Three-time National Book Award finalist and Newbery Honor author Steve Sheinkin (Fallout; Bomb) consistently offers readers exacting nonfiction at a thriller pace. Rudolf (Rudi) Vrba's heroic Auschwitz escape story makes for a natural Sheinkin subject. Sheinkin's meticulous research, memorable subjects, and haunting atmosphere contribute to an exceptional, soul-stirring narrative.
Rudi, a fiercely determined teenager, manages to achieve the seemingly impossible: he escapes Auschwitz. His goal in fleeing the intricately constructed concentration camp, guarded by heavily armed Nazi soldiers and vicious tracking dogs, is not only freedom, but exposure. Rudi wants to reveal the truth about the genocide perpetuated against the Jewish people of Europe. And despite the danger to himself, Rudi knows "the only way to fight big lies... [is] with aggressive doses of the truth." He memorizes details about the camp, its occupants and overseers, and the hell taking place there. Then he carefully plans an escape, learning important lessons from those who tried and failed before him. His doggedness and bravery ultimately save lives.
While the book's title reflects Rudi's storyline, Sheinkin parallels the teen's life with the experience of Rudi's future wife, Gerta Sidonová, as she and her family attempt to hide from the Nazis in Hungary. Both storylines reveal the harrowing ordeals that Europe's Jewish population faced during the Nazi era. Sheinkin's account is transfixing and never compromises the horrifying facts of the Holocaust. Impossible Escape illuminates the life and trials of a young man with whom teen readers can identify, and illustrates the exceptional actions that made Rudi "one of the great heroes of the entire Second World War"--nonfiction at its best. --Jen Forbus, freelancer