Now
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- £7.99
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Publisher Description
Shortlisted - Guardian Children's Fiction Prize 2010
Shortlisted - Prime Minister's Literary Award, Children's Fiction, 2011
Winner - Speech Pathology Australia Award, Best Book for Language, 2011
Once I didn't know about my grandfather Felix's scary childhood.
Then I found out what the Nazis did to his best friend Zelda.
Now I understand why Felix does the things he does.
At least he's got me.
My name is Zelda too.
This is our story.
‘Haunting... dangerous and desperate, but also full of courage and hope.’ The Guardian
Felix is a grandfather. He has achieved much in his life and is widely admired. He has mostly buried the painful memories of his childhood, but they resurface when his granddaughter Zelda comes to stay with him.
Together they face a cataclysmic event armed only with their with gusto and love – an event that helps them achieve salvation from the past, but also brings the possibility of destruction.
Told with the perfect blend of humour and empathy, this book offers a unique perspective on the aftermath of the Holocaust and the long-lasting impact of trauma.
‘Morris Gleitzman has discovered the difficult trick of changing reality so that poignancy and laughter are never far apart.’
The Australian
‘Painfully truthful.’
The Sunday Times
‘Funny and shocking at the same time.’
Jewish Chronicle
Other books in the series:
Once
Then
Now
After
Soon
Maybe
Always
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Following Once and Then, this finale to Gleitzman's trilogy brings the stories of Felix and Zelda, orphaned children in Nazi-occupied Poland, to a conclusion both frightening and tender. Though this story can be read on its own, similarities in narrative voice connect the tales (as in the earlier volumes, the titular word begins each chapter). Readers of the previous books will quickly recognize a new setting 21st-century Australia and narrator: Felix's 10-year-old granddaughter, named Zelda after his brave, murdered friend. Gleitzman subtly explores Felix's terrible survivor's guilt and its effect on following generations, against the backdrop of Australia's heat wave and devastating 2009 bushfires. Felix's impassioned confrontation with local bullies ("People die because of stupid, vicious talk like that") gives Zelda a rare glimpse into the past of a grandfather she admires, while emphasizing how undeserving she feels of her name, believing she lacks her namesake's bravery. Felix's altruism in the face of calamity frees Zelda to embrace the present, while her courage helps him save a life and put to rest his oldest love. A poignant close to an affecting and heartrending history. Ages 10 up.
