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Joel Hildebrandt
, July 14, 2016
(view all comments by Joel Hildebrandt)
Gorgeously illustrated, the book tells the story of how Muslims at the Grand Mosque saved Jews from the holocaust. Both authors speak French and did extensive interviewing in France; this follows on the heels of their much more ambitious joint undertaking, "Hidden On The Mountain: Stories Of Children Sheltered From The Nazis In Le Chambon".
This book is impressive on many levels. It is intended as a children's picture book, but to me this only adds to its power and beauty. The essential lesson of "The Grand Mosque" is the fact that Jews and Muslims in recent history worked together for survival and considered each other brothers--a story much in need of remembrance in today's world. The authors went to great effort to seek out documentation that is many cases almost impossible to find.
These anecdotes that Ruelle and DeSaix have helped resuscitate from near oblivion are a moving tribute to humanity's capacity for compassion and valor, especially in the worst possible circumstances.
The book celebrates the Mosque itself, in addition to the kind acts of its World War II Rector, Si Kaddour Benghabrit, and his congregation. Each illustration in "The Grand Mosque" is in itself a work of art, and many of them are a respectful tribute to the beauty of Islamic architecture. A glossary of Islamic terms helps to further the author's goal of bettering our understanding of what is sacred to Muslims.
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