Rose Blanche (Creative Editions) [Hardcover]

Roberto Gallaz (Author), Roberto Innocenti (Illustrator)

Book Description

Grade Level: 2 and up | Series: Creative Editions

Renowned Italian artist Roberto Innocenti, a child himself during World War II, brings a child's war story to life in this honestly wrought book. This unflinching tale of ethics and compassion is unforgettable in its illustrations and observation.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Singling out the "astounding" paintings, PW called this WWII tale of a German girl who discovers the horrors of a concentration camp "a stunning book and a forceful argument for peace." All ages.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 5 Up During World War II, a young German schoolgirl, Rose Blanche, follows the soldiers when they arrest a boy and discovers a concentration camp in the woods. Thereafter , she takes food to the prisoners until the town is liberated. Ironically, when she travels to the camp on that day she is shot by the soldiers. The oppression of Fascism is shown through the powerful and realistic paintings. In Innocenti's large, meticulously detailed paintings, Rose Blanche is the only brightly colored individual, and her small figure is set against the drab colors of overwhelming buildings and masses of soldiers and townspeople. No skyline is shown until a radiant spring bursts forth at the site of her death after the liberation. Although the story is simply told, it will require interpretation as details such as the concentration camp are not named nor explained, and the death of Rose Blanche is implied but not stated. This is a difficult book to classify, as the text is easy enough for a young child to read alone, and it has the appearance of a picture bookbut the content of the text and illustrations is full of emotional impact and subtlety. Takashima's A Child in Prison Camp (Tundra, 1971) and Maruki's Hiroshima No Pika (Lothrop, 1982) present the horrors of war, but from the perspective of a child who survives, whereas in Gallaz' book, the child does not survive and is not the recounter of the events. The Children We Remember (Kar-Ben Copies, 1983) by Abells is an easier book for children to understand. Rose Blanche tells of an individual's courage in the face of injustice, but this theme is more fully developed in Orlev's novel The Island on Bird Street (Houghton, 1984). Lorraine Douglas, Winnipeg Public Library, Manitoba, Canada
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Creative Editions (August 31, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1568461895
• ISBN-13: 978-1568461892
• Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 8.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #630,168 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rose Blanche, you are not alone, June 29, 2004

By 

E. R. Bird "Ramseelbird" (Manhattan, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Rose Blanche (Creative Editions) (Hardcover)

Congratulations! You have successfully located the best translation of the book "Rose Blanche" available on the market today. While the British and German translations may change significant portions of this tale around and about, the American version (all thanks to hard work of excellent translators Martha Coventry and Richard Graglia) is true to authors Gallaz and Innocenti's original plot and vision. So well done you! Give yourself a pat on the back and a hanky. You'll need it after you finish reading the book.

It's Germany during World War II. As we watch, our little heroine, Rose Blanche, describes the early days of the war. The soldiers are being packed up and shipped away and everyone is cheering them on. Swastikas are plentiful. One day, Rose sees a small boy escape from a van in the middle of the street. The boy is quickly caught and placed within the cramped van once again. Curious, Rose Blanche follows the van to the edge of town and into the forest. There she comes face to face with the children of a concentration camp. After offering them some of her food, the first person narrative abruptly begins to be told in the third person instead. We are told that Rose Blanche continued to bring food to the hungry children. Finally, the citizens of the town flee, wounded soldiers amongst them. Rather than escaping, Rose Blanche makes one last trip to the camp, only to find it empty. A single shot rings out and we see the Communist soldiers filling the now abandoned town. The book ends with, "Rose Blanche's mother waited a long time for her little girl". Flowers bloom, but the single purple bloom the girl placed on the barbed wire has wilted.

Tragedy in the key of E. The text is rather well written, giving no specific person or persons blame, but rather suggesting a collective guilt. Admittedly, I was a little taken aback by the sudden switch in narrative. One minute you know exactly what Rose Blanche is thinking and the next you can only interpret her emotions through descriptions and visual images. A review of this book in the March 2004 issue of "Children's Literature in Education" suggested that this is done so that the reader is given a bit of distance when the girl is shot. Admittedly, I don't expect my heroines to die in the picture books I read but I think we can chalk that up to naivete on my part more than anything else. This is, after all, an incredibly realistic work of fiction. The character of Rose Blanche even attains a kind of religious piousness at the end of the tale. In her final picture, she stands in the position of a saint. Her eyes are downcast, one hand lightly touching her heart, and the other placing a small purple flower on the broken fence.

Which brings us to the illustrations. Innocenti's pictures deftly tell a story within the actual text. In the first few pictures, Rose appears in happy crowd scenes. Then, as she discovers more about the world in which she lives, she is placed farther and farther away from other people. Rose is continually set apart from the others by her clothing as well. Where everyone else is resigned to grays and browns, Rose sports a pink dress with a bright red bow on her head. The illustrations are strikingly realistic, never becoming cartoony or visually inconsistent. Innocenti is deft at the millions of different ways in which light changes a scene. And to top it all off, he's done some of the most brilliant fog I've ever seen put down on paper.

This is a book about seeing what other people won't. The name "Rose Blanche" is explained by the author on the book flap. The Rose Blanche was a group of young Germans that protested the war. Like the heroine of this tale, they were unduly executed for the crime of thinking differently. The best use of this book is to utilize it in such a way that we can never forget how important it is to question authority at all times and to always fight for the truth. It seems that message is more important today than ever. A tip of the hat to the Rose Blanches of the world.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Virginia SOL on the Holocaust - Moving and sensitive, April 20, 2000

By 

Lynda R. Neal (Virginia, U.S.A.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rose Blanche (Creative Editions) (Library Binding)

I was introduced to the holocaust in the 1960s as a military brat on a field trip to Dachau, Germany. I was 12. It gave me nightmares for months. It still affects me at 45. The original site has been cleaned up for tourists now (thank goodness). This book was given to me by a professor in my Reading Class at JMU. It is a very delicate response to a very intensely controvertial issue in world history. It can be treated lightly or on a deeper level for Kindergarten through 3rd grade students. No matter what the emphasis, treat it with great respect..... it has a deep impact on some children. It is a beautifully illustrated version of a very ugly issue of this world's humanity. Read it, but use with great care in a classroom. It's very potent.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars an important book for all ages, October 26, 1999

By 

E. Hart "superstarr" (NYC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Rose Blanche (Creative Editions) (Paperback)

I was first introduced to this book in 6th grade, by my teacher. I am now a freshman in college, and i'm using it in a presentation about the Holocaust. The fact that this book has stayed in my memory for such a long time should give you an idea about the impact it has on readers. From the perspective of a student, I highly recommend this book to teachers everywhere. Its a book you'll never forget.