The Upstairs Room

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Summary: The Upstairs Room
Review: In class I was assigned to read The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss. The story takes place during the Holocaust in the city of Usselo, Holland. The main character is Annie. She is a small girl with dark hair. She has two sisters and her mother gets very sick. I have also read the book Parallel Journeys by Eleanor Ayer, with quotes from Alfons Heck, a German soldier, and Helen Waterford, a Jew. Both Parallel Journeys and The Upstairs Room are about the Holocaust and what it was like to be a Jew. I feel that the message of The Upstiars Room was to treat all people equal. During the Holocaust, Hitler hated the Jews and was killing them. The Jews had to hide so that they would not be killed, but if they were found, they would be sent to work or extermination camps. Hitler established the Hitler Youth in which there were ranks. If you got to the top of the ranks, you would then be moved to the German army. I think The Upstairs Room is an excellent book. It was very exciting. It made me imagine myself as Annie. I think Johanna Reiss did a good job telling the story as Annie. I would recommend this book to girls from grades six and up because there was some language inappropriate for young childrenand some boys that read The Upstairs Room told me that it was a girl's book. I hope this book review helps you decide if you want to read The Upstairs Room.

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Summary: GREAT BOOK!!!
Review: The book I have read is called The Upstairs Room, by Johanna Reiss. Harper Collins Publishers published it in 1972. This is a fiction book that is based on the events that have happened in World War II. It is during the Holocaust in WWII, and explains all of the emotions a specific family of Jews went thorough during their life in hiding.
In this book, the De Leeuw family from Winterswijk, Holland, hear on the radio about the Nazis moving in and taking the Jews away to work camps. There is Ies, the father and Sophie, the mother. There is Annie, the main character and the narrator, her older sister Sini, and her oldest sister Rachel.
After a while, their family and friends start to move to America, deeper into Holland, or stay and brave the Nazis in hope that the allies will win the war soon. Soon the Jews have many unfair laws against them, made by the Nazis. The De Leeuw's lose a lot of friends just because they are Jewish, and the Jews have to give up their jobs and quit school.
The family breaks up into different hiding places in other family's houses where Annie finds out the truth behind the work camps, and the horrors going on in them. They spent a couple of years in hiding, go through many dangerous times, and await the end of the war.
I think this book is sad because the Jews went a lot of pain and sadness. I agree with the author when she says how destructive the Holocaust was because she experienced it first hand. It brings up a lot of questions such as why Hitler and the Nazis were doing these things to the Jews. This book relates to the racism going on today.
After all, this book brings the reader back to the Holocaust and brings up points on the issue, especially to respect others. AM

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Summary: ***Great***
Review: My Language Arts teacher assigned us a project where we each had to read an audio book and then rate it. I chose this book in the library because it looked interesting and the back kept me reading. The book is about a girl who grows up with a dead mother, a father and two older sisters in the 1940's in Holland. At that time, Hitler was trying to rid the world of Jews and that family was Jewish! Annie, the main character, and her older sister, Sini, hid at the Hannink's house for a while, but when the Hanninks thought that people were getting suspicious, the Hanninks sent Annie and Sini to their friend's house, Johan, Opoe, and Dientje. Annie's father stayed at a retired minister's house and the eldest of the three daughters, Raquel, stayed at Reverend Slaum's house. Hitler's troops already searched Johan's house and hadn't found anything, luckily, because if he did, all of the Jews at that house would have had to go to Concentration camps. It is a great book for anyone who likes to read fictional books about real events, I would reccomend this book for you!!

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Summary: World War Two
Review: The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss is about a ten-year-old girl named Annie de Leeuw.This wonderful,but sad story is about World War Two. When Annie's home in Holland becomes too dangerous for Jews like her and her family they have to into hiding. Annie has lots of adventures with her sister Sini.I wish I could tell you more about this exciting boook but you will have to read it for yourself.This book would probably be good for ages 10-adult.

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Summary: Excellent
Review: The Upstairs Room is an excellent book about Jews hiding during WWII. The main character is Annie de Leeuw. She was a nine-year-old Jewish girl living in Holland. Slowly Annie and her family were forced to quit school and their jobs. The loss of freedom destroyed Annie's spirit. She longed to be able to see her friends and play outside. The de Leeuw's decided to hide when they realized the Nazi's would be taking them to concentration camps. The entire family could not hide in the same location, so they split up. Annie's mother was ill, so she remained in a hospital. Annie and her sister, Sini, hid upstairs in the Oosterveld's farmhouse. Her father and sister, Raquel, stayed with a retired minister. Annie and Sini were cramped in a very small space, which was incredibly cold in the winter. The girls often spent many days in bed to keep warm. Annie was often forced to walk back and forth across the room to strengthen her legs because they began to grow irregularly. The girls had to hide in a closet for days on end when Nazi soldiers used the Oosterveld's house as an office. The Oosterveld's took excellent care of Annie and Sini and became quite attached. The entire time spent in the room was stressful and depressing for the girls. They were only allowed to go outside a few times during the their time in hiding. Annie and her family hid for two years before they could return to their home. The sacrifice the Oosterveld's made to save the girls is incredibly moving. The strength and perseverance Annie and Sini possess will inspire readers for years to come.

