How many lightbulbs does it take to blow up a tank?
Book review of Resistance by Jennifer Nielson
How many lightbulbs does it take to blow up a tank?
When I picked up Resistance by Jennifer A. Nielsen at a garage sale, I almost set it down. Another cliched WWII book? Another too-macho female protagonist? The only reason I bought it was because I was curious how the author of the side-splitting Ascendance series would handle the grim Second World War.
Protagonist Chaya Lindner goes by “Helena” to hide her Jewish heritage and sneak in and out of the Polish ghettos. After the Nazis destroy her family, she vows to fight back and joins an emerging resistance cell, where they cause chaos with sticks, stones, and lightbulbs. In a place and time where existing is a crime, every action that Chaya undertakes is full of difficulty, but her greatest problem might be Esther, the youngest, weakest member of her cell whose only skilles seem to be knitting…and messiing up the cell’s plans.
While the book’s plot is excellent and writing masterful, what I love most about this book is how well it portrays its wide variety of characters. Both the actions and the motives of the Jews, Poles, Germans, and Nazis are examined in a way that makes them seem far less foreign and more understandable. Why would an entire country turn on a group of its own citizens? Why did some Jews fight back and some submit meekly? Why did some Poles hate Jews and some Poles hide them? How did Jews preserve their religion when it could get them killed?
Resistance is a gripping book that kept me up way past my bedtime as I both cheered and cried with the characters. It delves into deep questions of nationality, loyalty, religion, family, freedom, and what it means to be human when the whole world tells you that you’re not.
I would recommend this book for anyone who is tired of too much fluff in YA books and is looking for both plot and substance. This book delves into very deep and important themes in an age appropriate and accessible way.
It’s a wonderful addition to a homeschool curriculum for middleschoolers and highschoolers. Or read it for your personal enrichment.
I would love to hear what you think of the book! Please share in the comments below!