Storming the Tulips

Gr 7 Up—The tragic story of the Netherlands under Nazi occupation resounds dramatically through the words of 20 survivors from the first Montessori school in Amsterdam. Contemporaries of Anne Frank, they were interviewed by Ronald Sanders, now a teacher at the school. Though the book focuses on this small group, it presents a well-documented history of the country during World War II. In addition to the essays, descriptions of unusual heroes from the Resistance help to round out the picture. The bravery of those people and others who risked their lives to hide Jews and to oppose the Germans is honored. Different experiences come to life in each vignette, from those of Jewish children to the child of a member of the Nazi party. The desperation and resilience of ordinary people and the courage shown by the school's principal and some of the teachers are highlighted. This is a chronicle of "life on the streets" during the atrocious conditions created by the occupation. The book concludes with a chilling list of the 170 youngsters from the school who died in various concentration camps. This title would be an excellent choice to read with The Diary of Anne Frank and with fiction such as Jan Terlouw's Winter in Wartime (McGraw Hill, 1976) and Mal Peet's Tamar (Candlewick, 2007). It's is an absorbing book on its own as well as a fine choice to include in an interdisciplinary study.—Renee Steinberg, formerly at Fieldstone Middle School, Montvale, NJ