The War Girls

De: V. S. Alexander

Narrado por: Kelli Tager

It's not just a thousand miles that separates Hanna Majewski from her younger sister, Stefa. There is another gulf—between the traditional Jewish ways that Hanna chose to leave behind in Warsaw, and her new, independent life in London. But as autumn of 1940 draws near, Germany begins a savage aerial bombing campaign in England, killing and displacing tens of thousands. Hanna, who narrowly escapes death, is recruited as a spy in an undercover operation that sends her back to her war-torn homeland.

In Hanna's absence, her parents, sister, and brother have been driven from their comfortable apartment into the Warsaw Ghetto. Sealed off from the rest of the city, the Ghetto becomes a prison for nearly half a million Jews, struggling to survive amid starvation, disease, and the constant threat of deportation to Treblinka. Once a pretty and level-headed teenager, Stefa is now committed to the Jewish resistance. Together, she, Hanna, and Janka, a family friend living on the Aryan side of the city form a trio called The War Girls. Against overwhelming odds and through heartbreak they will fight to rescue their loved ones, finding courage through sisterhood to keep hope alive . . .

©2022 Michael Meeske (P)2022 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Gripping story of the Warsaw Ghetto

Read this if you like WWII novels!!!One of the best I have ever read. Great character development and action. Some parts of the story were heart wrenching and horrifying but we must never forget what happened.

Good but slow

Good story but it was really really slow to get going. Too many unanswered questions about main characters.

Couldn't stop listening

This story got in my head and wouldn't let me stop listening. performance was fantastic!

Very enlightening

Loved the story, not so much the events butt telling the history to help people understand what's wrong in our nation today. The only problem I had with it. Was it left too much to my imagination at the end

STORY OF A FAMILY AND SOME OF THE BRAVERY SHOWN ON BOTH SIDES OF THE JEWISH GHETTO…

I enjoyed this book very much. It was a WWI story (I’ve read MANY from this time period and the atrocities done to Jews during this time period — most of which defy explanation.

I have never understood how it was possible for Hitler to brainwash so many and to convince others to kill in the most horrific ways, often with little to no provocation? The Nazis stripped everything from these people — those they loved and of all they owned. They took joy in doing these things in a way that left people completely without hope it dignity. It just boggles my mind.

In this story, there was a refreshing focus on a few characters who tried to help Jewish people at great risk to themselves. I am quite sure that during this most shameful period of our times, there were MANY unknown heroes who risked all to help the Jews. They could not stand up to stop Hitler as individuals, but they did what they could to help Jewish people.

I have read a lot of reviews criticizing that people often stood by, watched atrocities happen, and did nothing to help. These critics make me wonder what THEY would have done to help when faced with an entire army, whose focus it was to eliminate a whole segment of society? How does one person stop an ARMY? I suppose the answer comes down to those brave souls who risked themselves to help others. One act of kindness and generosity at a time…

This story focuses primarily on one family; father, mother, son and daughter, and one estranged daughter who left Warsaw to live with relatives in England. The two sisters lived in different countries, but they were both feeling the effects of Hitler. The course of their lives were completely altered.

My only complaint about this story is it ended very abruptly without any real closure. Despite this criticism, the story itself was very good (a bit slow in the beginning), and the narrator was excellent.

I would highly recommend this book to others who are interested in this time period. Some books are so graphic depicting the many ways Jews were killed; yet this book was not so graphic that I felt the need to walk away from the story for a few hours before I could continue listening. There were plenty of those activities mentioned and not glossed over, but there was not pure goriness, which I appreciated.

Hitler’s time at the height of his power must never be forgotten. As a society, we must learn from this time period, otherwise it will surely happen again at some point.

As a teacher, I substituted once for a sixth grade English class. The week I was there, the students were left an assignment by their teacher to spend every period that week, exploring the resources available to them for research through the library (all the ways we USED to research information in libraries BEFORE the Internet came along).

One of the students, during our third day of research came upon
articles that referenced Hitler and gave some information on WWI.

When this student asked what happened and why it seemed to be so significant, I asked the students what they knew of Hitler, (and I swear I am telling the truth), not ONE student in that entire sixth grade class even knew who Hitler was! They didn’t recognize his name… I was completely floored. (To be fair, these students had never heard the word “microfiche” and had no idea what the “Británica Encyclopedia” was either)…

We are only a few generations past that awful time in our history, and already it is a part of our history that our younger generations know nothing about. Considering what is happening in our world today, does not bode well for our future. I hope any history teachers who may read this review, will consider making WWI part of their curriculum.

Highly Recommend

Narration (literay, rich, poignant, a powerful account that allows an "entry point" for those who want to know the other perspective) and the performance (respectful, good pacing, believable "voices" per character).

Humans can quickly become inhumane

Day by day, conditions change, people change but their beliefs hold strong. Until they don’t.

Great story

I don’t want to give away the story and of one who is of Jewish descent it hit home. It was wonderful how they highlighted those willing to help the Jewish community.

Amazing read

You can almost feel is it you are there with the family. The book was done very well
very meaningful

My Musings

A heartbreaking tale of great courage with characters that will remain with you for a long time. The narrator is excellent. Happy reading and listening!