The Ship to Nowhere

This is the true story of Rachel and her family. Shortly after WWII Rachel and her family board the SS President to Palestine for refuge. They are looking for a life of freedom that can no longer be found in their home country. There are 4500 people crammed on this ship and conditions are poor. It's very dangerous and many parish. The story is good and keeps your attention but it is also tragic because it is true. Filled with pictures of the journey and the people they meet along the way. This is a touching and educational story that will teach kids about the difficulties after the war.

"The Ship to Nowhere" will play a vital role for young readers' understanding of the Holocaust and its aftermath.
Rachel Landesmanhas survived the horrors of World War II with her mother and sister and attempted to emigrate to Palestine to live out their lives in peace. However, that was not meant to be initially.
The author deftly tells the true story of the obstacles they faced achieving that goal. What I especially found so meaningful was how Arato conveyed the angst and bureaucracy it took to finally land and live there. She wrote clearly and related the anguish that young people could understand. The message of perseverance and sticking to what you believe in, no matter how difficult that may be, resonates throughout the book.

So, so timely. The story of refugees that no one would let in sounds like something from todays news, but this was 1947 and no one wanted the Jews. It may seem hard to believe that this people were refused refuge, but that was the way in was in 1947, when Israel didn't even exist yet, and yet that is where these people wanted to go, Palestine. But the British controlled it, and would let no new refugees in.

The book is written with a middle-school audience in mind, and is a truthful fictionalized telling of the <em>Exodus 1947</em>, the ship filled with Jewish refugees from all over Europe. They had survived the war, but now had no place to call home. Much of the information for this book comes from, of course, the refugees themselves, but there was an American reporter that followed the ship and wrote about this, Ruth Gruber.

Using photos, real photos, of the ship and the passengers, this is an engaging tale. Good book for the classroom. Definitely a book that should be given to all, to get background on how refugees have been treated in the past.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.