Dobryd

Given To Me for An Honest Review

Dobyrd by Ann Charney will draw the reader in and they will then feel as though they are also in war torn Europe too. This is a simple story and an easy read. It is written from memories of a child of 5. It begins right after World War II. She, her mother, cousin and aunt, along with other Polish Jews hid out for two years in a false roof in a barn. Once liberated they tried to rebuild their lives. Was Ann and her mother able to rebuild their lives? Did they stay or leave the country to start a new life? I recommend this book. I look for more from Ann Charney.

The period known as the Holocaust is a frequent topic of books for both adults and young adults. The book Dobryd is different in that it does not focus on characters who are arrested or imprisoned. In fact most of the story occurs in the years following the war. Told in the first person, this story details the struggles of a five year old girl as she emerges from over two years of hiding in a space too small for a standing adult. Most of her family is dead, but she still has her mother and an aunt. The reader is soon absorbed by their relationships as they begin to integrate into a Poland that is very different from the one they hid from. Their rescuer is Yuri, a Russian soldier who plays a pivotal role in helping young Ann relate to her new world and provides stability for her. Dobryd shows us the best and the worst of people and how they have a long lasting impact on Ann and her family.

Dobryd is classified as an autobiographical novel as the author was very young when the story begins and much is retold from the memories of others. It reads like fiction, but has the authenticity of history. Dobryd would be an excellent addition to a unit on the Holocaust or World War II. It invites comparisons to books such as The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank that are typically examined by students in learning about this period. Dobryd offers opportunities to feel with Ann the discrimination she experienced based on religion and her family's former social standing. We get to learn of her rapidly disappearing Polish heritage and of the geographical struggles Poland underwent as a nation being divided by its neighbors as one of the spoils of war.

Excerpt from the Review: "...Dobryd is an incredible read. Short and well-written, it is a stirring account of a broken family's attempt at living a normal life after surviving dangerous circumstances. One slip up and the family might have been found by German patrols and ended up in concentration camps or worse. Even their protectors and liberators couldn't be trusted. I quickly absorbed this book, finishing it in just a couple of days. Ann Charney is an excellent storyteller and I would love to read more from this author."

In the first few pages you can feel the tension of staying out of sight for so long, especially on a young child. The rebuilding of a life after WWII is painfully offered in this book and Ms. Charney details this masterfully. Recommended reading.