Jella Lepman and her library of dreams

Jella Lepman was a Jewish German newspaper reporter who fled the country following Hitler's rise to power. After WWII, she returned to occupied Germany as the Allied forces' "advisor on the cultural and educational needs of women and children." Her personal mission soon became clear: to introduce Germany's children to people around the world through children's books donated by other countries for German children to enjoy. Initially, some European nations refused, unwilling to reward Germany for its aggression, but Lepman won them over, pointing out that Germany's children were not responsible for their elders' actions and that cultural ties would help prevent future wars. Many German children had suffered during the war, forced to join the Hitler Youth, losing one or both of their parents, reduced to begging or stealing for survival, or sent to live with strangers in other countries. Initially, Lepman succeeded in creating a traveling exhibit of children's books. Later, her International Youth Library opened in Munich. Paterson portrays her as a woman whose boundless energy, practicality, and persistence enabled her to achieve her goals. Photos and intriguing illustrations appear throughout the book, helping children visualize the people and places mentioned in this well-researched, insightful, and consistently engaging story.

Paterson applauds the work of writer and translator Jella Lepman (1891--1970), who spearheaded a post-WWII effort to reeducate German youth, "mostly along the lines of an idealized American society." Beginning with early adulthood, scene-setting storytelling notes Lepman's major life milestones. After Hitler seizes control, promising "to make Germany great again," Lepman--"one of the Nazis' despised Jewish people"--flees, becoming a journalist abroad. At war's end, the protagonist is recruited as an adviser on the educational needs of German women and children, and, despite initial reluctance, Lepman embraces the role with vigor, battling bureaucracy and working with limited funds to produce a children's book exhibition that becomes the International Youth Library--itself a launchpad for the Young People's United Nations. Deng's digitally colored, monochromatic sketches incorporate historical photos. Amid real talk about war, there's an optimism to be found in this lengthy profile of Lepman, presented here as a dogged champion for children and a believer in books. Ages 8--12. (Feb.)

Newbery Medalist Paterson looks at a woman who fought tooth and nail to give children access to literature. If children's books are "nourishment for the soul," then what do you do when there are none to be found? German-born Jewish Jella Lepman spent the better part of World War II in England, where she had escaped with her two teenaged children. When the war ended, she found herself conscripted as an adviser for women's and youth affairs. Sending herself on fact-finding missions, she determined that while food was necessary, books for the children of Germany were imperative. Paterson has addressed the task of making clear just how difficult it was to save these children from the adults in their lives who never gave up on Nazism. The author has triumphed--Lepman comes across as spiky and sometimes difficult, but also a steadfast and courageous advocate for children and their books. Paterson pulls no punches; when discussing how the German demagogue played on the populace's fears, she writes scathingly, "Hitler promised to make Germany great again." Art drawn in a limited palette mixes, mingles, and merges with pertinent photography, giving the book interest and immediacy. The subject's dedication, candor, and sheer chutzpah burst off the page. An acknowledgments page lists Paterson's sources and the people she consulted. A stirring, singular tribute to a woman well aware of the importance of children's books in times of trauma and recovery. (photo credits)(Biography. 8-12) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.