I’ve said before that I have a rule about reading books about dogs, and for the most part I stick to it – they just tear me up and it’s not worth the emotional upheaval to take a chance. But every once in awhile I break my rule and, wouldn’t you know it, I am rewarded with a good story, characters I care about, and a dog (or two) that I wish I could bring home and call my own.
When Randi Barrow‘s prequel to Saving Zasha, Finding Zasha, came across my desk, I knew it would be one that’d be a rule breaker. Far more than just a dog story, Finding Zasha is good historical fiction, an empowering coming-of-age story, and a glimpse into a part of WWII that isn’t explored enough – the Russian front. Centered around 12 year old Ivan and starting in the Autumn of 1941 just as the brutal siege of Leningrad begins, Finding Zasha deftly mixes all these elements and more into a story you just can’t put down, and for me at least, one that said “rules are made to be broken.”
As the Autumn of 1941 sets in, Ivan believes that the Russians are going to be able to keep the Nazi forces at bay just as easily as he and his friends Alik and Misha beat back Hitler in their school yard games. But they, and the city of Leningrad, are woefully unprepared for the non-stop attacks the German Army unleashes and too soon there is little left in the way of food, fuel, or hope for the residents of Ivan’s beloved home town. Desperate to survive, Ivan is sent across a frozen lake to find refuge in the countryside, but his harrowing escape soon seems to have been for nothing: the Nazis are marching across the entire countryside and the small village sheltering Ivan is overrun by enemy soldiers who seem bent on cruelty and ruthless domination.
Ivan’s talent for playing the concertina draws the unwelcome attention of the Nazi commander, Major Axel Recht, who takes Ivan as though he were simply one of the spoils of war. It’s here that Ivan meets the love of his life, Recht’s two good natured, loving, and innocent German Shepard puppies, Zasha and Thor. Seeing them being harshly trained to become dogs of war, Ivan sets his mind to both escape Recht’s merciless clutches and take the dogs with him. What Ivan doesn’t anticipate, however, is the depth of Recht’s cruelty and the longevity of his anger over losing his dogs.
- Posted by Cori