Andrea Warren writes about the life of Jack Mandelbaum and his experience with the holocaust. He is sent to four different concentration camps, and his main goal is to survive. He does this in whatever way he can, whether it's thinking of survival as a game or remembering his family. Despite horrible conditions, Jack is able to survive, but the rest of his family doesn't. The book includes pictures of the concentration camps and pictures of Jack, and seeing these pictures really brings to life how this was a real person living in this horribly unimaginable scenario.

This book was something that I was really into reading. When I was in junior high I was introduced to many books about the Holocaust. This happens to be one of them. Rereading this book really opened my eyes to show me how blessed I am. I would recommend this book to junior high and high school (7th through 12th). It is something that students should know about because it played just a vital role in our history. This book is about about a young boy that gets separated from his family and taken away to a concentration camp. With very little food and poor living conditions, he finds hope in survival while thinking about his family. This book gives you a behind the scene sense of what it felt like going through such trying time. Even though, I will never be able to relate to such tragic event, some people may still find hope in this heart tugging biography. ( )

An intriguing and fairly detailed look at the different aspects of Holocaust life from one survivor's perspective. ( )

RGG: Clear, concise pull no punches biography. The horrors are not glossed over, but the text is still geared toward middle grade students. Reading Interest: 10 -14.

This heart wrenching biography about Jack Mandelbaum was quite the tear jerker. A young man that came from a wealthy and loving family was stripped of everything during Hitler’s invasion of Poland. At only thirteen years old, Jack was sent to a dreadful concentration camp and his world was flipped upside down. Disease, beatings, and starvation took the lives of many, but Jack refused to give up. He was determined to fight through the harsh conditions and be reunited with his family. With so much to live for, Jack miraculously made it out alive, only to discover the devastating news about his loved ones. Still, Jack managed to overcome the misery once more and made it his life’s duty to provide aid to the survivors of the tragic holocaust. ( )