Courage to Dream: Tales of Hope in the Holocaust

Written by Neal Shusterman and Illustrated by Andres Vera Martinez

Scholastic

Available October 31, 2023

Ages 12 and up

Prepare to be inspired by the acts of courage in Neal Shusterman’s gripping new graphic novel that contains five short stories inspired by true heroes from the Holocaust. The real-life examples of aid and resistance are briefly recounted between each tale. “He Opens a Window” features Frederick, the delivery boy turned rescuer, as he helps three orphaned sisters escape through the magical Window of Opportunity far away from the Nazis. Staggering tales of a golem of Auschwitz, resistance fighters protecting Jews in a forest hideout, and an adolescent brandishing the “staff of Moses” to assist Danish Jews move to safety in Sweden. Lastly, a young girl travels to an alternate time when the Holocaust never occurred and the descendants of those killed are still alive.

The themes of resistance, survival, and hope in times of crisis tightly connect these tales of magical realism. Shusterman’s objective in writing this anthology was to shine a light upon evil in the recent wave of anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial. He achieves this by eloquently intertwining Jewish and Eastern European folktales into the stories. The mystical objects and magical beings in these traditional tales are symbols, according to Schusterman, of “hope, survival, and collective grief” (p. 246) in the face of harsh realities. Andres Vera Martinez states in the end notes that the illustrations were created to engage a younger audience and influenced by Marvel comics he read as a child. Martinez perfectly channels both the superpowers and humanity of Marvel characters into the main characters of this graphic novel with every bash, crash, and smash. He creates an old world feel with his muted color palette and light brown pages in this advanced readers copy. An extensive bibliography and note on the Hebrew letters included throughout the book are thoughtful additions. Courage to Dream successfully weaves atrocious narratives with striking images of history and legend to warn us about what happens when authorities sanction violence and hate.