The Girl Who Wouldn't Die by Randall Platt

Summary

It’s 1939 in Poland, and Arab knows that standing up for anyone—especially her Jewish family—only paints a target on her back. So she plans to survive the Nazi occupation the way she always has: disguise herself as an Aryan boy, lead her street gang, and sell whatever she can steal.

But though Arab starts the war with the one goal of staying alive, others have different ideas for her. When a stranger asks for her help with a covert rescue mission, Arab has to make a choice. Trying to be a hero is a surefire way to get killed. But if she doesn’t do it, who will? 

Hard-hitting and unforgettable, The Girl Who Wouldn’t Die is a story about survival, the necessity of resistance, and the hope that can be found when the world is at its darkest.


My Thoughts

I.  Am.  So.  Confused.

When I finished this book I thought I really liked it!  I realize how stupid that sounds but hold on a minute and I'll explain.  Like I said, I honestly put the book down and let out one of those breaths that you don't really realize that you're holding when you get to the end of a really impactful book.  I really, really liked it!

Now here I am, starting to type out a review and I go to Goodreads to snag a copy of the cover of the book.  I scroll down to see if many people have already posted reviews and I see a ton of reviews that just trashed this book!  More 1 star ratings than I've ever come across before.  So, I read some and discovered how problematic this book seems to be.

I am not Jewish.  I sadly do not know much about Jewish history.  I knew that there were things in the book that made me cringe at times but I didn't really realize why.  Apparently, this book seems to be very offensive to the Jewish culture.  I hate that I didn't see it for myself.

This is where my problem comes in.  As someone who didn't know and recognize the problematic content, I really liked the book.  The story itself kept me engaged and not wanting to have to put it down.

I think that I will just post this review and not give the book a star rating at all.

*Note: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.