Honey Cake.

Susan Merskey is freelance writer in London, Ontario.

Copenhagen is the most beautiful city in the world for David Nathan. Even the Nazis in the streets can’t make it ugly. Nevertheless, life has changed since they came. There are food shortages, frequent air raids, and soldiers everywhere. David’s parents always seem worried, and his elder sister, Rachel, leaves home early and comes home late. Sometimes she doesn’t come home at all. When David delivers a special order from his father’s bakery, the boy learns the true nature of Rachel’s work.

Based on historical events, this is a story of friendship, honour, bravery and an eventual escape from tyranny, thanks to some loyal Danish people and the Swedish men and women who welcomed the Danish Jews to their shores.

The book is well written. As an adult reviewer I at first found the chapter format irritating, but it does tell the story in bite-size chunks suitable for the six- to nine-year-old readers for whom it is intended. The black, grey, and white line and shadow drawings are simple and graphic; they complement the text and help explain elements of the story. Some children might find them alarming, but they are less so than Maurice Sendak’s work. Honey Cake can be read simply as a story, but children in this age group would need much explained to them. It would, however, be very useful for Holocaust studies in the regular or Hebrew school classroom—very few children’s books chronicle the Danish experience. Recommended.