Rose under fire by Elizabeth Wein
Published by Electric Monkey
Goodreads Synopsis
Rose Justice is a young American ATA pilot, delivering planes and taxiing pilots for the RAF in the UK during the summer of 1944. A budding poet who feels most alive while flying, she discovers that not all battles are fought in the air. An unforgettable journey from innocence to experience from the author of the best-selling, multi-award-nominated Code Name Verity. From the exhilaration of being the youngest pilot in the British air transport auxiliary, to the aftermath of surviving the notorious Ravensbruck women's concentration camp, Rose's story is one of courage in the face of adversity.
My Thoughts
Wow what a read. I'm not sure I can put into words how utterly fantastic Rose under Fire was but I'm going to give it a go.
For those of you who read my reviews it is not secret that I wasn't a fan of Code Name Verity because I didn't get in with the method of story telling which flitted back and forth between first and third person. I therefore started Rose under Fire with some hesitation. However I am so pleased to report that Rose under Fire was exactly the book I had hoped Code Name Verity would be for me and more.
Rose under Fire is the story of Rose Justice a young American woman who is serving in Britain during the Second World War as a pilot. The story follows her through her service as a pilot and then later on when she is captured and sent to Ravensbruck work camp by the Nazis. I loved Rose as a character, her bravery and resolve whilst she faces extraordinary and harrowing circumstances. The strength of this book is the relationships Rose has with the women around her.
For me personally as a historian for the time period I particularly loved the way in which Rose is portrayed after she leaves Ravensbruck in the way you see her struggle to return to normal life after the atrocities she has seen. I love that the book addresses this because I can't think of another YA book which does this and I think it is so important that the struggle to return to normality for holocaust victims isn't forgotten.
A truly brilliant book which I will be recommending far and wide and using extensively in the classroom.
You'll like this book if you loved...
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Between Shades of Grey by Ruta Sepetys
Cross my Heart by Carmen Reid
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