The Secret of the Village Fool

by Rebecca Upjohn, Renn Benoit (Illustrator)

Overview

Milek and his brother Munio live in a sleepy village in Poland, where nothing exciting seems to happen. They reluctantly do as their mother asks when she asks them to visit their neighbor Anton, knowing that the rest of the village laughs at him because of his strange habits of speaking to animals and only eating vegetables. Things change quickly when war comes to their town in the form of Nazi soldiers searching for Jewish families like that of Milek and Munio. Anton refuses to tell the soldiers where to find them, and then goes so far as to hide the family in his own home, putting his life at risk without a thought. Based on a true story.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781926920757
Publisher:	Second Story Press
Publication date:	09/01/2012
Edition description:	Library Edition
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	8.60(w) x 11.00(h) x 0.30(d)
Age Range:	7 - 10 Years

About the Author

Rebecca Upjohn has worked herding sheep, photographing buildings, selling books, releasing trees and producing a short film. Rebecca's first book, Lily and the Paper Man (Second Story Press), was published in 2007. Visit www.rebeccaupjohn.com for more information.

Renné Benoit is an award-winning illustrator of many books for children. In 2012, Big City Bees (Greystone) was shortlisted for the Governor General's Literary Award in the Children's Literature Illustration category. Renné currently works out of her home studio in St. Thomas, Ontario. For more information, visit www.rennebenoit.ca.

Editorial Reviews

"An excellent spring board in understanding oppression and social justice, humanitarianism, the Holocaust in World War II and the courage of people to stand up and fight for right."

Resource Links

"Read like a picture book, with thought-provoking and reflective coloured illustrations by award-winning illustrator Renné Benoit, this story is based on true events. Intended for a younger elementary school age audience, The Secret of the Village Fool could be read in a classroom, or with a caregiver, leading to a discussion of the Holocaust. The content is delivered in easy to understand and compassionate language."

CM Magazine

"Beautiful, evocative illustrations painted in a subdued palette mirror the tone of the story...Because it is a true story and provides photographs of the people involved in an Afterword, young readers will be likely to make connections to their own lives and families."

Canadian Teacher Magazine

"[This] poignant true story is related with expressive soft illustrations. Children today will learn much of the tragedy of the Holocaust with this story."

Southwest Ohio and Neighboring Libraries (SWON)

The Secret of the Village Fool was a great educational children's book. Not only will the children like it for the eye catching illustrations and interesting story line but adults will like it as well because it teaches factual information about WWII.

Kayla's Reads and Reviews

The book is based on true events, and the epilogue, complete with photos, fills the reader in on what has happened to all those involved. The story is a tearjerker in all the right ways—neither overtly didactic nor overly sentimental. It, nevertheless, both teaches history and illustrates human compassion in unexpected places with its moving, straight­forward narrative. ... This is a great book for elemen­tary school age children who are learning about the Holocaust and is sure to provoke much discussion. Highly recommended for ages 8 and up. Starred Review.

Jewish Book World

A true story, showing courage and kindness during a time of war.

Polish American Journal

The story has obvious tie-ins to history, world religion and culture and is remembered and honoured at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial and museum in Jerusalem. This poignant story of terror and loss is ultimately a moving story of heroism and hope.

Professionally Speaking

Ms. Upjohn wrote a phenomenal story in words and terms children can understand. Add Benoit’s extraordinary artwork that imagines in detail what this family went through, and the book becomes an extraordinary slice of World War II.

Kid Lit Reviews

The Secret of the Village Fool shows Anton to be not a fool, but an angel, especially to those whose lives he saved and to their children, grandchildren and others they were able to touch. And to those of us fortunate enough to read this story.

CanLit for Little Canadians

Sometimes we forget that true stories like this are actually true. There is a straight line from these young boys pre-war, through their wartime experiences, to the photographic record which follows the narrative. When the reality of that fully strikes the reader, it’s overwhelming...This is why people tell stories. This is why we read them. To remind us of the wonder in our world.

Buried in Print

This picture book is a good starting place for introducing children to the Holocaust. They will learn that Jewish people were hated by the Nazis, that people for forced out of their homes and send away, that children and parents were sometimes separated, and that neighbors either looked the other way or colluded with the Nazis. But they will also see that not everyone agreed with what was happening, that there was a minority who didn't and some who even risked their lives to help.

The Children's War

This book is a great introduction to the second world war and recent European history, as well as a heartwarming story of how standing up for your beliefs in the face of opposition is a heroic thing to do. Benoit's illustrations are great at bringing the reader into the time period and also for creating a feeling of empathy with the worried young people.

Perogies & Gyoza Book Blog

Rebecca Upjohn tells [Anton's] story in "The Secret of the Village Fool", a picture book about this improbable hero and the Jews he saved during World War II. … At the end of the book we see a wonderful black-and-white photograph of Anton, postwar, surrounded by proud, beaming villagers.

Wall Street Journal - U.S Edition

The Secret of the Village Fool, well told, beautifully illustrated and expertly researched (timeline, facts & photographs included in the after), belongs in your library.

Jewish Kids Book Circle

A gentle, unassuming man's courage and fortitude saves a Jewish family during the Holocaust in this tale taken from history. When the Nazis conquered Poland and took over their village, Munio, Milek, Mama, Tata and all the Jews of the village were in immediate danger. True to form, the Nazis quickly burned the synagogue and began roundups of whole families and all the young boys. Their neighbor Anton, a kind, simple man many call a fool, brings girls' clothing for the boys to disguise themselves temporarily. Then he prepares a hiding place under his house, basically an earthen dugout where they and two girls whose families were taken away will spend the remaining years of the war. Anton is their only contact, constantly risking his life to feed them and keep them safe. Amazingly, at the very moment of near discovery, the Nazis are driven from the village. Modern children are so far removed from the Holocaust that it is extremely difficult to convey its horrors. Upjohn makes this true story personal, immediate and accessible without resorting to bathos or sentimentality. Benoit's sepia-tinted, ominously shadowed illustrations convey darkness, fear and uncertainty. An afterword accompanied by copious photos tells of the participants' eventful postwar lives, including Anton's induction at Yad Vashem as Righteous among Nations. Young readers will need some guidance and input from knowledgeable adults. Powerful and deeply moving. (Picture book. 8-14)

Kirkus Reviews