What an absolutely fabulous book! I have never read anything by this author but will be looking for more by her for sure.

This was a very unique and interesting aspect of WWII. Very well written and enjoyable historical fiction. This is the second book which I have read by this author and look forward to reading more by her. A young woman who grows up in the forest and learns how to live off the land. She uses her knowledge and experience to help Jews. I would highly recommend this book to fans of historical fiction.

This is the third book about WWII written by Kristin Harmel, while each tells a story of the horrors faced by the Jewish people, each also is a triumph of perseverance and survival. This chronicles those that sought refuge in the forest, led by a young woman who was stolen from her family at the age of 2 and raised by an elderly woman in the forest and has become one with the forest. She teaches them the tools necessary to survive and finds love and betrayal along the way. Truly an amazing story.

#Review ⭐️✨💫 ⁣
THE FOREST OF VANISHING STARS by Kristin Harmel ⁣
⁣
Description: “…an evocative coming-of-age World War II story about a young woman who uses her knowledge of the wilderness to help Jewish refugees escape the Nazis—until a secret from her past threatens everything.”⁣
⁣
This one is hard for me to give a star rating to. The first 55% was sloooow and hard for me to get into, containing a lot of detail about surviving in the forest. After it picked up, I liked it a lot. The gem of this one, for me, was the character development. “In moments like this, it doesn’t matter what you were born to be. It matters what you choose to become.” ⬆️ That quote from a later chapter perfectly describes our main character Yona’s journey as she unlearns the ways of her birth parents and her adoptive mother. ⁣
⁣
There’s also some really great insight into Judaism. I loved how this was a WW2 story with a Jewish cast of characters that actually had the characters practicing their religion; I feel like I haven’t seen that much. ⁣
⁣
Overall, this was a solid historical fiction from one of my favorite authors in the genre. Highly recommend if you like good, strong characters with great development and a unique WW2 perspective.

On Yona's second birthday she was "saved" by an elderly lady who came to Berlin to take her from her not so good parents. Over the next twenty years she is raised in a forest in Poland where she learns how to survive in the forest and avoid people. In the midst of WWII Yona finds herself alone after the woman's death and is not sure what to do next. Then one day she finds a little girl lost in the forest. This is just the beginning of people coming into her forest to escape the horrors of WWII. What will Yona do? Does she help these new people or let them try and survive on their own.
This is a story of self discovery and the connections we can make in uncertain times. While the world is filled with the horrors of the Nazis the people in the forest find out the true meaning of family and that it is not just about blood but more about those who help us without a reason to do so. Kristin Harmel writes these strong female leads who just make us want to follow their story and see what happens next. I highly recommend this novel for fans of women's lit or historical fiction.

A powerful well written historical story that encompasses the horrors faced by Jews during the war. Yona was a strong character that followed her heart along with the teachings by the woman who raised her. The setting and writing style totally immerses you in the forest. An good book club title and would recommend this for those interested in a new take on this time period. Be sure and read the author’s notes at the end.

This is a great historical fiction if you’re looking for something TOTALLY different than any other WW read. Harmel delivers another unique WW2 story, with a strong heroine and an undiscovered setting. Great descriptions of both nature & human emotion to help immerse the reader in the story.

Kristin Harmel is a favorite author of mine I appreciate the depth of her research and her choice of unique topics. Based on Truth during WWII, This book strongly fulfills these requirements. Image a baby being stolen from a family in Berlin and raised in a forest by an old crone who believes this is her destiny. Fortunately, Our heroine uses her incredible survival skill to help run-a-way Jews escape certain death by the Nazi’s. She teaches them how to survive through all four seasons against terrible odds. She also struggles to understand her true identity which results in answers she may have best not know. Lots of tension and surprises! My only difficulty was the length where details were frequently repeated. Sharper editing would have greatly helped this story. I thank NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book given for an honest review.

Gorgeous cover, beautiful title, incredible story! I absolutely loved this engaging coming-of-age World War ll novel.

Kristin Harmel brings to life a colorful cast of characters that are hiding deep in the forests of Poland from the Nazi’s. Survival, female strength and human connection are amazingly portrayed, as are heart-wrenching moments and glimpses of hope as seen through the eyes of it’s characters.

The story follows Yona, born in Berlin to Germans, who was stolen as a baby and raised in the forest by her captor. The story is written with a unique twist which sets it apart from other historical fiction novels. Cheers to Kristin Harmel for writing, yet another, unputdownable and gripping read that I highly recommend.

I read a lot of historical fiction and found the premise of this one was good and a little different from the usual ww2 fiction. I found the writing to be a little simple.. I did like the character development of the main characters but the rest were pretty flat. There were several parts where you are just left wondering what happened.
I was very disappointed in the ending, even with an epilogue, I felt she should have given the reader more of what happened in the forest than just skipping ahead to an epilogue years in the future.

This is another great read by Kristin Harmel. I enjoyed all of the descriptive language and the story was beautifully told. I love the tenaciousness and bravery shown by the main character. I also appreciated the author's note at the end and learning more about the real-life events that helped form this story.

