LitPick Review
When the German army occupied Holland, Annie de Leeuw was eight years old. Because she was Jewish, the occupation put her in grave danger-she knew that to stay alive she would have to hide. Fortunately, a Gentile family, the Oostervelds, offered to help. For two years they hid Annie and her sister, Sini, in the cramped upstairs room of their farmhouse.
Opinion:
The Upstairs Room is very similar to The Diary of Anne Frank but for a younger audience. This story helps readers feel the pressure and tension of a family in hiding from the Nazis during WW II. Although much is made of the German atrocities during the Holocaust, a few people went against the Nazis and helped hide some of the Jewish people of occupied countries to prevent their deportation to concentration camps. The Upstairs Room is based upon these few brave citizens who were not afraid to do what they knew was right despite the consequences. I highly recommend this book because we should never forget the Holocaust and always stand up against genocide.