| Title | : | The Search |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0374365172 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780374365172 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 64 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 2007 |
The Search Reviews
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Back in 2013, I was able to visit Amsterdam and the Anne Frank House. While perusing the bookshop, I stumbled upon this graphic novel and its series companion, "A Family Secret." Then I moved and completely forgot that I had these stories and they ended up in a bin.
" The Search" relates the story of Esther and her parents who had to flee Nazi Germany and take refuge in the Netherlands. Although Esther survived she tells her story so that her grandson Daniel and his friend Jeroen do not forget. Rich in historical detail and accompanied by vivid images, The Search is a compelling Holocaust narrative. -
Story: 4 stars
Art: 4 stars
The story of the holocaust, told from the perspective of a Jewish grandmother looking back on when she was a young girl who narrowly escaped a concentration camp twice, first in Germany, then in the Netherlands. Her parents and neighbors were not as fortunate as she was, and only one neighbor survived Auschwitz. He tells her of her parents' struggles after she was separated from them, and how they died. This is shelved in the YA section of my library, but is not nearly as gentle as
A Family Secret, another graphic novel from this creator also focused on WWII. Care is taken to avoid blatantly gruesome images, but some of the content is still rather disturbing. I am just as stricken, if not more so, by the rendering of Nazis wearing gas masks while pouring cyanide through the roof of the "showers" than I was by seeing the actual sufferers choking on the gas (which I have seen in other Holocaust literature). But this is important history to remember, and we can only soften the brutal truth so much. -
A pretty straightforward and whole look at the experience of victims of the Holocaust—in an accessible format for younger students.
I appreciate that this graphic novel doesn’t shy away from discussing how many average citizens were complicit in this by being bystanders and remaining silent, arguably one of the most important lessons to take from this horrific portion of history. -
Goed vervolg op 'de ontdekking'. Het heeft mij niets nieuws geleerd, maar het legt helder en duidelijk uit wat er in de Tweede Wereldoorlog gebeurd is en welk effect dit heeft gehad op de levensloop van verschillende mensen.
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Companion graphic novel to A Family Secret, completes the story from the Jewish side. Well worth reading together.
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Esther always wondered about happened to her parents after they were picked up by the Nazis and she never saw or heard from them again. She assumed they had perished in the Holocaust just as 6 million other Jews had. Now, so many years later, she wants to visit her son in Amsterdam and attend her grandson's Bar Mitzvah, but she also wants to see her long time friend Helena.
After the Bar Mitzvah, Esther, her son and grandson, Daniel begin their trip into her past. As they travel, Esther begins to tels Daniel about her experiences as a Jew in Hitler's Europe.
When Hitler rose to power in Germany in the 1930s, life became very difficult and dangerous for all the German Jews living there. But after Kristalnacht, young Esther's parents decided to leave and move to the Netherlands. There, Esther became friends with Helena, a Christian girl her age. They both had crushes on Bob Canter, a handsome boy who lived in their apartment building. Things went well for Esther and her parents, until the Nazis invaded Holland.
Esther and Helena remained friends, but life became harder and harder once again. After her parents were picked up in a raid one night by the Gestapo in Amsterdam, young Esther is warned by Helena's father to get away. She went to a friend of her father's who helped her find a place to hide. There she met other Jews also being hidden, and is taught farm chores by the farmer's son Barend. One day the Nazis came but Esther managed to get away. As she run, she hears shots being fired but didn't know if anyone was hit.
Barend is the first perosn Esther and her son and grandson visit and her fills her in on what happened after she escaped.
After wandering around the forest for a while, Esther found people who welcomed her and she remained there until the end of the war. Returning to Amsterdam to look for her parents, she ran into Bob Canter, her old crush now a concentration camp survivor. Bob tells her that her parents both died in the Holocaust. Eventually, Esther migrated to the United States and lost touch with Bob.
Esther's grandson looks Bob up and finds him living in Israel. A few days later, they are on their way to visit Bob, who fills in all the blanks about her terrible parent's fate, a story well worth reading.
Feeling like she has now really lost her parents and her past, Esther leaves Bob's in absolute despair.
