Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
They call her the Arab of Warsaw, a young girl who is forced to turn her back on her family, her fortune, her future, her Jewish faith, and her people. Running with a gang on the streets, she steals, lies, cheats, cons, and sometimes is forced to do worse. But she also survives, even thrives, the coming of the German army, as it goose-steps into Warsaw, Poland, 1939.
As a seller of cigarettes and anything else she can trade or steal, Arab meets a young SS Nazi lieutenant, Fritz Von Segen. They find they have many things in common: a fondness for cigarettes, liquor, and, of all things, language. Arab finds she can survive if she caters to the vices, whims, and the arrogance of the Germans. Who is she to get in their way?
The Arab of Warsaw is a story of heroism and cowardice, insignificant acts and monumental acts, standing out and standing up, and turning to look the other way. It is a story of sparing lives, taking lives, and forgiving others and ourselves for making these choices. It s also the story of not forgiving. It is neither black nor white, for who isn t both at times?
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Synopsis
It's 1939 in Poland and Arab (don't call her Abra Goldstein) knows that being Jewish doesn't pay. Neither does being a girl. No, Arab will tell you that claiming any people at all can get a person killed--and she's not about to let this war take her down.
So as the Nazi occupation goose steps its way into Warsaw, Arab plans to survive the way she always has: take to the streets, king her gang, and above all refuse to get involved. Disguising herself as a boy, Arab looks out for herself, stealing what she needs and selling to whoever's buying.
But it's a complicated war, and to stay alive, Arab will need to use all the skills the streets have taught her--and avoid every enemy she's made along the way. Nazis, Jewish ghetto police, Polish resistance fighters, and enemies from competing gangs are all searching for her, and any one of them could sign her death sentence.
And then there's Ruthie, Arab's baby sister--how will she survive the occupation? Trying to be a hero is a surefire way to die, and Arab knows it. But there's at least one person who believes she has what it takes. And at least one person who needs her to take a stand.
Hard-hitting and unforgettable, The Girl Who Wouldn't Die is a story about surviving, and finding hope when the world is at its darkest.
Synopsis
It's 1939 in Poland, and Arab knows that standing up for anyone--especially her Jewish family--only paints a target on her back. So she plans to survive the Nazi occupation the way she always has: disguise herself as an Aryan boy, lead her street gang, and sell whatever she can steal. But though Arab starts the war with the one goal of staying alive, others have different ideas for her. When a stranger asks for her help with a covert rescue mission, Arab has to make a choice. Trying to be a hero is a surefire way to get killed. But if she doesn't do it, who will? Hard-hitting and unforgettable, The Girl Who Wouldn't Die is a story about survival, the necessity of resistance, and the hope that can be found when the world is at its darkest.