At the peak of the civil rights movement, Lydia Abarca was the first ballerina in a Black ballet company to grace the cover of Dance magazine. Alongside founding members Shelia Rohan and Gayle McKinney-Griffith and first-generation dancers Karlya Shelton and Marcia Sells, Abarca invited a bright light to shine on Black professional classical dancers. Grit, determination, and exquisite artistry propelled these swans of Harlem to dizzying heights as they performed around the world for audiences that included celebrities, dignitaries, and royalty.

Forty years after the swans of Harlem made history, when Lydia's granddaughter wanted to show her own ballet class evidence of her grandmother's success, she found almost none — just some yellowing photographs and programs in the family basement. With The Swans of Harlem (Adapted for Young Adults), these revolutionary ballerinas and longtime friends give voice to their stories on and offstage, reclaiming their past so that it is finally recorded, acknowledged, and lauded, never to be lost again.

The adult edition (Knopf/Pantheon; April 2024), on which this Young Adult edition is based, has been hailed as “a captivating corrective to an often-whitewashed history” (Publishers Weekly, starred) and is in development as a Netflix miniseries under the helm of the producer behind Black Swan, 12 Years a Slave, Slumdog Millionaire, and numerous other box office hits.

Arriving to shelves just in time for Black History Month, this “poignant and gripping piece of little-known history” (Kirkus) will captivate fans of narrative nonfiction, dance memoirs, and forgotten histories and inspire readers of all ages and interests to chase their dreams and follow their hearts.

I haven't had time to read The Swans of Harlem yet, but I'm very intrigued by the story it tells. I'll definitely be picking it up soon. If you're also interested in reading it, you'll want to enter this giveaway to win a copy of the young adult edition of the book for yourself:

Grand Prize Giveaway:

- 5 winners will receive a paperback copy of The Swans of Harlem (Adapted for Young Adults) by Karen Valby.

- US only, we will select the winners and ship directly

- The giveaway starts at 12:01am ET on February 24th and ends March 9th at 11:59pm ET

- Rafflecopter giveaway link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/74cc7a8d7/?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I'd never heard of Bletchley Park until I saw that one of my favorite historical fiction writers, Ruta Sepetys, was coming out with a new novel entitled The Bletchley Riddle. A little Googling revealed that Bletchley Park is a country house in Buckinghamshire, England, that was purchased by a British government agent for use as a code-breaking center during World War II. The work that was done there was top secret, accomplished by mostly young people, and has been credited with shortening the war by 2-4 years. So, what specifically went on there?

Now that the mysteries of Bletchley Park have been declassified, the public can read all about it. Even though I haven't been a child for *ahem* quite some time, I particularly enjoyed learning about the Park from two books written for middle grade readers that came out this year—The Enigma Girls: How Ten Teenagers Broke Ciphers, Kept Secrets, and Helped Win World War II by Candace Fleming and the aforementioned The Bletchley Riddle by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin. They make perfect companion reads. I read Fleming's non-fiction account first, which gave me a great basic understanding of the Park. Having that foundation enhanced my enjoyment of the novel, which tells an exciting fictional story about two siblings who work there.

The Enigma Girls provides a thorough, very readable account of what Bletchley Park was, the work that went on inside its walls, what that work entailed, who performed the jobs, how their work impacted the war, and, most fascinating to me, how it affected them on a personal level. I was especially amazed that so many of the Park's workers were young (most were under 21) and female. The fact that these young ladies answered the call of their government to leave their homes for an unknown period of time to live in an unknown place and to perform unknown "war work" duties that they were absolutely forbidden to talk about—even with other workers at the Park—is astounding, really. As the book's subtitle indicates, Fleming focuses on ten specific workers, which gives the text a close-up, intimate feel.

A lot of the code breaking that went on involved using complicated machinery and tedious deciphering methods. Fleming explains these in detail, which does get a little dull and overwhelming at points. Other than that, though, The Enigma Girls is an excellent read. It's interesting, conversational, and inspiring. I highly recommend it for anyone, middle grader or not, who's interested in learning more about this lesser known aspect of World War II.

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The Bletchley Riddle begins with a splash. Not literally, but it does involve a plucky 14-year-old giving her chaperone the slip and escaping the ship that is supposed to take her to safety in America. Lizzie Novis has no interest in leaving England, no matter how dangerous the war gets. She has too much to do. Her mother, an American who was working for the U.S. Embassy in London, disappeared 9 months ago while on a trip to Poland. Although she is presumed dead, Lizzie refuses to believe it. She has tried to enlist her brother's help in finding their only parent, but he has repeatedly told her to drop it. Just when he's decided to stop communicating with her, she finds an important clue that she hopes will entice him into helping her investigate. 

When Lizzie goes in search of her brother, she discovers even more secrets. A math student at Cambridge, 19-year-old Jakob is now doing a top secret war job in the countryside that he can't talk about. Since he can't leave his sister on her own, he has no choice but to take her with him to Bletchley Park, where she becomes a messenger at the mysterious facility. As Lizzie puzzles out what is going on at her hush-hush new workplace, she enlists the help of new friends to figure out what really happened to her mother. The more they dig, the more disturbing and risky their investigation becomes. What was Willa Novis really doing in Poland? Could rumors that she was a traitor to the Allies possibly be true? What is happening behind all the closed doors at Bletchley Park? Can the efforts of an ordinary teenage girl truly make a difference in such a vicious, overwhelming war? Lizzie is about to find out.

