2006 Prize for children’s Hololcaust Literature, Yad Vashem, Israel UNICEF Paolo Ungari Award The Canadian Library Association’s Children’s Book of the Year The Rocky Mountain Book Award The National Jewish Book Award in the USA The Association of Jewish Libraries’ Sydney Taylor Award (Older Readers) The Ontario Library Association’s Silver Birch Award The Ontario Library Association’s Golden Oak Award The National Chapter of the IODE Violet Downey Book Award The Canadian Jewish Book Award 2003 Canadian Information Book Award The Torgi Literary Award from the Canadian National Assocation of the Blind The Atlantic Library Association’s Hackmatack Book Award Governor General’s Award Nominee Rights have been sold for Hana’s Suitcase in 40 countries around the world. The book has been adapted as a play by Emil Sher and two film adaptations are currently in production.
Hana's Suitcase
New edition with foreword by Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu: “How extraordinary that this humble suitcase has enabled children all over the world to learn through Hana’s story the terrible history of what happened and that it continues to urge them to heed the warnings of history.” In the spring of 2000, Fumiko Ishioka, the curator of a small Holocaust education centre for children in Tokyo, received a very special shipment for an exhibit she was planning. She had asked the curators at the Auschwitz museum if she could borrow some artifacts connected to the experience of children at the camp. Among the items she received was an empty suitcase. From the moment she saw it, Fumiko was captivated by the writing on the outside that identified its owner – Hana Brady, May 16, 1931, Waisenkind (the German word for orphan). Children visiting the centre were full of questions. Who was Hana Brady? Where did she come from? What was she like? How did Hana become an orphan? What happened to her? Fueled by their curiosity and her own need to know, Fumiko began a year of detective work, scouring the world for clues to the story of Hana Brady. Writer Karen Levine follows Fumiko in her search through history, from present-day Japan, Europe and North America back to 1938 Czechoslovakia and the young Hana Brady, a fun-loving child with a passion for ice skating. Together with Fumiko, we learn of Hana’s loving parents and older brother, George, and discover how the family’s happy life in a small town was turned upside down by the invasion of the Nazis. Based on an award-winning CBC documentary, Hana’s Suitcase takes the reader on an incredible journey full of mystery and memories, which come to life through the perspectives of Fumiko, Hana and later Hana’s brother, who now lives in Canada. Photographs and original wartime documents enhance this extraordinary story that bridges cultures, generations and time. Ideal for young readers aged 9 and up. As a special offer, the original radio documentary, featuring Hana’s brother George Brady and Fumiko Ishioka, is available as a package with the book! Hana’s Suitcase is part of the award-winning Holocaust Remembrance Series for Young Readers. For more information on Hana’s Suitcase, please visit www.hanassuitcase.ca. Also visit the the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre’s website to see their education program around Hana’s Suitcase at http://www.mhmc.ca/en.
About the Author
Karen Levine
Karen Levine is a prizewinning producer with CBC Radio. She worked for many years on CBC programs including As It Happens, The Sunday Edition and This Morning as producer of the “First Person Singular” series. Karen has won awards for her radio work, including two Peabody Awards(the Oscars of radio). Levine originally produced Hana’s Suitcase as a radio documentary and later made it into a book. Though she travels widely (most recently to Australia and Japan) to talk about the book, she makes her home in Toronto with her partner and her son.
Book Info
ISBN: 978-1-896764-55-9
112 Pages
Ages 9 and up
7.5" x 9"
Paperback with B&W photographs
$16.95 CAD
August 7, 2002
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