When she finally gets to meet Helena, there is more disturbing information but there is also a pleasant surprise waiting for her, thanks to the action of a true best friend.
The Search is a sensitive yet dynamic and informative graphic novel. Heuvel doesn't hold back on the plight of Esther to survive or atrocities Bob describes which were inflicted on the Jews in concentration camps by the Nazis, but he does temper it by framing the story in the present, and including the sons and grandsons of Esther and Helena. And even though the story jumps back and forth between past and present, it is not confusing in the least.
The other nice thing is that each character is distinct from the others, so there is no confusing who is who, which can often happen in graphic novels. In part, it is because they are also drawn distinctively and a large color palette is used.
The Search page 15
In fact, the illustrations help tell and carry the story along as they should since space is limited in graphic novels. This is a form that also appeals to young readers, making it a great way to introduce the Holocaust in either the classroom or for home schooling purposes.
The Search was originally written in Dutch, but I think that the translation done by Lorraine T. Miller is quite well done, since the story doesn't feel forced nor does any of the continuity feel lost, giving the whole story a nature feeling and flow that lets the story unfold without jarring the reader.
There is a companion book to The Search called A Family Secret, which is about Esther's friend Helena and which I will be reviewing soon, so watch this space.
This book is recommended for readers age 11+
This book was purchased for my personal library
This review was originally posted at
The Children's War -
This is the companion book to A Family Secret in which Esther tells her story. Along the way we meet her grandson and a young man named Bob who grew up at the same time Esther and Helena did. Bob is important because he brings Esthere information about the death of her parents in the concentration camp. Esther tells about her family’s escape from Germany to the Netherlands, as well as about her encounter with Helena’s father who saved her. She was taken to a family out of town. They go out to meet the man whose family took her in to find out what happened to them, because at one point Esther had to run away when the Nazis came to check up on them. Most of this book focuses on Esther trying to find out what happened after she moved to the United States, got married and had children. She has come back to the Netherlands to find out about all the people she had known. Thanks to her grandson checking on the Internet, Esther gets to go to Israel to see Bob who then tells her in detail about what he and her family went through in the camps. There is a lot more mingling of the present and the past in this book than in the first. Esther is sad that she has no mementos of her family. Then Helena remembers that she had gone to Esther’s house after Esther had left. Helena goes upstairs and finds a family album that she had taken from Esther’s house to remember her by. The book is filled with pictures and she gives it to Esther. Both novels show the horrors but each ends with a resolution of sorts that brings peace to the survivors. The visuals are those that would appeal to children. They are bright, detailed appropriately, showing the struggles with the Nazis clearly, but not sensationally. The regularity of the nine panel page keeps control of the story. The panels may vary in size for emphasis, but the format provides a balance as one sees the horrors that were inflicted on the Jewish people. The images provide a pace that makes it possible for the viewer to absorb the material with clarity and control.
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A companion to A FAMILY SECRET, THE SEARCH tells Esther's story of what happened to her during World War II. As a German Jew, she and her family faced discrimination and abuse and finally chose to emigrate from Germany to Holland. There, she befriends Helena, a Dutch girl and neighbor. When the Nazis invade the Netherlands, Esther and her family face many of the same discrimination as they had in Germany and worry about being transported to labor camps, so they decide to go into hiding. Before they can arrange for the hiding places, Esther's parents are picked up by the Germans in a mass sweep of the neighborhood. Esther then tells the story of how she goes into hiding alone and what happened to her during and after the war.
Told in graphic novel format, THE SEARCH tells about the horrible events of the Holocaust. The pictures aren't overly gruesome or violent, but the reader does get a sense of how despicable the events truly were. For example, when talking about how many Soviet Jews were rounded up, shot in the forests and dumped in mass graves, the reader sees the pit with the Jewish people by it and German soldiers with weapons, then a close-up of the terror on the faces of the Jewish people, then in the next frame the German soldiers by the pit with a mound of clothing behind it. You get the idea of what happened, but you don't actually see it.
