It is the winter of 1944. In Nazi-occupied Europe, a Jewish couple realizes their fate is sealed and make a heart-rending decision so that their infant daughter might live. Ruth Vander Zee’s elegant narration and Roberto Innocenti’s searingly beautiful illustrations combine to capture the fear, love, and sadness of a Holocaust survivor’s story. Based on a brief encounter the author had in 1995 with a woman in Germany, the tale weaves first-person fact with Vander Zee’s empathetic imaginings of what must have prompted the greatest act of sacrifice and hope that any parent could make.
Ruth Vander Zee‘s career as a children’s book author began in 2003 with the original publication of Erika’s Story, which prompted her to write three other titles that feature characters who respond to tragedy with courage and hope. Vander Zee lives with her husband in Miami, Florida.
Roberto Innocenti is a self-taught artist who has earned worldwide acclaim with such illustrated books as Erika’s Story, Rose Blanche, and The Adventures of Pinocchio. In 2008, he was awarded the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Award for his contributions to children’s literature. He lives in Florence, Italy.
