Making Bombs for Hitler

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Author(s)

Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch

Publisher

Scholastic

Genre(s)

Age Range

Release Date

January 29, 2019

ISBN

978-1338312836

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For readers who were enthralled by Alan Gratz's Prisoner B-3087 comes a gripping novel about a lesser-known part of WWII.

Lida thought she was safe. Her neighbors wearing the yellow star were all taken away, but Lida is not Jewish. She will be fine, won't she?

But she cannot escape the horrors of World War II.

Lida's parents are ripped away from her and she is separated from her beloved sister, Larissa. The Nazis take Lida to a brutal work camp, where she and other Ukrainian children are forced into backbreaking labor. Starving and terrified, Lida bonds with her fellow prisoners, but none of them know if they'll live to see tomorrow.

When Lida and her friends are assigned to make bombs for the German army, Lida cannot stand the thought of helping the enemy. Then she has an idea. What if she sabotaged the bombs... and the Nazis? Can she do so without getting caught?

And if she's freed, will she ever find her sister again?

This pulse-pounding novel of survival, courage, and hope shows us a lesser-known piece of history -- and is sure to keep readers captivated until the last page.

For readers who were enthralled by Alan Gratz's Prisoner B-3087 comes a gripping novel about a lesser-known part of WWII.

Lida thought she was safe. Her neighbors wearing the yellow star were all taken away, but Lida is not Jewish. She will be fine, won't she?

But she cannot escape the horrors of World War II.

And if she's freed, will she ever find her sister again?

This pulse-pounding novel of survival, courage, and hope shows us a lesser-known piece of history -- and is sure to keep readers captivated until the last page.

Editor reviews

2 reviews

Making Bombs for Hitler

April 18, 2019 (Updated: April 19, 2019)

Overall rating

5.0

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What worked: This is an emotional tale of Lida, a young Ukrainian girl, who is stolen from her home and sent to a slave camp to work for the Nazis. Little has been known about this part of WWII. What readers see is the horrific plight of Ukrainians that are viewed as subhuman by the Nazis and forced into terrible living conditions.

Lida's journey takes us to the camps, where she is dehumanized and made into a slave. She's forced to work under inhuman conditions. Yet, she finds some friendship and even hope there. The one thing that continues to drive her is the need to be reunited with her younger sister, who also was stolen.

The images of human cruelty are throughout this story. One example is what the Nazis did with children under the age of 12. In this novel they are sent to the 'hospital' and literally drained of their blood, which is sent to the front to help wounded Nazi soldiers. Even there we witness a small act of human kindness where one of the slaves, Juli, tries to comfort the children as they die.

Readers also see what happens after the war to the survivors of the Nazi camps. Those who are from the Ukraine are treated as enemies by the Soviets and either killed or sent to reeducation camps.

Powerful, gripping tale of a young girl who is stolen from her Ukrainian home and made into a slave for the Nazis. Woven throughout are small acts of kindness and the power of the human spirit to survive. I highly recommend the series which includes STOLEN GIRL, the story of Larissa, Lida's younger sister, and THE WAR BELOW, Luka's story, a boy she friends during their ordeal.

Good Points

1. Great insight into a little unknown part of WWII where children were stolen and made into slaves