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"Safiyyah's War"

Written by Hiba Noor Khan
       
Image Source: Amazon
        "Safiyyah's War" is set in Paris during World War II. Safiyyah loves spending time in the library looking at maps and helps an elderly neighbor, Adam Cassian, with errands. Her world changes when word comes that the Nazi's are making their way to Paris. Many of Safiyyah's Jewish peer and teachers begin leaving town without even saying goodbye. Safiyyah wants to do everything she can to help resist against the Nazi's, including Mr. Cassian, a Jewish botanist. She also notices that her father begins acting strange, sneaking off in the middle of the night and locking the door to his office.
        Khan stays true to reflecting the historical time as the Grand Mosque of Paris was actually responsible for helping hide and provide false identification for fleeing Jews. This is an important perspective of World War II history that is not often told. This Kirkus review also points out that while most of the characters are fictitious, the mosque's imam is a real historical figure. I also read the Historical Novel Society's review to verify that it was an accurate historical representation of the mosque during this time.
        The fictional characters were convincing as everyday people helping the Jews escape. The story conveyed the hardships and worries that the people went through while they feared the Nazi's but continued to quietly work behind the scenes to help and protect the Jews. Khan also did not shy away from having the students in the classroom discuss the Nazi's coming before they arrived. She included other students picking on one of their peers for being Jewish and the teacher not addressing it. This was a heartbreaking moment, but surely was a reality for many Jews during that time of the many bystanders that did not help. Safiyyah, however, put that boy in his place for her friend and she was surprised when her teacher did nothing else to address it.


Khan, Hiba Noor. Safiyyah's War. Allida, 2023. 329 pages. TR. $19.99, ISBN 978-0-06-335186-8.
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