Ella to trust each other in those circumstances but they still reach out the hand of friendship to each other. And despite Sadie’s terrible living conditions, I didn’t sense any condescension from Ella, just concern and an ever-growing desire to help. Watching this friendship develop was one of the key things that made it hard to put this book down. I also really appreciated that though both girls had their own separate love interests, they also shared a very pure sisterly love that was the main relationship in the book.
The other stand out trait, which I think is obvious from the title, is the horrors of the Nazi occupation. The fact that Ella and her family must go into the sewers in order to have a chance to live is just horrific. The ghettos that were there, the way some of Sadie’s stepmother and friends talk about the Jews (with long roots!) in the city, all that add up to a very ugly picture.
The book is also really easy to read. I’m not sure why age category it is, but it felt like YA given that the language is really simple and straightforward. Some of the book club friends mentioned that the prose was too simple, but I read this while really tired on the plane and thought it was a really easy read and appreciated that.
All in all, this was a moving and unexpectedly beautiful book. Though the story takes place in the worst of times, and Sadie and Ella go through some horrific experiences, their friendship shines through and becomes ever more beautiful next to all the horror that surround it. I would recommend this book especially to teenagers who are learning about WWII, since this shows a side of the war that isn’t covered in much detail (at least, in our WWII studies, based on what I learnt in school).