{"id":33872,"date":"2017-11-26T22:29:04","date_gmt":"2017-11-27T02:29:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=33872"},"modified":"2017-11-26T22:29:04","modified_gmt":"2017-11-27T02:29:04","slug":"review-of-the-war-i-finally-won-by-kimberly-brubaker-bradley","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=33872","title":{"rendered":"Review of The War I Finally Won, by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The War I Finally Won<\/em><\/p>\n

by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley<\/p>\n

Dial Books for Young Readers, 2017. 385 pages.
\nStarred Review<\/p>\n

The War I Finally Won<\/em> is the sequel to the wonderful award-winning book The War That Saved My Life<\/a><\/em>, by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley. It was my #1 Sonderbooks Stand-out in Children’s Fiction<\/a> for books I read in 2016. Yes, you should read the first book first.<\/p>\n

The book begins with Ada having surgery to fix her clubfoot so she can walk without crutches. But the war is going on, and a lot of people she knows are dying, including her Mam \u2013 which means that Susan can become Ada and Jamie\u2019s legal guardian.<\/p>\n

Susan\u2019s house was destroyed in the first book \u2013 but Lady Thorton gives them a home in a \u201ccottage\u201d on her estate \u2013 a bigger place than Susan\u2019s house had been. However, things get smaller when Lady Thorton moves in with them after her stately home is requisitioned by the government. And then Susan is asked to tutor a 16-year-old German Jewish girl named Ruth. <\/p>\n

Lady Thorton doesn\u2019t want to have anything to do with a German girl, because her son is in harm\u2019s way fighting the Germans, but she has to give in. Ada only gradually comes to understand that Ruth hates Hitler just as much as they do.<\/p>\n

Ada still has the same voice as in the first book. There are still a lot of words she doesn\u2019t understand because she has no experience with them. And she still is prone to emotional outbursts, still has trouble feeling safe.<\/p>\n

This book explores many aspects of what it means to be a family. It was marvelous watching Ada\u2019s fragile heart open wider, even while dealing with the hardships and tragedies of wartime.<\/p>\n

kimberlybrubakerbradley.com<\/a>
\npenguin.com\/middle-grade<\/a><\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Childrens_Fiction\/war_i_finally_won.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.<\/p>\n

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.<\/p>\n

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