Title: The Greenies

Author: Myra Paperny

# of pages: 291 (298 including author's note and acknowledgements)

Plot Summary:

The Greenies are a group of orphaned European Jewish children immediately after the Second World War, who survived the Holocaust in their homelands. Inside, they grieve for the family members they lost, but most of them do not show their true feelings when their wartime experiences taught them not to.

Over one thousand of them, preteens and teenagers (for the younger ones would not have survived the war), have been carefully selected to immigrate to Canada with the Canadian Jewish Congress' assistance. However, living in a new land contains many surprises, and sometimes it's difficult to blend in with the rest of the Canadians.

Opinion:

The Greenies was a very touching story. How the children felt about their past and how the Holocaust would leave a permanent mark on their lives was moving. Their reactions to certain foods, etc. they never saw before in their lives were also interesting, though I was quite displeased when they rejected food on their way to their foster homes while they constantly complained about how terrible concentration camp life was. It was unfortunate for them that some things didn't turn out the way they wanted, but they repeatedly assumed that all Canadians were disagreeable. As a Canadian, I believe that it was unwise to make such comments when they only recently arrived (i.e. they met few people), and complaining wouldn't change any circumstances, or make things worse since there was nowhere else to go for the Jewish orphans.

I would recommend The Greenies to all teenagers because despite some of the opinions expressed that contradict mine, the story was unique in its own way and I appreciate the authenticity of it.

Main themes and subjects:

• Holocaust
• Immigration to Canada
• Orphans
  

Target audience: Teenagers

Genre: Historical fiction

Rating: 4/5

Book review by Fiona T.
* 63 hours so far
Can be published in the Teen Newsletter