“There are very few survivors left, and I want the world to know that there was a Holocaust”
The Girl Who Sang: A Holocaust Memoir of Hope and Survival is a short graphic novel, but has a lot packed in. Estelle Nadel, Bethany Strout and Sammy Savos created an informative, quick story about how one girl survived during wartime, a girl who was lost and how she found her voice when all seemed to be the end of the world.
There are uncomplicated illustrations supporting the story. Bold, bright, minimalist and colorful, they add context but also allow the seriousness to be toned down, without losing the powerful messages. The story itself is broken into several sections as Estelle’s life unfolds. We see the before and start of the war, we then see the years in hiding, part three follows the liberation years, and parts five and six shows the years in America and the people we have met roundups.
This is a serious subject that has been adapted for most readers, though there are a few advanced subjects, things are handled tastefully. Estelle Nadel’s early years are a story we have heard before, but she has a few sections that might not have been as readily shown in other books when it comes to after the war. Her story probably happened to more than one person, but rarely do we see “what happens” in the larger picture.
We see this young Polish girl, coming of age during war, but unable to celebrate milestones. But we also see an adult who wants us to never forget. Nadel’s voice is honest, showing how she is both giving and selfish. She was a human who had hopes and dreams. We see where she lost everything, but was able to give back as well. Nadel passed away late 2023, not having seen the book published.
While the book is available at your local independent bookstore, I read this via an online reader.
