A Light in the Darkness: Janusz Korczak, His Orphans, and the Holocaust. Albert Marrin. Random House. 2019.
Gr. 7 Up–A pediatrician nicknamed the Old Doctor, Korczak cared for orphans in the Warsaw ghetto. Tragically, a Nazi patrol sent everyone in the orphanage to Treblinka and none survived. This fascinating work will terrify and educate readers about the dangers of autocracy and racism.—SLJ review by Katherine Koenig 

Irena’s Children: Young Readers Edition: A True Story of Courage. Tilar J. Mazzeo. Adapt. by Mary Cronk Farrell. S. & S./Margaret K. McElderry. 2016.

Gr 6-10–Irena Sendler was a Christian Polish woman who rescued thousands of Jewish children from the Warsaw ghetto (Nonfiction, 2017 Notable Book for Older Readers). Sendler’s story is also portrayed in two excellent picture books, Irena Sendler and the Children of the Warsaw Ghetto (Holiday House, 2011), a 2012 Notable Book for Older Readers by Susan Goldman Rubin, illustrated by Bill Farnsworth, and Irena's Jars of Secrets, a 2012 Honor Book for Older Readers by Marcia Vaughan, illustrated by Ron Mazellan (Lee & Low, 2011). 

It Rained Warm Bread: Moishe Moskowitz’s Story of Hope. Gloria Moskowitz-Sweet and Hope Anita Smith. Illustrated by Lea Lyon. Henry Holt. 2019.

Gr 5-8–This potent novel in verse tells the story of Moskowitz-Sweet’s father, who was sent to the concentration camps when the Nazis invaded Poland. Despite the cruelty he endures, he’s reminded of humanity’s capacity for good, too. Watercolor wash sketches accompany the poems.

Resistance. Jennifer A. Nielsen. Scholastic. 2018.

Gr 6-10–When her family is uprooted in Nazi-occupied Poland, teenager Chaya Linder is determined to make a difference. Chaya works as a courier to Jews trapped in various ghettos throughout Poland, bringing them food and supplies and smuggling out children. When she is forced to flee North, she takes part in the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, helping the rebellion's leader, Mordechai Anielewicz. (Fiction, 2019 Notable Book for Teen Readers)

White Bird: A Wonder Story. R.J. Palacio (text) & illus. by R.J. Palacio. Knopf. 2019.

Gr 4-6–In this graphic novel that’s a part of Palacio’s “Wonder” universe, Sarah’s happy life in France changed in the summer of 1940, under German occupation. One day Nazi soldiers arrive at school to take the Jewish children; Sara is rescued by a classmate who leads her to safety. In hiding, she becomes friends with a boy who uses crutches to walk because his legs were affected by polio.—SLJ review by Mindy Rhiger

Beyond Courage: The Untold Story of Jewish Resistance During the Holocaust. Doreen Rappaport. Candlewick. 2012.

Gr 6 Up–The authors highlight 21 stories of resistance and defiance by Jewish adults and children during the Holocaust. Five years of research resulted in an important informational book, with back matter that includes a pronunciation guide, chronology, source notes, detailed bibliography, and an index. (Nonfiction, 2013 Honor Book for Teen Readers)

Yellow Star. Jennifer Roy. Marshall Cavendish. 2006.

Gr 5-9–Told in verse, this is the story of Syvia Perlmutter, one of only 12 surviving children of the Lodz Ghetto in Poland. She and her family were among the 245,000 Jews forced to live there under Nazi rule (Fiction, 2007 Honor Book for Older Readers). Pair with My Secret Camera: Life in the Lodz Ghetto by Frank Dabba Smith with photographs by Mendel Grossman (Gulliver Books, 2000). 

The Berlin Boxing Club. Robert Sharenow. Harper Teen. 2011.

Gr 9 Up–Karl Stern, an assimilated 14-year-old Jew living in 1930s Berlin, becomes the unlikely student of Max Schmeling, a boxing champion and source of German pride. This coming-of-age novel entwines Karl’s personal struggles with historical events as he tries to protect his family. Well-developed characters and a tense plot propel this page-turner. (Fiction, Award Winner for Teen Readers)

What the Night Sings. Vesper Stamper. Illus. by Vesper Stamper. Knopf. 2018.

Gr 7 Up–This beautifully illustrated novel tells the story of teen Holocaust survivor Gerta Rausch, who finds out she is Jewish on the day she is taken to a concentration camp with her father. Gerta plays the viola with an orchestra at the camp and struggles to reconcile her identity and desires in the wake of tragedy. (Fiction, 2019 Award Winner for Teen Readers)

The Book Thief. Markus Zusak. Knopf. 2006.

Gr 8 Up–Death narrates the story of Leisl Meminger, a Lutheran girl in Nazi Germany who sustains herself and those close to her, including the Jewish man hidden in her basement, with her love of books and reading. This engaging story conveys the full spectrum of human emotions and experiences. The 10th anniversary edition (published in 2016) includes 26 new pages of bonus material. (Fiction, 2007 Award Winner for Teen Readers)

For a complete list of all Holocaust books recognized by the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee,  as well as all of the award, honor, and notable books from 1968 to the present, visit jewishlibraries.org. Additionally, the Association of Jewish Libraries created the “Love Your Neighbor ” book lists in response to the horrific act of domestic terrorism at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, PA in October 2018, and to rising anti-Semitism in the United States. It is our hope that meeting Jews on the page will inspire friendship when readers meet Jews in real life.

Rachel Kamin, Chava Pinchuck and Heidi Rabinowitz are past-chairs of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee. Kamin is the director of the Gray Cultural & Learning Center at North Suburban Synagogue Beth El in Highland Park, IL. Pinchuck lives in Ramat Beit Shemesh, Israel, and is co-editor of children and teen book reviews for the Association of Jewish Libraries. Rabinowitz is director of the Feldman Children’s Library at Congregation B’nai Israel in Boca Raton, FL.