Berman

In Nazi-occupied Amsterdam, Jaap Penraat cannot ignore what is happening to his Jewish neighbors. Rules tighten, danger grows, and ordinary kindness is no longer enough. To help people survive, Jaap begins using his skill with printing to create false papers, then takes even greater risks as escape becomes harder. Forging Freedom tells a true Holocaust rescue story with seriousness and urgency for older children and teens. It shows courage not as a grand speech, but as repeated choices made under threat: to notice injustice, to act, and to protect others when silence would be safer. Readers interested in World War II history, resistance, and real stories of moral bravery will find a powerful account of one young Dutch man's stand against persecution.

Chance follows Uri Shulevitz’s childhood flight from Nazi-occupied Warsaw into the Soviet Union, tracing years shaped by hunger, danger, displacement, and uncertainty. This illustrated memoir is not a distant history lesson; it is the story of a child trying to survive while also discovering that drawing and imagination can become a way to hold on to himself. Older readers will find a clear, honest account of refugee life during World War II, told with the perspective of an artist looking back. The book is serious and often harrowing, but it also shows resilience, family loyalty, and the strange role chance can play in survival.