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Title: Pastel Orphans
Author: Gemma Liviero
Narrator: Whitney Dykhouse, Nick Podehl, Amy McFadden
Format: Unabridged
Length: 10 hrs and 7 mins
Language: English
Release date: 06-02-15
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 1302 votes
Genres: Fiction, Historical
Publisher's Summary:
In 1930s Berlin, young Henrik, the son of a Jewish father and Aryan mother, watches the world around him crumbling: people are rioting in the streets, a strange yellow star begins appearing in shop windows, and friends are forced to move - or they simply disappear.
After his father becomes gravely ill, Henrik and his little sister, Greta, are taken by their mother to Poland for safety. However, not even the pastoral surroundings of their new home can protect them from the terrors of war. When the Nazis invade and Greta is kidnapped, Henrik must shed his youthful innocence and search for his lost sister, a quest that will further reveal a harrowing landscape of violence and struggle - but also unexpected connections.
Uniquely told from the perspective of youth plunged into adult chaos, Pastel Orphans is a coming-of-age story that explores profound lessons in self-belief, kindness, and human endurance.
Revised edition: This edition of Pastel Orphans includes editorial revisions.
Members Reviews:
"Family over anything"
What would you do for your family - your loved ones? For me, I'd do anything - give my last breath for them. This story is about a family that wIll do ANYTHING for each other. It's did everything to my heart - it warmed it, broke it, twisted it, and warmed I it. It made laugh, cry, rage, gag and cry again. happy, sad, torn tears. This book is a must read. It's a story of family loyalty. Love has no boundaries.
Powerful, tragic and beautiful story
Pastel orphans were children with strong Aryan appearances kidnapped by the Nazis for future breeding of the Aryan race.
This novel is about the Salomon family in Germany starting in 1931 and except for the final chapter ending at the end of WWII. The settings are Germany and Poland. The Salomon's are a German Jew husband, his German Aryan wife and their son Henrik and their daughter Greta. Henrik is 7 years older than Greta. Rebecca, a German Jewish girl who befriends Henrik, is also a main character. Greta, who resembles her Aryan mother with light skin, blond hair and blue eyes, is kidnapped by the Nazis and is one of the pastel orphans. The novel is beautifully written.
The story is told in the first person first of Henrik, then Rebecca, and finally Greta. The two women narrators are flawless. Nick Podehl, the voice of Henrik, takes on the almost impossible task of doing his voice from early childhood to early adulthood. Although I'm not particularly fond of the early childhood voice, Podehl does a remarkable job.
This is a great book for all ages from elementary school to age 100. I recommend this book without reservation.
An amazing story of brotherly love
I've read many books about the Holocaust and each time I do, it breaks my heart. This is one story I couldn't put down. It gives insight to the events during that era and the harrowing experiences that many suffered through. I had no idea that there were children that had been kidnapped and raised by the Nazis or entered into breeding programs to create a pure "Aryan" race.
Great characters that you can relate to, an unusual angle to look at the war. A great read.
Told by Children of War, During War, Powerful
A very different tale of life for Jews during WWII . . . Pastel Orphans, told in the voices of the children who are running, who are hiding . . .
