This was an interesting story. One of the events the book focused on was the opera "Brundibar" performed by the children of Terezin. Maurice Sendak created a picture book based on this opera. ( )

When Ela Stein was a young child she and many other family members were shipped to Terazin. This was a Czech ghetto. Shortly before they were shipped to Terazin her father was taken away for expressing his opinion about Hitler. That was the last that Ela saw of her father. In the ghetto her mother made a hard choice to send Ela and her sister to a barrack that was specifically for girls around her age. The living conditions were somewhat better and they received a little more food. The girls in room 28 formed a tight group. Soon someone decided they were going to present an opera. They practiced and practiced. At one point the Nazis used their production for propaganda. This book is a book that shows us what friendship and music can do to help people survive. It was a ray of hope in their lives. This is a short book to read, but filled with so much information and lots of pictures to help understand. ( )

I did not enjoy this book, I found it to be too wordy. ( )

The Cat with the Yellow Star tells to story of Ela Stein. Ela was eleven years old when she and her mother and sister were sent to Terezin, a concentration camp.The story begins in 1938 with the onset of the Nazi occupation of Sudetenland and the disappearance of Ela's father. After being transported by an uncle's motorcycle, the family ended up in Prague. In 1940, Ela was no longer allowed to attended school and was required to wear the Star of David. On February 12, 1942 Ela and her family were transported to Terezin. Ela lived in Room 28 with 28 other girls. Over time the Ela became friends with a few girls who would travel around Terezin singing Happy Birthday or for the ill. Despite being forbidden to study, the girls would learn from other prisoners who were teachers, writers, etc. The girls became part of a secret children's opera called Brundibar. Despite their attempts to be sneaky, their opera was not a secret. They would later perform for the International Red Cross as well as for a Nazi propaganda film. Many of Ela's peers from Room 28 were transported to "the East". In May of 1945, Terezin was freed by the International Red Cross. Ela later moved to Israel and married. Ela's family including her mother and sister moved the America. Ela reunited with her friends from room 28 and they attended a performance of Brundibar. Since then, the friends have gathered together yearly. Ela travels to different productions of Brundibar and shares of her holocaust experience.

This book organized into chapters based on year and location of events. There are portraits and drawings on every page. Not only are there pictures of Ela and her family but there are also portraits of her friends from Terezin. There is an contents page, and index, source notes and an author's note. The story is written as a narrative from the Ela's perspective.

I liked this book. What stood out about this book that differs from other books about the holocaust was the way the girls from Room 28 with the help of adults were able to bring entertainment to fellow prisoners. It gave them something to look forward to and purpose. I found it fascinating that no one from their room died while at Terezin. This story really shows to me how life altering the concentration camps were and how because of their experiences these women have friendship still years later. I would recommend this book for a middle school social studies class. ( )

This tells the great story of a concentration camp survivor and it is the author's tribute to all those who helped the children of Terezin. It's a memoir of a girl, Ela, who plays the important role of the cat in a child's opera, Brundibar. It's inspiring and incredibally sad. The strength is the message that good can triumph over evil.