Once by Morris Gleitzman

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Recommended by Sarah Pauline (@sarahinrainbows)

Form and genre: prose, historic

Length: 160 pages. A very quick, accessible read.

Summary: A child’s-eye view of the events of WW2 in occupied Poland.

Age recommendation and challenging content: Depictions of the Holocaust and antisemitism. This text has a reading age of 9+ years, so is sometimes read in primary schools. It can be an excellent choice for students who need more accessible texts.

Notable reasons for recommending this book: It’s short and accesible, but has lots of language and detail to dig down into.

Other helpful information: In my opinion, it is more varied and interesting than The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. It also ties in beautifully with Life is Beautiful (1967) if you want to incorporate some aspects of film studies.