THE SEARCH and A FAMILY SECRET used together will be a great introduction to the world of Anne Frank. Students who are not familiar with the events of Anne's day will get a glimpse of what life was like for her and many others. By using the graphic novel format, this story will be accessible to many students of all levels, including reluctant readers. -
As an older woman, Esther decides it's time she revisit the locations of her past and find the people who meant much to her. The story follows Esther's life in Germany, her family's move to Holland to escape persecution, and eventually Esther's settlement in the United States after the war.
The first few pages show who the main characters are, both in the early timeline (in black and white) and the more modern timeline (in color). Despite those pictures for reference, it was incredibly difficult to read and understand the way the timeline of the story overall jumped around. Even as an experienced reader of graphic novels, who notices things like difference in clothing and hair cuts and the change in scenery from one panel to another, I still had a difficult time understanding the jumps in the story. Perhaps it would have been better if the timelines in the past were presented in black and white, like the characters at the beginning were shown.
Also, there were random panels that seemed unnecessary - they skipped entire days or weeks between them but didn't really advance the story in any way. I would have cut those, as an editor.
Overall, I don't think I want to put this in my classroom library, for students who are interested in learning more about the Holocaust, since I thought it was confusing. But it's an interesting read if you don't try to understand everything and experience the book viscerally. -
The Holocaust is not a topic that would seem to lend itself well to graphic novel format, but this book -- and it's prequel
A Family Secret--are both very successful at making the story of Holocaust victims accessible to middle and high school students. The author certainly doesn't gloss over the atrocities, but they they are portrayed without excessive sensationalism. Based on the fact that these books have been sponsored by the Anne Frank House, I believe the historical details are accurate. The stories are told partly as flashbacks and I found the plots interesting and moving. The illustrations and graphic format bring the events and people to life in an effective way -- very different than just reading text, or even a photographic essay about life at that time. Sometimes all the characters and different time settings got a bit confusing, but the author provides a helpful guide at the beginning of each book. -
Better than the companion graphic novel, The Family Secret, though this employs the same point form format to tell the story which I still found removed me from feeling the emotions of the story. This story was much more focused in scope from The Family Secret as it really mostly told the story of Esther's parents in the Nazi camps and didn't try to tell the entire story of WWII (though it did give some extra info about the wider war). This tighter scope helped the story immensely and I was almost (but not quite) moved by the story.
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Ďalšia kniha, ktorú by som zaradila do povinnej literatúry na dejepis. Jedná sa o komiksovo spracovaný príbeh židovky Ester a jej príbuzných a priateľov. Napriek tomu, že komiks pôsobí na prvý pohľad detsky, tak dokáže veľmi presvedčivo ukázať hrôzy tej strašnej doby a jednotlivé ľudské charaktery.
Mne osobne sa veľmi páčil, chytil ma za srdce, celé spracovanie hodnorím veľmi kladne. -
I read The Search after finishing A Family Secret as recommended by a friend who had given both books 5 stars. The graphic novels were produced by the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. They tell the story of two families - one Jewish, one not - living in Amsterdam during the German occupation of the Netherlands in World War II.
I highly recommend these graphic novels to gain a better understanding of the roles that ordinary people played during this horrible period of history — whether they were victims, friends of victims, perpetrators, collaborators, or bystanders. -
True story, I was reading this while working at the library when a patron asked me for a book about the Holocaust for her child who didn't enjoy reading. Perfect timing. I read a lot of Holocaust themed books in public school. This one was a nice addition to that. Having lived through the beginning of a fascist movement here in USA the last 5 years, I would say this was pretty scary to read as an adult and having a child who would need protection. We read these books to try and learn from our mistakes. Here in America we will have to wait and see.
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This graphic novel tells the story of a family who fled to Holland to escape Hitler's Germany and roundup of the Jews, only to find themselves in the same predicament in Amsterdam. Published by the Anne Frank House, this book is a great entry point for middle school kids to learn and discuss what happened to the Jews in Holland during WW2.
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From my 11 year old: "This is such a good book. I love graphic novels and think it's a fun way to read and grow your imagination. This book is about an older woman who retells her life through WWII and the Holocaust to her best friend's grandson and her great nephew. The images help you realize what is going on."
