Survivors of the Holocaust: True Stories of Six Extraordinary Children, edited by Kath Shackleton and illustrated by Zane Whittingham. Sourcebooks, Raincoast. 2019. $19.99 ages 10 and up

"In 1938 when I was eight
years old ...

... there occurred what has
become known as the
"Polenaktion."

Early in the morning, we
were all sleeping in our beds
in our home in Germany. The
Nazis entered our flat."

Memories of the Holocaust are always heartbreaking, yet often remarkable. The six Jewish children whose first-person narratives are shared in this outstanding graphic novel survived. That in itself is noteworthy and helps readers recognize this harrowing time in our world's history.

Courageous and honest, Heinz speaks of the persecution in Germany because of his family's Jewish heritage, finding refuge in England, followed by internment in Canadian camps when the British wanted them gone. Solemnly, Trude tells readers that many children died at the hands of the Nazi regime, and how she was sent away from her family to England where she lived in 15 to 20 places over the war years. She never saw her parents again.

Ruth's remembrance is of her father running from the Nazis, leaving her mother with two small children. Unable to find protection for her children, the family awaited the Nazi soldiers. A brave British woman found them, and gave them papers to get them to England. Just as they arrived at Liverpool Station, Britain declared was on Germany. Martin was only 8 when the Nazis came for his family, and put them on a train. Separated from the family, he and his sister found safety on the Kindertransport and spent the rest of the war with a foster family in England where they endured and survived the Blitz.

Suzanne was living in Paris when the occupation forced her parents from their home. Luckily, a neighbor claimed Suzanne as her own, and she was saved from her parents' fate. She was then moved into hiding at a farm where she worked hard and spent extra years  as the family had no knowledge the war had ended. Arek, at 15, was sent to Birkenau, Auschwitz where he endured the continual horrors of confinement and abuse.

Back matter includes an up-to-date photo of each of the survivors, who live in Leeds. England, and a short report on What Happened Next for each of them. It is a painful novel to read, but so important, too. Each testimonial ends with a touch of hope. Though their stories are different, their lives were changed through events that were not of their making or by choice. What happened to these children should act as a reminder today that it should never happen again.