The Bletchley Riddle is fiction, written to entertain more than educate, so it's no surprise that it moves a lot faster than The Enigma Girls. With short, snappy chapters filled with action and intrigue, it tells a compelling and engrossing story. Although it goes over a lot of the technical details that were discussed in The Enigma Girls, Sepetys and Sheinkin explain them in a shorter, simpler way that never bogs down the plot. In fact, the tale focuses more on the mystery of Willa's disappearance than the goings-on at Bletchley Park, blending the most exciting aspects of both to keep the novel rocking along. 

I love the characters in this novel, especially feisty, outspoken Lizzie. Jakob, Colin, and Marion are perfect foils for her with their calmer, more grounded personalities. Combining their various talents, they make an appealing, well-balanced team.

Along with an interesting Bletchley Park backdrop; an intriguing, exciting plot; and warm, likeable characters; Sepetys and Sheinkin add in dashes of humor and romance along with a plot twist or two to round out this enjoyable novel. What results is a solid, satisfying read that educates and entertains at the same time. I loved it.

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If you enjoy learning about code-breaking and lesser-known aspects of World War II, you should dig both of these excellent reads. Each is worth the read on its own, but they complement each other so well that you really should try them both to get a complete picture of all the intrigue and intent focus that once defined Bletchley Park. 

The book, which is geared toward mature middle graders, gives the reader a good overview of WWII in Germany. It discusses the disappointments that led the German people to Hitler and thus to war - the country's humiliation after losing WWI; bitterness and great debt resulting from the Treaty of Versailles; widespread poverty; and growing unemployment. The people needed hope. It came in the form of Adolf Hitler, a charismatic man who promised change. Though some of his ideas were dangerous - defying the Treaty of Versailles, for example - they seemed to be the exact kind of radical thinking the country needed to rise again. No one could have foreseen how his extremism would lead directly to one of the greatest horrors in human history - the Holocaust. The book follows Hitler's rise to power, as he takes control of every school, church and household, then thrusts them all into another world war. It covers the horror of Jewish ghettos, concentration camps and the mass murders of anyone Hitler deemed unfit to live. It talks about the Allies' entrance into the war, liberation, and, finally, the fates of Hitler, SS men and others responsible for unspeakable crimes against humanity.
Bartoletti's focus is, of course, on the children. Hitler recognized the power of Germany's youth. He saw what a force they could be. So, he set about molding them into loyal servants. Not only did he re-write their textbooks, fire teachers who encouraged independent thinking, and do away with most youth groups, but he also persuaded them to join his own pro-Nazi club. Using snappy uniforms, bold flags, shiny badges, and the promise of adventure as bait, he lured boys and girls into becoming members of the Hitler Youth. Once there, the kids were plied with propaganda. They learned to become "good" Nazis, loyal to and supportive of The Fuhrer. As such, they were required to turn in anyone who made derogatory remarks about the Nazis, including their teachers, priests, friends and parents. The kids also performed hard labor, marched and drilled for hours, learned First Aid, and received weapons training. Above all, Hitler taught "unity" or the sacrifice of individual expression in favor of collective thinking. The stringent rules and demanding physical requirements became too much for some, but many stuck with it, happy to be part of the group.
By December 1, 1936, membership in the Hitler Youth became mandatory. Non-compliance meant fines, jail time, loss of job opportunities, even death. His demands were harsh, but Hitler had a purpose, of course: "A violently active, dominating, intrepid, brutal youth - that is what I am after. Youth must be indifferent to pain. There must be no weakness and tenderness in it" (43). For the most part, he succeeded in grooming his young army to become efficient killers, willing to die for their leader. The children knew they were fighting against the Allies, but most had no idea their revered Fuhrer was murdering millions of Jews. That grisly discovery led some, like the brave Scholl siblings, to take action against the Nazis. Others refused to believe, continuing to battle with blind allegiance.
In the end, although they caused numerous deaths, no members of Hitler Youth were tried at Nuremberg. The international court recognized that the children had been cruelly used by a power-hungry madman. Some were punished in civilian courts, made to pay fees, serve jail time, view gruesome films of corpse-strewn concentration camps, and rebuild what they helped destroy. Interviews of former Hitler Youth conducted by Bartoletti and excerpted in the book, reveal just how horrifying the situation was for the children involved.
No one can judge which victims suffered the most. We can only agree that one man's greed, hate and violent extremism brought about the physical and emotional murders of millions of people. Hitler didn't act alone, of course, but he, above all else, deserves to burn in Hell for what he did, not only to his "enemies" but also to the youth who served him with childlike devotion. With all the power he held over them, Hitler could easily have influenced Germany's children to do good. But, no, he led them away with the evilest of intentions. Hitler Youth shows numerous angel-faced children, arms raised in salute to the devil in brown - it's unbelievably chilling. Reading their stories makes my heart ache for the great loss of innocence, the marring of purity, the depraved indifference of adults toward the most vulnerable of German citizen.
The book never glosses over atrocities committed during the war, but it doesn't go into graphic detail either. Because it's meant for children, Hitler Youth dispenses information in an honest, readable format that allows readers to draw conclusions for themselves. While I don't think any book about Hitler and the Holocaust can be called "clean," I do feel this one is appropriate for older middle grade readers. It contains no profanity, really graphic violence or sexual content. While its subject is disturbing, the book does something very powerful for modern youth - not only does it teach them about what happened, but it also teaches them to question, to think and to never allow themselves to be coaxed down dangerous paths. Children are the future - only through knowledge of the past can they make sure it's a good one.
Grade: A
If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG for violence and mature themes
To the FTC, with love: I got this one for free - at the library.