It rained warm bread : Moishe Moskowitz's story of hope / story by Gloria Moskowitz-Sweet ; poems by Hope Anita Smith ; with illustrations by Lea Lyon.

Cover image for It rained warm bread : Moishe Moskowitz's story of hope / story by Gloria Moskowitz-Sweet ; poems by Hope Anita Smith ; with illustrations by Lea Lyon.

Title :

It rained warm bread : Moishe Moskowitz's story of hope

Author:

Moskowitz-Sweet, Gloria,

Format:

Books

Summary:

A fictionalized account of the experiences of a Polish Jew, Moishe, who with his parents, brother, and sister, struggles to survive the Nazi invasion and Holocaust.

Language:

English

Audience:

Ages 8-9.

ISBN - ISSN:

9781250165725

1250165725

Physical Description:

148 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm

General Note:

"Christy Ottaviano Books."

Contents:

Chapter 1. It matters 1936. It matters ; Small world ; Not so bad ; In preparation ; Lessons learned ; A sweet treat ; In the middle -- Chapter 2. They're coming 1939. They're coming ; Janek ; Letting go ; Hiding ; Lessons learned ; Going to the movies ; Too soon ; Uninvited guests ; Bullies to beasts ; Mail ; Counselor -- Chapter 3. Wolves at the door. Wolves at the door ; Not enough stars ; Cornered ; One from every family ; Trading places ; My mother's boy ; Locked arms ; Before and after ; Prayers -- Chapter 4. The Kielce Ghetto 1941. The ghetto ; We still remember how to play ; Henry, a friend indeed ; Under the wall ; Midnight market ; Mathematics ; Death -- Chapter 5. The liquidation August 1942. Weighing in ; Don't look ; Today the sky has no color ; Layer by layer ; The chosen ; No children here ; Hope ; A bright light ; Tomorrow never came -- Chapter 6. From camp to camp 1942-4945. From camp to camp ; I have a plan, little brother ; Now ; And then there was one ; Die arbeit macht dich frei ; It matters, reprise ; The soup plate ; Good man ; Weightless ; Dream train -- Chapter 7. Winter 1945. Hiding the evidence ; Walking with wolves ; The first death march ; Cattle cars ; Through the boards ; It rained warm bread ; The scent of courage ; Remembering ; Try, try, again (second death march) ; Haystack ; A soldier is coming ; Safe.

Subject:

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) -- Poland -- Juvenile fiction.

Jews -- Poland -- Juvenile fiction.

World War, 1939-1945 -- Poland -- Juvenile fiction.

Novels in verse.

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) -- Poland -- Fiction.

Jews -- Poland -- Fiction.

World War, 1939-1945 -- Poland -- Fiction.

Poland -- History -- Occupation, 1939-1945 -- Fiction.

First Title value, for Searching:

It rained warm bread : Moishe Moskowitz's story of hope / story by Gloria Moskowitz-Sweet ; poems by Hope Anita Smith ; with illustrations by Lea Lyon.

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Library	Audience	Home Location	Material Type	Shelf Number	Status
Searching... Kendall	Kid/Juvenile	Fiction	Kids book	MOSKO	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

A powerful middle grade novel-in-verse about one boy's experience surviving the Holocaust.

Moishe Moskowitz was thirteen when the Nazis invaded Poland and his family learned the language of fear. The wolves loomed at every corner, yet Moishe still held on to the blessings of his mother's blueberry pierogis, of celebrating the Sabbath as a family, of a loyal friend. But each day the darkness weighed more heavily on Moishe as his family was broken, uprooted, and scattered across labor and concentration camps. Just as his last hopes began to dim, a simple act of kindness redeemed his faith that goodness could survive the trials of war: That was the day it rained warm bread.

Gloria Moskowitz-Sweet relates her father's triumphant Holocaust story through the words of award-winning poet Hope Anita Smith. Deftly articulated and beautifully illustrated by Lea Lyon, this is an essential addition to the ever-important collection of Holocaust testimonies.

Christy Ottaviano Books

Author Notes

Gloria Moskowitz-Sweet is the daughter of holocaust survivor Moishe Moskowitz.

Hope Anita Smith's books include The Way a Door Closes and its sequel, Keeping the Night Watch . A professional story-teller, Hope teaches poetry-writing workshops to all grade levels. A native of Akron, Ohio, Ms. Smith now lives in Los Angeles, California.

Lea Lyon is an illustrator of children's books. Recent titles include Say Something by Peggy Moss and Keep Your Ear on the Ball by Genevieve Petrillo.

Reviews (2)

Horn Book Review

In this historical-fiction verse novel, says young Moishe Moskowitz: The wolves are coming to Poland, a country that has no use for us. / A country that bullies its citizens / beats up on us because we are different. And soon the Nazi wolves reveal their plans: the ghetto, forced-labor camps, concentration camps, death marches. Smith tells Moishes story in the first person, in spare, eloquent verse. They are trying to erase us / as if we are scribbles on a chalkboard. Throughout, however, Moishe keeps in his heart his fathers words, Where there is hope, / there is life. Such hope comes in the form of Janek, the neighbor who hides Moishes family in his barn; the Auschwitz kapo who inexplicably protects Moishe; and, finally, a group of women in Czechoslovakia who, risking their own lives, toss loaves of bread into the open cattle car transporting Jewish prisoners. It is life. / It is bread, / still warm from the oven. / It is raining warm bread. This last act restores Moishes faith in humanity (when the wolves come to take you away, / one good person is all you need) and helps give him the courage and strength to survive the last brutal weeks of the war. Occasional watercolor-wash sketches complement the poems, adding a memorable visual dimension. An authors note by Moskowitz-Sweet tells more about her late father Moishe, on whose memories this novel is based. dean Schneider September/October 2019 p.95(c) Copyright 2019. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Kirkus Review

Moishe Moskowitz's painful experiences in the Holocaust are expressed in brief, gut-wrenching poems. Moishe knows fear; he must avoid the Polish boys who will beat him for being Jewish. When the Nazis come in 1939, the danger grows exponentially, but they "could not have imagined such evil" would engulf them. Moishe views the Nazis as prowling, voracious wolves, and that metaphor is used throughout the poems. Changes come quickly: yellow stars, disappearances, and forced labor. They are driven from their home and pushed into a ghetto, followed by liquidation, murders, and deportation to the concentration camps. His family is torn from him, as "the Nazis peel us like onions," his mother and sister, father, brother. He endures unending deprivation and starvation. Kindness is rare and punishable by death, but a Christian friend hides the family in the early days, a political prisoner gives him a bit of extra food, and, near the end, a group of Czech women throw warm, fresh bread into the cattle cars. Gray-toned thumbnail sketches can only hint at the devastating emotions. Moishe's daughter provides the story, as told to her by her father, and entrusts Smith to pen poems that strike at the heart of each moment, each fear, each horror and make it personal for readers even as time erases witnesses.A deeply moving, beautifully written portrayal of an evil that cannot be allowed to be forgotten. (author's note) (Historical verse fiction. 10-adult) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.