There has been a wealth of graphic novel memoirs focusing on the events of World War II and the Holocaust in recent years, allowing new readers an opportunity to understand the human cost of these events in an engaging manner. The Girl Who Sang: A Holocaust Memoir of Hope and Survival is a fine addition to that canon, focusing on the life of Estelle Nadel as she survives the occupation of Poland, recounting the emotional story of her endurance and eventual arrival in America.
The Girl Who Sang tells the true story of Enia Feld, a young Polish girl whose life is destroyed when the Nazis invade in 1939. Like many other Jews, her family was forced into a ghetto, as violence against her friends and neighbors increased. After her mother is murdered and Enia is thrown in jail, she narrowly escapes with her brother, only to hide precariously for two years. As the war comes to an end, Enia finds her way to Austria, where her singing makes an impression on a US service member, who arranges for her remaining family to travel to America. Later in her life, she meets another woman who came to America on the same ship (the Marine Marlin), who fondly remembered her as the girl that sang.
It’s a touching story, but understandably one occupied with intense grief and sadness. The most gut-wrenching moments are when Enia is abused or betrayed by indifferent neighbors, who either turn members of her family into the Nazis or refuse to aid her in a time of need. For Enia and her family to watch in despair as individuals they believed could be trusted refuse to help them is a heartbreaking lesson of the book, and a reminder of the need for these stories to be documented for future generations.
Written by Estelle Nadel, the book is perfect for upper elementary to middle school students, supplying a relatable memoir. Understandably, the material is deeply somber, but the book presents its storyline in a way that is approachable to young readers still grappling with the evils humans can commit to each other. Sammy Savos provides simple yet beautiful art, with her characters expressing the emotional and physical struggles they experience with a wide range of subtle human moments. Additionally, her visuals show just enough in moments of extreme violence to deliver the script’s message while remaining suitable for its target audience.
The Girl Who Sang: A Holocaust Memoir of Hope and Survival is an emotionally powerful graphic novel that should be required reading for any student studying the events of the Holocaust. Like all great memoirs, it humanizes its central characters in a way that make their lived experiences easily accessible to readers, while guaranteeing that these stories of betrayal and survival remain planted in our communal memory.
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