The Premise
Whats your biggest fear? Is it spiders, heights, storms, what is it? In this book, Thorn Thread by Anne Isaacs, the main character, Eva, has a fear of being killed by the SS men and Hitler. In this historical fiction book, Eva has only one goal in mind, to keep her, her friends, and her sister alive. The conflict is the girls fighting illnesses, starvation, and the soldiers. Anytime they can get put into Auschwitz. The beginning of this story takes place in Bedzin in June, 1943, where Eva's house is. Later on, it shifts to a Nazi labor camp in Czechoslovakia. The main characters in this book are Eva, Rachel, Dora, and Rosie. Eva is a smart, nifty, and savvy girl. She has a quick mind but sometimes relies to much on her surroundings. She cares for her sister and is one of the camp directors favorites. Rachel is Eva's fragile, older sister who is constantly ill. She is allergic to many things and is extremely thin due to the lack of food at the camp. Dora and Rosie are strikingly beautiful cousins. They are shorter than Eva with dark complexions and green eyes fringed with long lashes. They are very similar that some people mistake them for twins. Although, they have an obvious difference in age. Rosie seems younger than fourteen and is a wonderful singer. Dora has braying hair and deep lines around her eyes which make her seem older than eighteen. In the beginning, we learn that Eva and Rachel are sisters who share a single dad. Their mom died from the influenza epidemic five years before and there is a sickness that runs through the family. The first thing that happens in the book is Rachel leaving the home to go wash her hair. The place they live in is in a Jewish getto and doesn't have all the necessities a normal home would. As Rachel is walking down the street, a Nazi soldier truck storms in and throws people into the truck, including Rachel. They took the people, including Rachel, to various Nazi camps. For weeks Eva had been worried until her papa arranged for Eva to be sent to Rachel's labor camp. As the story continues, Eva and her friends work hard and try to make the best of everything and make it to the end.
My Favorite Character
My favorite character is a twelve-year-old, Eva Buchbinder. One way I would describe her is compassionate because she always puts her friends and family first. If she noticed that her friends were hurt, hungry, or tired, she would sacrifice for them. For example, "A new bread ration had been distributed that morning; it was meant to last three more days. Since the rations had been cut back to a half-loaf, Eva had taken over the exacting task of dividing the bread into equal daily portions for herself and Rachel. Now she broke off part of her own loaf and added it to Rachel's share, ( Isaacs 119)." She also seems savvy because she is constantly thinking ahead. Finally, I would describe this character as multi-talented because she knows how to make hundreds of types of candy, how to use a loom/sewing machine, and knows how to use her time.
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| This is the cover of this book. As you can see, there is a picture of Eva on it. |
