Member Reviews
As someone with a parent in the military when growing up, I enjoyed this book. It is perfect for young readers and the postcards and letters from the authors dad were a wonderfully touch!
When I first read the title, Postcards from War, I thought it was an adult level historical fiction, but it's a sweet story about multigenerational sharing of stories and finding a better understanding of the world.
For elementary level readers, it's set in present day, about a boy who's mom has been deployed. He's staying with his grandfather who sees the boy's worried about why his mom has to leave.
The grandfather shows his grandson, the postcards his own father sent him when he was in World War II.
Through gentle conversation and positive dialogue about the postcards and simply growing up with a military parent, the grandfather helps the young man better understand his mother's job and responsibilities.
Beautifully illustrated, the story highlights a gratitude and a wider comprehension of what the world's about.
*I appreciate the advanced reader copy from the publisher to give an honest review.
"Postcards from a War" shows the connection between present and past. The story is told through a series of postcards sent by a dad to his kids at home, as he serves in World War II. These postcards help a young boy cope with his mom's Air Force assignment that requires her to be absent from home. The correspondence is based on a true story. The artwork contrasts the past in sepia tones with the present in full color drawings. The story presents kids with an interesting, authentic historical take on World War II, while dealing with the emotions of being away from a parent. This is a good choice for a family to share.
I received this book from NetGalley and from the publisher, in exchange for an honest review. The ideas expressed here are entirely my own.
This is a sweet book that helps a child get through missing a parent that has gone to war. It goes through the process and helps a kid cope with a mom being gone. It answers a question of why mom had to go. It is a book I could see young kids reading and it helping.
Beatifully illustrated book that tries to explain war and familial separation when a parent is deployed. When Matthew is worried about his Mom going to war, Grandpa tries to ease his concerns by telling him about his own father's deployment during WWII and the postcards he sent home to his own family, and reminds Matthew that his mom keeps in contact with him in similar but more modern ways.
I love the inclusion of the personal correspondence from the author's father to her and her siblings (I wish there were more!), as well as the grandfather's hopefulness that one day soon, there won't be a need for wars.
I'm grateful to Netgalley and VanitaBooks LLC for the opportunity to read Postcards from the War in return for my honest opinions.
Special thanks to NetGalley for providing a digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
Wow. This book made me emotional. I was 7 years old when my father got deployed to go to war. He was gone for 18 months. I was luck enough to have him come home and retire so he wouldn't have to leave again. I wish this book would have existed then, because I would have been the perfect demographic. Being that age, I didn't understand what war was. I just knew he had a job to do that meant he would be gone for a long time. I don't think I even grasped the idea that he might not come home until well after he was home for good.
None of my friends could understand what going through something like this was like. I hardly understood it as I was going through it. I think this book would have brought me comfort had it been written back then. The art that went along with the story was amazing. I may be an adult, but I want a physical copy of this on my bookshelf
When Matthew's mother goes off to war, his grandfather share postcards with him that he and his father exchanged when his father was away in World War II.
The illustrations in this picture book are beautiful. I loved the monochromatic color choice. I wish it would have followed through the whole book in this same color scheme. The more colorful illustrations were not of the same caliber as the brown/black ones.
I'm confused about this book. It isn't quite what I expected. It's a short picture book with quite a bit that is grammatically written for a 3-4-year-old audience, but with language and subject matter more suited for an 8-10-year-old audience.
Given the mismatch of language and subject matter with the writing style, I don't have an audience I would recommend this book to.
Thank you NetGalley and Vanita Books for this Advanced Reader Copy.
Postcards from a War is a brilliant book, one which allows a boy whose mother is serving overseas to dip into his family history from World War II. What makes it so appealing is its ability to be relatable with an 80-90 year gap in time. No one understands war and no one wants it, so offering a tangible explanation for what happens with those deployed, and accepting how uncomfortable it can be for those waiting at home is helpful in a way that no book I've seen yet has tried.
This book is intended to help children cope with separation from a parent due to military service. The author includes real postcards written by her father while he served in the Philippines in World War II.
The boy in the story is worried about his mother, who has gone to war, and his grandfather (the author's brother) comforts him by sharing the postcards he received from his father during World War II. Together, they decide to make a scrapbook of the WWII postcards and the emails the boy receives from his mother. I would have liked to see more about the scrapbook, but the book ended pretty abruptly at that point.
My husband is active duty Army and I am in the Army Reserves. My stepdaughter is always worried about her father going to war. Luckily, he has not deployed to a war zone since before she was born nearly a decade ago. Now that he and I have a daughter together, I would love to have a copy of this book on the childrens' bookshelf. Even if we are not separated by war, we will be separated by other military commitments that take place in order to prevent war, so this book will still be a useful tool.
Profits from the sale of this book are donated to Fisher House Foundation, Inc. Fisher House provides free housing for families of hospitalized servicemembers.
