In 1936, during Hitler's reign, two Jewish sisters who live a wealthy life in Vienna have no choice but to be shipped off to Sweden for their own protection from the war and the German Nazis. Twelve-year-old Stephie and seven-year -old Nellie Steiner are then placed in the homes of two women who live on an island just off the shore of Sweden. Nellie is put into the care of a lady with other children her age and she begins to get attached to her foster home on the island. On the other hand Stephie despises her foster mother, that she has been placed with, who makes her clean and never offers to buy anything new for Stephie. In the mean time Stephie manages to get bullied at school for being a foreigner while her little sister
is loved by all her classmates. As the months pass and winter turns to summer, Stephie starts to wonder if she and her sister will ever go home or even worse if they will ever see their parents again.
I really enjoyed a faraway island by Annika Thor. It had a good story and the characters had very realistic personalties. The story was very sad in a way because of the events that happened throughout the book, her frustration with her foster mother and her little sister. Overall I really liked it, and I would recommend it to 12 and up.
Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: , New Mexico USA
