The Righteous Smuggler

Dave Jenkinson is a professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba and the author of the “Portraits” section of Emergency Librarian.

Set in World War II–era Holland, The Righteous Smuggler is another
strong contribution to children’s literature relating to the
Holocaust. Divided into three chronological parts, “Occupation
1940,” “Oppression 1941–1942,” and “Resistance 1943,” this
historical-fiction novel illustrates how not every World War II
combatant necessarily wore a uniform or used weapons.

On Friday, May 10, 1940, Hendrik Vandinther’s 12th birthday, German
troops invaded Holland. The country surrendered just days later, and
German forces occupied Holland for almost the next five years. Hendrik
shares how his life and those of his countrymen changed during the
occupation’s first three years.

Initially, Hendrik and his parents experienced relatively small
inconveniences, such as curfews, blackouts, and rationing. However, in
fall 1941, the German occupiers prohibited Jewish children from
attending Gentile schools. This edict affected four of Hendrik’s
long-time friends, including his best friend, Pieter Goodman, whose
father owned the fish store where Hendrik’s fisherman father sold his
catch. Hendrik observed increasing abuses of Amsterdam’s Jewish
population through what was happening to his friends’ families, but
only in 1943 did Hendrik and his father become actively involved in the
Resistance by smuggling Jews to England, with Pieter’s family being
the first they carried on the journey’s initial watery leg.

Debbie Spring establishes the book’s historical context via a brief
prologue, and an epilogue, set in 2000 Israel, brings closure to the
fictional story. She also explains that “‘Righteous Gentile’ is
the name given to non-Jews who aided and saved Jews during the
Holocaust.” Eleven pages of black-and-white period photos complete the
book. Recommended.