Waiting on Wednesday: The Extra

Posted September 18, 2013 by shooting in Uncategorized / 20 Comments

 
Waiting on Wednesday is brought to you by Breaking the Spine

The Extra by Kathryn Lasky

Due Out – October 8, 2013 (so not too long!)

Official Summary: One ordinary afternoon, fifeen-year-old Lilo and her family are suddenly picked up by Hitler’s police and imprisoned as part of the “Gypsy plague.” Just when it seems certain that they will be headed to a labor camp, Lilo is chosen by filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl to work as a film extra. Life on the film set is a bizarre alternate reality. The surroundings are glamorous, but Lilo and the other extras are barely fed, closely guarded, and kept in a locked barn when not on the movie set. And the beautiful, charming Riefenstahl is always present, answering the slightest provocation with malice, flaunting the power to assign prisoners to life or death. Lilo takes matters into her own hands, effecting an escape and running for her life. In this chilling but ultimately uplifting novel, Kathryn Lasky imagines the lives of the Gypsies who worked as extras for the real Nazi filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, giving readers a story of survival unlike any other.

Why I’m Waiting: I just recently came across this one and I immediately knew I had to read it! I’m fascinated by stories that deal with WWII and Hitler. I have been ever since I was younger and read books like Number the Stars, leading all the way to now when I adored Code Name Verity. The Extra sounds like another great book that has a feisty female at the center, ready to do what she can to survive. I also love that it focuses on a topic within the Holocaust that I haven’t seen elsewhere.

20 responses to “Waiting on Wednesday: The Extra

  1. Totally interesting find. Although, I'd be frightened to read this because anything with the Nazi's gives me nightmares. Unfathomable what was done. But this does sound like a spunky heroine. 🙂

  2. Oh wow this sounds really good! I'm the same with WWII and Hitler books It's really kind of fascinating to know these stories really aren't far from fiction if they are at all which is sad, really. Great pick!

  3. Wow, this one sounds amazing and intense!! I also like to read about WWII, I'm still horrified by some of the things that happened in that time.

Leave a Reply

(Enter your URL then click here to include a link to one of your blog posts.)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.