I received a digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and VanitaBooks, LLC.
Postcards From a War by Vanita Oelschlager is a beautiful picture book written for children who have parents in the military. Grandpa helps his grandson understand why his mother was sent overseas through postcards and letters. It's a powerful story that I would highly recommend for classrooms, but especially for those where military families are prevalent.
This wonderfully sepia tone illustrated book tells the story of a child whose father went to war many years ago and sent home postcards to his children and relates it to children today whose mother or father is serving in an overseas war. This is a very meaningful book that deserves its place in every reader's local library. Well done!
I requested and received a free temporary ebook copy from VanitaBooks, LLC via NetGalley. Thank you!
All net profits from this book will benefit Fisher House Foundation which serves veterans and their families with locations in most states. Google it!
This book had a really good message for kids who may or may not have loved ones in the military. Those that do, it would really hit home and connect with them. For those who don’t, it would bea good book to discuss empathy. I also liked the positive female role.
This is a beautifully illustrated and written children’s book about the struggles of parent/ child separation during war. Told with empathy and sympathy, any child dealing with the loneliness and fear from a parent being away at war would appreciate this book. It could be read to 1-2 grades; older could read on their own. Group discussions about the themes will also help children understand the history and emotions that the author felt while living through WWII.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3569940114
I thought this was a good book. I liked the characters and plot of the story. This is about a young boy living with his grandfather during WWII while his mother is deployed in the Air Force. His grandfather is trying to help him understand why his mother has to go. The illustrations were beautifully done.
Please look into this book issue I cant download the book in my phone. It's not supporting not even in the netgalley shelf
I cant review and rate this book as I cannot open or read the book
Please look into the issue and solve it
I would like to read the book and review it.
Get back to me with a solution if you can.
**I received and voluntarily read an e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
Nice illustrations, and I really like the watercolor effect. The sepia tone for the past versus the multicolor present is a nice separation to help tell the two time periods apart. At times, the white text over multicolor images could be a little difficult to read.
Good story that will help older generations who saw their parents off at war be able to discuss the situation with their own children (or grandchildren) who are now going through similar situations.
I received an electronic copy from VanitaBooks, LLC through NetGalley.
A grandson shares his concerns and fears for his mom who is off fighting a war. His grandfather brings out the postcards his own dad sent while in the Philippines during World War II. He shared his memories and how much it meant to have that connection. They decide to create a book sharing these postcards and their stories along with any cards or emails Matthew's mom sends.
The illustrations of the actual postcards are terrific but the text is a bit flat. It is a book that tells the story but remains disconnected from the audience. Glad I read it but not sure it will connect with younger readers.
This is a beautiful story about how hard separation can be due to a war. It's hard enough explaining war to a child, but separation is even harder. A book like this is truly welcomed to explain these hard topics. I am truly impressed, as usual, by the amazing books authors write and how helpful they can be for their target audience.
This book has a great personality about it - the postcards and old times pictures at the start really set the mood. It brought me back in time and made me feel like I was there with the author. I really liked how cool and unique the book was and how it presented it's difficult topic of war.
This book seems like it would be good for younger readers (about grade three) and middle schoolers. It's also just a beautiful book in general. It's a great picture book with a great story and theme behind it. Books like these are important to share! If only my history classes taught using tools like these, I might have enjoyed history more back in my childhood.
Four out of five stars.
Thank you to NetGalley and VanitaBooks for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.
I have a lot of interest in all things WWII, so this book really piqued my interest before I even started it. And then realizing that it is pretty much based on a real story made it that much more fascinating.
Matthew doesn't quite understand why his mother had to go off to war and is really struggling with a multitude of feelings about it. He turns to his grandfather for advice. His grandfather tells him stories of his own father having to go off to WWII and how he kept in touch with his family while he was away.
I love the history of this book. It talks a bit about what happened during the Second World War, while also showing the letters and postcards that were sent home to the children. So you catch a glimpse of history that kids don't often get to experience. And then there is a bit of commentary for contemporary kids about the mixed feelings about war and how they may be the hope to bring about world peace some day. It's a good history tool and could inspire some good old-fashioned letter writing in kids who read it.
Thank you to the publisher for fulfilling my review request via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Postcards from a War is beautifully illustrated short novella for children but I enjoyed reading it being an adult.
It is about a boy named Matthew whose mom is in the air force and is gone on a war mission Matthew goes to see his grandfather Brian after his school gets over.
And then Matthew tells his grandfather about how sad he is because his mother had to go for war. Then Grandpa tells him how he too had to go to war once and how he used to write letters and that made the partition manageable for the family.
They both have funny chats and those letters are just so lovely to read.
The book is a short read and very touching at the same time because it talks about the pain of separation when someone has to take off to assist during wartime.
A fascinating book for children. Recommended