Mapping the Bones

Chaim and Gittel are Polish Jews living in the Lodz ghetto with their parents.  It is a nothing like the life they lived before the "Nasties" invaded, but at least they are together.  Chaim is a poet, but he stutters when he tries to speak aloud, so he rarely does so.  He utters no more than five words at a time and very few words in total each day, but he has a kind of sign language with his twin sister, and she always seems to know what he is thinking anyway. 

When the situation in the ghetto becomes even more dangerous, the family decides to flee into the wilderness.  Here, the children are separated from their parents and constantly on alert and on the move as they travel with Polish resistance soldiers. 

But then the unimaginable happens, and the children find themselves in a work camp.  All the starvation, exhaustion and fear of their lives so far is nothing compared to the horror of the camp.  Gittel has always been Chaim's strength.  What will he do if she loses hope in this place of despair?

Jane Yolen's new book is a different take on Holocaust stories.  She uses the story structure of the Hansel and Gretel fairy tale to anchor the story.  It's an interesting idea and adds an extra layer of symbolism to the story, but I do think the section in the wilderness goes on a bit too long.  The story is mostly told from Chaim's perspective as the silent witness to the horrors he and Gittel face, but the chapters are also interspersed with short sections that seem to be Gittel looking back as an adult.  Recommended for 8th grade and up because of mature content and a brief instance of profanity near the end.  This is a sophisticated and complex story for strong readers.