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32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A charming story of hope, dignity and resilience, 23 Jun 2004
I first read Ian Serraillier's all to brief account (less than 180 pages) of a group of Polish children's journey across war torn Europe around fifteen years ago when I was still in primary school, and was recently reminded of it after seeing it on the BBC's 'Big Read' top 100 list and decided to reread it.
'The Silver Sword' begins with the escape of the Polish school headmaster Joseph Balicki from a German labour camp, who upon returning to Warsaw, finds his home destroyed, his wife captured and imprisoned by the Nazi's and rumours about the apparent death of his three young children. Joseph decides to leave Poland and to journey to the safety of his parent's home in Switzerland, but before departing he leaves his only link to his happy past, a paper-knife given to him by his wife, with a street urchin on the understanding that if his children are alive, and if he should meet them, then he must pass the message onto them to head for Switzerland.
His three young children, the eldest Ruth, "a remarkable girl, (with) a sense of purpose and moral authority", Edek, "brave and intelligent" and the youngest, Bronia, "blue eyes, very fair eyes, she seemed to live in a dream world", did indeed survive the war and began a dangerous life in Nazi occupied Warsaw, begging and working for the little scraps of food available and dodging the bullets of Nazi snipers. It is during this period that Ruth becomes the adoptive mother and teacher to a group of children in the cellar of the shell of a bombed building, including the war-orphan Jan, a "charming bundle of good intentions and atrocious deeds."
After a scuffle with the generous Russian sentry, Ivan, Jan's wooden box is destroyed and its contents, including the 'Silver Sword' are strewn onto the floor. Jan then retells Joseph's story to his new friends and Ruth decides that the Balicki children must make the two hundred mile to Basel, Switzerland. Setting off with Jan, they are reunited with Edek, who has spent many months as a German labourer following his capture whilst smuggling cheese into Warsaw. Edek, who is seriously ill with tuberculosis, is soon revived at the sight of his father's paper-knife and is inspired to fight both his fatigue and dislike of Jan enough to complete their dangerous journey to their new home.
With the aid of many helpful and generous adults, including the Russian soldier, Ivan; the British officer, Mark; a Polish-American GI called Joe Wolski and most noticeably the Bavarian farmer Kurt Wolff and his wife, Emma, who help the children escape capture by the Burgomaster, with his instructions to send all refugees back to their homelands, the Balicki children and Jan manage to make their extraordinary journey across Europe to be reunited with Joseph and Margrit.
Since it's publication, Ian Serraillier's story has rightly joined the list of timeless children stories, despite it often being criticised during the 1950's for being to gruesome and not suitable for children. But it was defended by Owen Reed, the head of BBC Children's Television at the time as it "treated them (children) as responsible citizens who could be trusted with a frank account of what the war and its by-products, like juvenile delinquency and refugees, was really about."
Although the characters and some of the books locations are fictitious, the stories are based upon true people and events that the author read about in various publications following the end Second World War. Indeed, Ian Serraillier's research was so thorough that it took him five years to finish the story, with him only being able to write during the summer holiday's because of his teaching profession, and even changing the text whilst it was at the publishers awaiting printing.
Yet, despite the simplistic prose and story progression - which may put off adult readers - 'The Silver Sword' will engross and excite young readers with its adventure, danger and the good-natured purposefulness of its characters shining throughout.
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