When The World Was Ours: A book about finding hope in the darkest of times
Liz Kessler
Subjects
- History Time - blasts from the past
- Friends & Family - tears and laughter, and happy ever after
- Friends & Family - tears and laughter, and happy ever after
- History Time - blasts from the past
Average rating
ONE MOMENT CAN CHANGE A LIFE FOREVER.
‘An exceptional read’ The Sunday Times ‘Vital glimmers of hope enlighten this profoundly poignant book’ Guardian A powerful and heart-breaking novel about three childhood friends living during the Second World War whose fates are closely intertwined, even when their lives take very different courses. Inspired by a true story, this is the perfect read for fans of The Book Thief and Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl.Vienna, 1936.
Elsa, Leo and Max have always been best friends, a special team of three. Then the Nazis come.
As a growing darkness descends around them, Leo and Elsa run for their lives, taking two very different paths across Europe. And Max, once their closest friend, now becomes the enemy as he is drawn into the Hitler Youth. Will the friends ever find their way back to each other? Will they want to?
Inspired by a true story, WHEN THE WORLD WAS OURS is an extraordinary novel that is as powerful as it is heartbreaking, and shows how the bonds of love, family and friendship allow glimmers of hope to flourish, even in the most hopeless of times.
Three friends. Two sides. One memory.
Reviews
It's a really sad book. You should probably read it when it's quiet; you feel like your I'm the book.
Principal Jet Vesuvius 05.08.2024
Horrific, scary, but absolutely brilliant! great novel for over 13 year olds
Anonymous 09.01.2024
So sad
Anonymous 02.09.2023
This book is based on a true story. It’s in the time of WW2 and about 3 friends getting separated as 2 of them are Jewish and 1 of them is a nazi
Fairy Diamond Moonlight 30.08.2023
This is so sad,I'm crying my eyes out
Director Birthday-cake Pudding-Basin 29.01.2023
This book was really nice, albeit very sorrowful. My school did an interview with the author of this book, Liz Kessler and she took us through her experiences when writing the book and it was really interesting how she implemented a story from her family’s past into her book so subtly yet so well. I think my favourite character would be Leo’s dad as he was so kind to Leo and his friends and even when he was suffering under the hands of the Nazis he reassured his son and wife that he was doing alright. I would definitely recommend this to people around my age (10 - 13+) as it is a really beautiful story.
Captain Chesney Archer 25.07.2022
Everyone should read this book! Set during the Second World War, it tells the story of the three friends and their experiences of the Holocaust. Truly heartbreaking and serves as an important reminder that we must never let anything like this happen again!
Anonymous 18.09.2021
