"The Orphan's Tale" by Pam Jenoff (We Both Recommend This One)

The Orphan's Tale by Pam Jenoff is a gripping historical fiction book about two women protected in Germany by joining a circus during the 1940s when Hitler took over and rounded up Jews for execution.  Noa rescued a little Jewish baby that was among many dead on a railcar and Astrid was a Jew whose German officer husband kicked her out when ordered to do so.  Astrid was from a circus family and the competing circus took her in.  Noa had no circus background, but the circus owner took in her and the baby to protect them and told Astrid to train Noa for the trapeze act.

This book was very good!  I really liked the circus aspect of this book and enjoyed seeing Astrid and Noa's relationship develop.  In this book, it showed how some were able to find happiness amid the terribly things going on.  There is a lot of sadness in this but also light parts too to keep it from being too depressing.  It is one I don't think I'll forget!  I had to wait to write my review to give me some time to recover from the sad ending.  I highly recommend this one!  My favorite character in this was Astrid, who was yours?
(Karen's review, 5 stars)

Gerard's review, 3-1-17, 5++ stars:
In The Orphan’s Tale by Pam Jenoff is set in the early 1940s in Germany when Hitler and the Third Reich ruled., 16-year-old Noa has been thrown out of her parents’ house. Her husband leaves her and her newborn baby is taken from her. Now she is on the run and is not alone. She carries a secret that if found out will mean death for her and her companion. Astrid knows the circus life very well. She is one of the stars of the show, but every day she lives in fear that her secret will come out.

I enjoyed both Noa and Astrid. I found this book very hard to put down as the tension builds throughout. Loved it! It is now my book of the month for February!


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"Highly Illogical Behavior" by John Corey Whaley

Highly Illogical Behavior by John Corey Whaley centers on three teens:  (1) Solomon who has not left his house in three years and sees no reason to; (2) Lisa who has big plans to get into an exclusive school; and (3) Clark, who is Lisa's boyfriend but would like to be more.

Lisa's plans include Solomon, but she does not let him know that.  When she decides to get Clark's help, things get really interesting.

I enjoyed this book.  I thought the story line was good and I enjoyed all three characters.  I also had an unexpected ending I was glad to see.
(Gerard's review, 5 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!