My Brigadista Year

Die inspirierende Biografie einer Frau, die ihr Leben dem Kinderbuch widmete Reich illustriertes Sachbuch mit spannenden Zeitzeugnissen Mit einem Nachwort von Dr. Christiane Raabe, Direktorin der Internationalen Jugendbibliothek Vertrieben von den Nazis, kehrte Jella Lepman an der Seite der US-Armee als Beraterin für Frauen- und Jugendfragen 1945 nach Deutschland zurück. Beim Wiederaufbau Deutschlands setzte sie ihre ganze Hoffnung in die Kinder, denen sie durch Bücher Weltoffenheit und Toleranz vermitteln wollte. Auf ihre Initiative gehen die Entstehung der Internationalen Jugendbibliothek in München, das International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) und der Hans-Christian-Andersen-Preis zurück. Jella Lepman hat dem Kinderbuch in Deutschland und international entscheidende Impulse gegeben.Katherine Paterson und Sally Deng erzählen das abenteuerliche Leben von Jella Lepman mit ermutigenden Texten und eindrücklichen Illustrationen, die junge Leserinnen und Leser in den Bann ziehen."Jella Lepman hatte das Vermögen, selbst in größter Dunkelheit Neues zu wagen, nicht zu verzagen, und auf Hoffnung zu bauen." - Dr. Christiane Raabe, Direktorin der Internationalen Jugendbibliothek

In 1945, when Jella was tasked with what seemed like an insurmountable challenge-to create a haven of imagination and joy for the children of a Germany scarred by war, she turned to a steadfast companion: books. As a Jewish woman who had fled from the Nazis, Jella was determined to restore a sense of childhood to the young people who had only known conflict and violence. 

In an engrossing historical novel, the Newbery Medal-winning author of Bridge to Terabithia follows a young Cuban teenager as she volunteers for Fidel Castro's national literacy campaign and travels into the impoverished countryside to teach others how to read. When thirteen-year-old Lora tells her parents that she wants to join Premier Castro's army of young literacy teachers, her mother screeches to high heaven, and her father roars like a lion. Lora has barely been outside of Havana -- why would she throw away her life in a remote shack with no electricity, sleeping on a hammock in somebody's kitchen? But Lora is stubborn: didn't her parents teach her to share what she has with someone in need? Surprisingly, Lora's abuela takes her side, even as she makes Lora promise to come home if things get too hard. But how will Lora know for sure when that time has come? Shining light on a little-known moment in history, Katherine Paterson traces a young teen's coming-of-age journey from a sheltered life to a singular mission: teaching fellow Cubans of all ages to read and write, while helping with the work of their daily lives and sharing the dangers posed by counterrevolutionaries hiding in the hills nearby. Inspired by true accounts, the novel includes an author's note and a timeline of Cuban history.