New Releases by Johanna Reiss

Beyond Hiding: My Sisters and I is a poignant memoir by Newbery Honor Book-winner, Johanna Reiss, chronicling her experiences surviving the Holocaust. The book begins with Reiss' childhood in Holland shattered by the Nazi invasion in 1940. Forced into hiding with her sister, Sini, in the small hamlet of Usselo, they are sheltered by a farmer and his family--strangers who risked everything to save these two girls they had never met before. Reiss vividly captures the terrifying fear of discovery, the sisters' emotional struggles, and the impact of Nazi persecution on them. Reiss also details her family in turmoil post-liberation after 1945, highlighting the challenges of rebuilding their lives with whatever they had left. Reiss and her sisters were lucky to survive the war, but their psychological wounds would continue to haunt them. Perhaps some wounds are too deep to heal? Can Reiss find her own peace--and peace with her sisters--before it's too late?

For years, Johanna Reiss’ American husband, Jim, encouraged her to return to Holland to chronicle the two years, seven months, and one day she had spent hiding from the Nazis in rural Usselo, Holland. In 1969, she finally made the trip. Accompanied by Jim and their two young children, Reiss intended to spend seven weeks researching the book that would eventually become The Upstairs Room, her Newbery Honor–winning account of her time hiding in the attic of a farmhouse in which for a time a contingent of Nazi soldiers was billeted. But unknown to the millions of people who went on to read her beloved classic, behind the dark and painful story of the book was a still darker tale: Reiss’ husband returned to America early and committed suicide at age thirty-seven, leaving no note. For Reiss, an ongoing reckoning with universal tragedy becomes particular: she is forced to reckon, too, with Jim’s death—and explain it to her children. Subtle and disturbing, the book is a powerful consideration of memory, violence, and loss, told in a stunning and sparse narrative style.

Eine Kindheit im besetzten Holland Herbst 1941: Als die Deutschen die Niederlande besetzen, geraten die neunjährige Annie und ihre Schwester in große Gefahr – weil sie Juden sind. Hilfreiche Bauern verstecken die beiden Schwestern in einer kleinen Kammer auf dem Dachboden. Fast drei Jahre leben sie dort in drangvoller Enge und sehnen sich nach frischer Luft und Bewegung, nach einem normalen Kinderleben und fürchten sich vor dem Entdecktwerden bei den häufigen Hausdurchsuchungen. Mit einem aktuellen Interview mit der Autorin und weiterem Zusatzmaterial.

This Newbery Honor-winning book shows us that in the steady courage of a young girl lies a profound strength that can transcend the horrors of war. This is the true story of a girl's extraordinary survival during the German occupation of Holland of World War II. Annie was only ten years old, but because she was Jewish, she was forced to leave her family, her home, and everything she knew. Annie was taken in, far from home, by complete strangers who risked everything to help her. They showed Annie where she had to stay - the cramped upstairs room of their farmhouse. She would remain there while Nazis, who were ever vigilant, patrolled the streets outside. If Annie made even a sound from upstairs, or if a nosy neighbor caught sight of her in the window, it would surely mean a death sentence for her and the family that took her in. Elie Wiesel writes, “This admirable account is as important in every aspect as the one bequeathed to us by Anne Frank." A Newbery Medal Honor Book, ALA Notable Book, and winner of the Jewish Book Council Children’s Book Award. Be sure to read the moving sequel "The Journey Back" by Johanna Reiss.

The moving sequel to the Newbery Honor book, The Upstairs Room. After years of hiding from the Nazis during World War II, Annie is told the war is over and she must return home. Despite all odds she has survived the war, but can she save her family from being ripped apart when she returns back to her war-ravaged town. In this fascinating autobiographical account, Johanna Reiss shows us that sometimes real courage isn't displayed in battle, it's displayed by a thirteen-year old learning to survive in the aftermath of war.

Separated from their parents, Annie and her sister are taken in by a Dutch farmer and hidden in an upstairs room of a farmhouse during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands.

Ervaringen van een dertienjarig Joods meisje tijdens het eerste jaar na de Tweede Wereldoorlog toen zij na haar onderduikperiode in het herenigd gezin en in het zich van de onderdrukking herstellend Nederland haar weg moest vinden.