Mirjam Pressler (1940–2019)

Halinka lives in a "home," an orphanage, of sorts, in post-WW2 Germany. Her mother was abusive, but she longs to live with her aunt, whom she describes as loving and wanting to take care of Halinka but can't until she finds a husband. Halinka hesitates to make friends in the home because she believes opening up to people will lead to pain, but she slowly learns that that's not always the case.

This is not exactly a happy story, but it does end on a hopeful upturn. It's well-written, despite Halinka being a little too observant and articulate for her age (a constant issue with middle grade books written in the first person), and the characters are very nicely drawn. I love that certain plot points are left unresolved when resolving them would have made the ending too pat and saccharine. As it stands, the story is perhaps a bit darker than it would have been, but much more realistic and satisfactory. Halinka is a complicated little girl, and I love her for it.… (mais)