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Summary: I thought this was one of the best Ive read and reccomend it
Review: Based on the author's experiences, this book describes the life of Annie de Leeuw, about 9 years old, during World War II, when she and one of her three sisters hid from the Nazis in the attic of a gentile peasant family for more than two years. It is exciting because the Germans are after them and they have to hide and if they are found, they are send to a murder camp. They were jews.

There is a few things you should be aware of. This book has a few words that are unacceptible for children. But this is a great literature to learn about this event and it is fun to read. I recommend it to 5th Grade+. I am going into the 6th Grade right now. 5 out of 5 Stars!

I thought it was very good and enjoyed it. It has won many awards in its history. The girls must hide underground, in peoples houses, but most of all, The Upstairs Room. Annie and her sister Sini were alone together and had absoulutely nothing to do. Occasionally the people at the house brought them a book because they loved to read.

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Summary: It was the BEST book i ever read!!
Review: THe Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss, is the bet book I ever read. It is a historical-fiction story that won a Newbery Honor award because it teaches you a lesson. I think the lesson is to treat people the way you want to be treated. This book takes place in Holland during WWII. It is about a girl named Annie and her family who has to hide from the Germans. Annie is a ten-year-old girl who doesn't like the idea that the Nazis came to her town because now her friends won't talk to her. She is not aloud to go to school any more and she is not happy, all she wants to do is go for a long bike ride. The climax of the story was when the family had to go into hidding. When they were hidding they had to move from house to house, that made the story very suspenseful. YOu would never know if the Nazis would catch Annie's family. I also liked this book because it related to my own life (since the holocaust is part of my history).

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Summary: The Upstairs Room by Stephen MacPherson
Review: This book is based om Johanna Reiss's experiences in the world war 2 as a young girl becoming a young woman. Annie is just about 6 years old and words of Hitler coming to power and war are starting to arise. Annie lives in Holland and it is the year 1942. The german soldiers are starting to make their way toward Winterjswik where Annie lives. Ies, Annie's father believes they should go to america because the Germans are coming way to close. His wife, Sophie says she couldn't go to America and start all over again because she has kidney problems which gives her terrible migranes. Sophie feels that if Ies builds a house right on the edge of Wintersjwik, the part not near where the soldiers are coming they'll be just as safe in America. The family soon moves to the new house because the Germans come to close and they just get out in time. Sophie soon has to go to the hospital because her condition is way too bad. All their jobs are taling awy and they are not allowed to travel because they are Jewish. Soon their not allowed to visit their mom at the hospital so Annie gets permission from the governor. Soon Ies feels unsafe and finds a farmer to hide with. Ies finds a farmer to find Annie and her two sisters, Rachel who is a teacher and Sini who has her milking diploma. The farmers name is Mr. Hannink. Annie and Sini go to Mr. hannink's home where they will hide. Rachel doesn't go and stays with her mom. Mr. Hannink soon feels the germans are coming onto his hiding of Jews so he sends Annie and Sini to the Oostervelds where he says their gonna stay for only 2 weeks. They end up staying there for almost 2 years and almost got caught by the Germans from a check up one night but they were hidden in a closet where they couldn't be seen. They were there for the 2 years until canadian soldiers came through their town and freed them. After the war Annie had crooked legs but she got joined back up with her Father and 2 sisters and went back to Wintersjwik. But unfortunately her mother died from her bad condition.

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Summary: The Upstairs Room
Review: I really enjoyed The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss. It was one of the very few books that has kept me pulled in and interested the entire time. The characters were real, and the story gave distinct detail about their physical appearances and individual personalities. It shows the struggle of a Jewish family trying to stay together, and most of all stay alive. You feel as though you are right there with the characters though every life threatening account with the German Nazi's.
The people who will like this book are individuals that may be interested in World War II, or the history of Germany and Holland during the 1940's. This could also be intriguing for people who enjoy reading about life struggles and how people have overcome them.

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Summary: My favorite Book!!!
Review: I read this book the first time when I was in third grade. (...) It is an amazing book and a true story. It truly shows the greatness of the human spirit. I've read this book 5 times at the least and still could read it another 100 and enjoy it. I truly recomend this book!