The Journey Back

By Johanna Reiss

Book Overview

How does it feel to leave the people you've grown to love -- and go back to a family you no longer know? Holland,1945 -- World War II has finally ended. For thirteen-year-old Annie de Leeuw and her... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0064470423
• ISBN13: 9780064470421
• Release Date: January 1987
• Publisher: Trophy Pr
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.0" x 0.8" x 4.0"
• Age Range: 13 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 8 to 12

Customer Reviews

The Journey Back

In the 4th grade, i read the prequel to this book, THE UPSTAIRS ROOM. Now, 4 years later, i read THE JOURNEY BACK. The first couple chapters quickly refreshed my memory of what happened during WWII to Annie, and i feel they would have sufficed as an introduction had i not read THE UPSTAIRS ROOM. this book proves that although a treaty was signed, the war was no yet over for the people involved.

"The Journey Back" By Johanna Reiss

After reading "The Journey Back" I am more aware of the hardships, dangers, and deprivations Jews and others went through after World War II. The story takes place in Holland, and its about what happens to the members of a Jewish family after the war ends, and they return home. The main character in the sotry is a thirteen-year-old girl named Annie de Leeuw. She and jer sister Sini might have been killed if it weren't for the Oostervelds, the courageous family who hid them for three years. The other main characters are Annie's father and her oldest sister Rachel. When Annie returns home she finds that her family no longer knows one another. Her mother is dead; her father is distracted. Her sister Sini tries to make up for lost time by going dancing every night, and Rachel has changed her religion to Christianity. Another important character in the book is Magda, Annie's stepmother. No matter how hard she tries, Annie cannot seem to please her. To Magda, Annie is the most imperfect girl in the entire universe. She criticizes Annie's clothes, hair, manners, and about everything else. For this reason I think Annie's conflict is man vs. himself since she has to built a new life for herself. I like the book in general, though the end was a dissappointment since it didn't give details about what would happen to Annie and her family. I wish the author would explain things better, and not just leave some conflicts unresolved, like in the case of the mean stepmother. My predicitions for the future of Annie's family are that the stepmother will always be mean, and Annie will have to get used to her new life. I give the book four stars. Like I already said the end needs some work. I still think it's a very informative book, and it helped me learn more about Worl War II.

An Interesting Story after WW2

The War is over and Annie and her family are safe now. Througout the war they hid in different farmhouses, trying to escape going to the camps. But now Annie has to leave the people she lived with for so long, the Ooostervelds, whom she loves, and go live back in the city. When she gets there she has to see a special doctor for her legs, since she walks crooked, for being cooped up for so long. She goes to a new school, where she is very shy and has a hard time making friends. Her Mother is dead, and her Father remarries a lady that already has a daughter and Annie just can't get along with her. I thought it was very nicely written, and had some very interesting facts in it.

Finally a book about after WWII

The Journey Back is an interesting story about how a Jewish girl after hiding for 3 years reunites with her family. Reiss's descriptions of the poverty that existed after the war are astounding in their acuracy. This book is amazing and I suggest you read it