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I really enjoyed this. I feel like this gave an interesting and different POV of the holocaust. Having the grandma tell the kids the story and seeing their reaction and how honest she was and didn't sugar coat anything was great. Very sad, not super graphic...mostly sound fx. Highly recommend. I cant wait to read the other one.
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An excellent YA Graphic Novel depicting a Jewish woman looking back on her life during the Holocaust when she had to hide from the Nazis and lost her parents. The story traces what happened to her parents after they were separated from her.
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Me ha gustado mucho cómo está estructurado el comics ya que no solo te aporta la visión de una persona que ha sufrido por la IIGM sino también las demás visiones de los diferentes destinos de aquellos que fueron perseguidos, maltratos y asesinados.
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A really good way for kids to get a first-hand account of the Holocaust in a visually-accessible and yet age-appropriate way.
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The graphics were great and the story was too. It really made you think. Very sad!
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A riveting read. Highly readable account of an experience under the Nazis in WWII.
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Excellent
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I didn't realize there was a sequel
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Excelente graphic novel! Tem sequência em outro álbum com o mesmo tema, muito complementar,
A busca.
Trata-se de uma ficção histórica passada na Holanda e nos Estados Unidos que, começando com personagens de uma família no presente, relata os acontecimentos a partir da ascensão do nazismo na Alemanha na década de 1930, a Segunda Guerra Mundial, a invasão de quase toda a Europa e a perseguição aos judeus.
Para quem já sabe tudo sobre o assunto, é interessante para rever de uma perspectiva ficcional e artística. Mas para jovens leitores pode ser uma importante porta de entrada para o que ocorreu nesta época. Alguns não recomendam as duas obras para leitores muito jovens, pois os horrores da guerra são explicitados.
Justamente, esta obra foi desenvolvida originalmente com propósitos educacionais, para informar a juventude sobre a história do período, pela Fundação Anne Frank, ligada à Casa de Anne Frank – sim, a mesma onde morou a autora do famoso Diário de Anne Frank. Mas resultou em um trabalho extraordinário, que pode ser lido por qualquer um, interessando em história ou em quadrinhos.
Eric Heuvel fez vários quadrinhos com fins educativos, incluindo páginas que evoluíram para “Segredo de Família”, sobre a ocupação da Holanda durante a II Guerra Mundial, publicado em cooperação com a Fundação em cooperação com o Museu Histórico Judaico, em fevereiro de 2003, com sucesso. Em 2007 veio a continuação,
A busca. Depois, De Terugkeer (The return), sem edição brasileira, sobre a guerra nas Índias Holandesas. E ainda, em sua série sobre a guerra, Frontstad Rotterdam (Front city Rotterdam), sobre o bombardeio de Rotterdam em 1940.
Entre seus outros trabalhos, a série January Jones de 1986 1995 começa a ser lançada agora no Brasil.
Do ponto de vista artístico, Heuvel é um adepto da “Linha Clara”, estilo que tem seu expoente em Hergé, o autor de Tintim. É interessante notar que o traço de Eric Heuvel é impressionantemente semelhante ao de Hergé. A influência é de tal ordem que se pensaria até que um foi aluno do outro. O que, é claro, é uma referência positiva, já que Hergé é um dos maiores quadrinistas da Europa em todos os tempos.
A edição brasileira não manteve a capa original. A nova não ficou ruim, mas aquém da original, que vai abaixo para comparação. Também era ao modo de Hergé.
> Autor: Eric Heuvel (1960 -)
> Lançamento original em álbum na Holanda: fevereiro de 2003, no Anne Frank Krant (Jornal Anne Frank), da Fundação Anne Frank
> Lançamento no Brasil: 2013, pela Companhia das Letras, por seu selo Quadrinhos na Cia.
> Tradução: Augusto Pacheco Calil
Álbuns de Eric Heuvel
(ano da publicação original em álbum na Holanda), título em português, (título original em holandês)
1. (2003)
Segredo de Família (De ontdekking)
2. (2007)
A busca (De zoektocht)
Na série January Jones
1. (2012)
January Jones: Corrida Contra a Morte (Dodenrit naar Monte Carlo)
