All of Denmark was a Star

And it's Eichmann and Himmler are turning the screws
The Fuhrer they say grows impatient
"How can it be Denmark's Jews still walk free
After three years of kind occupation?"
We will take them like sheep in their beds as they sleep
On the second night of their new year
Devoutly at home they'll be helpless alone
When they cry out no one will hear

I can't remember a song that has moved me as much as Fred Small's Denmark 1943. I turn into a blubbering mess every time I hear it. Recounting the events on Erev Rosh Hashannah 1943 when the Nazis occupying Denmark decided to round up and "relocate" all of the Danish Jews during their high holy days, this song is a powerful tribute to the people of Denmark who, as a whole, refused to bow to the Nazis and smuggled their Jews to the safety of Sweden.

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry is perhaps the second most powerful expression of those events I've come in contact with. Concentrating on one Jewish and one Lutheran Danish family, the friendship between them, and how the Nazi occupation affected both families especially the children, Number the Stars is itself a powerful tribute to the people of Denmark and their unwillingness to bow down to the Nazis even though they officially surrendered to the Germans without a drop of blood spilt.

The Story

Annemarie Johannsen and Ellen Rosen are best friends who go to school together, play together, do just about everything together. They could be a pair of giggling ten year olds from just about anywhere - until they are stopped by Nazi soldiers in the street for running and you realize that sadly, they are not just anywhere. Still, for the first half of this story, some semblance of normalcy pervades. There are realities of occupied life - the lack of butter and sugar certainly high on the list - but for the most part the girls act and do what any other best friends of that age would do.

But then Annemarie's mom sends the girls out to buy a button from the Hirsch's shop and they find it closed with a big German sign on the door. And instead of the Johannsen children visiting the Rosens at the Jewish New Year, Ellen comes to live with the Johannsens for a time. Other disturbing changes pervade their lives, as the Danes come to terms with how serious the Germans are about "relocating" the Jews. It becomes apparent that Ellen cannot stay, that she must be led to escape. So she is taken to Uncle Henrik the fisherman and an escape attempt begun. Does Ellen and her family make it safely to Sweden? What happens to the Danish resistance? Can Annemarie be brave and help save her friend and other Jews when things start going wrong? Read the book to find out.

The Characters

There are many characters who weave in and out of this books. Some are always there but in the overall scheme of things not important. Some are seldom seen but play a very important role in the tale. Others just pop in as background or to bring one salient point into focus. I'll highlight but a few of the characters here.

Annemarie Johannsen seems like your normal 10 year old girl. She likes to run and she likes to play with dolls. She's a bit impetuous and a bit bossy but also a very good friend. She has a best friend with whom she shares everything and a little sister who can be a pest. But the world around her is changing into a scary place, a place of hatred and fear that she doesn't understand. Nice people are disappearing for no reason other than their religion and as the book progresses Annemarie begins to understand what's happening and begins to understand that courage is doing what must be done in spite of being scared, not the absence of fear. As Annemarie grew, so do did my liking and respect for her.

Ellen Rosen is Annemarie's best friend. She just happens to be Jewish, just as Annemarie happens to be Lutheran and Mrs. Hirsch happens to sell buttons. Ellen isn't as impetuous as Annemarie nor is she quite as well developed in the book. As Annemarie begins to understand more and more of what's happening in Denmark, more about the Danish resistance, more about the Nazis, Ellen seems somewhat oblivious to the whole thing. It's clear she understands what Nazis are, that she understands that they want to harm her, but at the same time her understanding seems shallow compared to Annemarie.

Peter Nielsen was engaged to Annemarie's older sister Lise who died in a car accident. Peter isn't around much but he shows obvious affection for the girls when he is. Notably changed from a jokester to a somber young man, we find out why late in the book - he's in the Resistance and concerned with rescuing Jews and foiling the Nazis.

The Lessons

Coming to a realization that all is not rosy in the world is often a difficult thing for a child. When that realization is prompted by Nazi persecution of Jews it cannot help but be horrible knowledge. This is a book that acknowledges the difficulties of growing up and that each of us has a choice about how to react to the problems that surround us.

It too is a book that acknowledges that when people act together for a common cause much can be accomplished. Strangers came together for a common good, often people with little in common with regards to background or education. The Danes as a whole smuggled the Jews out of Denmark on little notice by working together. Not every single Dane helped, but an overwhelming majority did, helping strangers they had no ties to other than being countrymen. Perhaps most impressive is the respect shown the property of these escaped Jews. Rather than looting and stealing, the Danes quietly dusted their Jewish neighbor's books and watered their plants until they were able to reclaim their property.

Fact or Fiction

Number the Stars is a fictionalized account of real events. The specific characters within are fictional as are the specific events that happen to them. However, the Nazis did occupy Denmark from 1940-1945, they did try to "relocate" the Jews of Denmark during Rosh Hashannah 1943, the Danes did as a whole try to protect their Jews and helped the majority of them escape, and the Danes as a whole protected the personal property of Jews, keeping things in repair and unlooted until their return. The Danes as a whole didn't see this behavior as anything spectacular but rather as just the way neighbors and friends acted.

Final Thoughts

Number the Stars is the tale of Annemarie Johannsen and how she reacts to a changing world around her. It is her coming of age story, set against the backdrop of Nazi occupation of Denmark and the activities of the Danish Resistance. It's a book that starts with innocense and a lack of understanding of the significance of the Nazis and grows toward insight and determination to foil. Nothing truly bad happens directly, although mention of death and a dread of bad things definitely fills the end of the book. As such, it's an excellent way to introduce children to the Holocaust since they can learn and grow more aware as Annemarie does. However, in of itself it doesn't have enough information nor really portray the horror of the time period, so I would quickly move on to other books like Jane Yolen's The Devil's Arithematic that go into more detail about the horrors forced on Jews.

Seven thousands of Jews smuggled over to Sweden
By fishermen, nurses, and priests
Hitler sends Eichmann to hunt them down
But his quarry have vanished like mist
When the war's over the Jews return
Cheers and flowers adorn their way home
"We're not heroes or martyrs" so say the Danes
"We were just looking after our own."