The+Island+on+Bird+Street


 * EDLS 4200 -- Saher Masoodi -- Self-selected Holocaust novel: //The Island on Bird Street//**


 * 1. From whose perspective is the story told? (A Jew? A Nazi? A survivor? A Righteous Gentile? A Descendant of a survivor?) What are the benefits of getting the story from this perspective?**

The story is told from the perspective of an eleven year old Jewish boy named Alex during WWII. As his father has been taken away by the Germans, Alex can be considered a refugee hiding out and surviving alone in an old building. The benefit of reading from this perspective is gaining an understanding of the patience and hopefulness of a very young survivor. During this rough period, Alex encounters two other survivors hiding out who tell him that his father probably will not return. Alex, however, remains optimistic and struggles to find food and shelter in extremely cold weather with only one thought in his mind, his father.


 * 2. What life lesson did you learn from the plot of this story?**

One important life lesson that can be learned from the plot of this story is faith and strength of mental survival. The unfavorable conditions of little food, cold weather, and lonliness made it very for difficult for Alex to be on his own. But he knew that he did not have a choice. He had a pet mouse to take care of while he waited for his father's return. Mental stability and firm optimism granted him such a strong belief in life eventually going back to the way it used to be.


 * 3. What did you like most about this book?**

What I liked most about this book was the bravery and intelligence of an eleven year old refugee. He constructed a ladder using rope and chair legs. He was small enough to hide in tiny spaces when the Germans came looking for any Jews that may have been left behind in the previous "selection." It was obvious that cold weather was difficult for Alex, but I liked the irony in his naming of the pet mouse Snow.


 * 4. How does this text relate, if at all, to //Parallel Journeys//?**

//The Island on Bird Street// is fairly different from //Parallel Journeys//. Aside from being told in one perspective, this text does not give any detail on the harsh conditions of concentration camps. Alex is a refugee living alone in an abandoned building because he was hiding when the Germans came to evacuate the buildings. Waterford, on the other hand, gives descriptions of extermination camps in Auschwitz. Both novels, however, ultimately relay the same message: the power to overcome injustice and create peace.


 * 5. How could you use this book to teach the Holocaust?**

Although this book is fictional, the ideas and events still represent conditions of the Jews during WWII. I would have my students examine the relationships Alex creates with people he encounters while he is without his father. When he runs into two other survivors, they don't fight over food but help one another. For example, one of the characters is injured in the story, and Alex attempts to help him by trying to reach a doctor. I would encourage my students to discuss among one another the importance of Alex's relationship to the characters he meets and how they are important to his survival.


 * 6. Would you recommend this book to a friend?**

Yes!