Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli | Teen Ink

Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli

September 30, 2015
By NikolIsk GOLD, Sarasota, Florida
NikolIsk GOLD, Sarasota, Florida
11 articles 69 photos 22 comments

Favorite Quote:
Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace. The soul that knows it not knows no release. From little things. Knows not the livid loneliness of fear, nor mountain heights where bitter joy can hear... the sound of wings. - Amelia Earhart


For such a short novel, Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli packs quite an emotional punch. Each time I read the small, worn, golden book, my response to it is as strong as the first time I read it.
Milkweed is the story of a young boy who is a food thief on the streets of Warsaw, Poland during the start of World War Two. He is soon taken in by a group of street boys and adopted as a younger brother by their leader, Uri. Along with a bath, haircut, and clothes, Uri gives him a name – Misha. Misha is a sweet, if sometimes annoyingly clueless character. He seems to face tragedy with an insulation of ignorance. And tragedy arrives with the Nazi invasion of Poland.
Food quickly becomes scarce – soon almost a mere dream to join the ranks of angels, mothers, and oranges. But Misha also makes his most poignant friendship with a sassy and stubborn little Jewish girl called Janina.
Milkweed has tenaciously kept a place on my ever – changing favorite books list, and I highly recommend it to any reader.


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