Shortlisted for The Branford Boase Award 2024 | Children's & YA Winner Jhalak Prize 2024 : | A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month August 2023

Richly imagined and vividly drawn, Safiyyah’s War is brilliantly told by a young girl whose life is changed when she gets caught up in the French Resistance in Paris in World War Two.

Growing up in the mosque, Safiyyah is an independent, adventurous and bookish child who spends a lot of her time in the library where her particular interest in maps is encouraged by the librarians.

When news of the war comes to Paris, Safiyyah’s life begins to change. She is sad when her best friend is taken away to live in the country by her parents and disappointed when the library no longer provides the welcome and support that it did.

Worse follows when she sees terrible scenes of unhappiness and cruelty on the streets of Paris as Nazi soldiers attack her Jewish neighbours. But things really change when her father begins to keep secrets from her and to behave in very unexpected ways. What is her father hiding?

When Safiyyah discovers his bravery and compassion as he and colleagues in the French Resistance work to save the lives of as many Jews as they can, she knows that she must do all she can to help, too. With a strong adventure to propel it this is a wonderful story of compassion and courage that illuminates how children’s lives can be changed by the big events of history.