This book was everything and than I expected! Heartbreaking and Beautiful my heart was pounding as I was on the edge of my seat. As a lover of historical reads this was perfection in every way. I loved it so much it leftie with a book hangover after that I even bought the audio book! A must read!

I really enjoy historical fiction and I have read a LOT of WWII books. So many that I have to take a break sometimes, I'm so glad I decided it was time to read this book. Because most of the book takes place in the forests of Poland it is unlike any other WWII book I have read. Are there bad Germans and Jewish people in ghettos? Yes, but that is not the main focus of the book. The majority takes place in the forest and deals with how this one young woman who was kidnaped at the age of two and raised in the forest is able to help Jewish people who are running from the Nazis.

Young Yona also has to deal with who she is and who she was born to be. She is not the person she would have been if she hadn't been kidnapped and when she comes face to face with her past she has a hard time with it.

A very character driven novel which I truly appreciate. Kudos to Kristin Harmel for writing an outstanding book and highlighting a different view of WWII.

I tried to read this book a few times but just found I wasn’t able to get into it. I really wanted to read it, but it’s not for me. I know there’s a bunch of great reviews out there, so I do recommend checking those out!

Yonna was stolen as an infant and was taught to survive using her wits and by foraging in the woods for food. As an adult she is able to use her skills to help others survive in the forest during the Holocaust.

1n 1922, an elderly woman kidnaps a two year German old child from her bed and takes her into the forest. Now, in 1941, Yona knows the forests of Poland better than she knows herself. When she, now alone, encounters Jews fleeing from nearby ghettos, she uses her knowledge of the forest to help them all survive.

This book is lyrical and at times feels a bit magical, and is beautifully written. Harmel's authors note illustrates just how carefully this book was researched. At the center of The Forest of Vanishing Stars is relationships: Yona's relationship with the forest, with the woman who raised her, the people she meets there, and with the famly she lost. I had difficulty putting this one down, and read it quickly, finding there was enough suspense to keep me invested.

There is frequent discussion of God and faith in this book (understandably), which is usually a deterrent for me, but I found the way the discussion was framed to be more spiritual than religious.

I don't often read historical fiction set in WWII anymore, but found the narrative here to be unique, engaging, and hopeful. Atmospherically, this one reminds me a little bit of The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey, which is one of my favorites.

Thanks to Galley Books and Netgalley for an advance copy of this book for review. All opinions are my own.

4.5 Stars rounded to 5.

"...home is not a place, but the people you choose to love."

"I'm broken, too. But sometimes it's the jagged edges that allow us to fit together. Sometimes it's the breaks that make us strong."

A little girl stolen from her bed in the night. A mysterious old woman who sees the future, and knows that the child she takes is vital to the future survival of a people. The advent of war and the utmost cruelties against millions of innocent people. Filled with beautiful, sometimes dreamy scenes, slightly leaning toward the mystical at times, The Forest of Vanishing Stars is based on real stories of Polish Jews and others who fled to the forest when the Nazis came, and somehow survived, living off the land and supporting each other through terrible hardship, hunger, and tragedy. This was quite an emotional read, and I loved it.

We all have read many account of the event of WWII. This story is markedly different. Based on a true story about Polish/Jewish resisters, it is more of a character development tale. The people in the story become
true heros as they exist in the forests of Poland while evading their German enemies. Filled with interesting
facts about surviving in the wild, this book also has a strong philosophical/religion tone. Very different and
engaging book.

Despite having read over 50 novels about the atrocities against the Jewish people during the programs ,Harmel had a unique perspective on this history as she gathered specific information about how the land provided food and shelter for individuals. For those who are not acquainted with the horrors, this book will be an eye opening experience. Yona, the main character, is a tender savior of a group of Jews living in the forest fleeing for their lives from the Nazis .She had been kidnapped from her German family at age two. by a woman who was convinced that Yona's life was in danger. This caustic woman, Jerusza, raised her in the forest teaching her survivor skills, from creating temporary shelters, trapping small animals and other creatures for food along with pinpointing foods and berries to live off the land. Before she met the escapees she had never been exposed to another human. Abundant adventures arise as she tries to help them endure their suffering and survival. The power and questioning of faith arise at this point of the novel along with love affairs. I must admit I found the latter to be unnecessary to the main themes of the novel and turned part of the strength of the novel into a soapy love story. Some ways that she helped them escape seemed improbable to me as there was no way in her repertoire that she could have conjured those inventive skills. Despite these misgivings, I think this novel will sell well and would be a good topic for book clubs.

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the opportunity to read such an important book! From the author of The Book of Lost Names comes another; The Forest of Vanishing Stars, a well researched and beautifully told novel, from a completely new perspective. Sooooo many WWII era books out there, I've read and enjoyed dozens, but, never from this perspective.
A brief synopsis: At the wee age of two, Yona is kidnapped from her wealthy German parents home by an eccentric Jerusza and taken to live in the forests of Poland. She is kept hidden in the forest, learning survival skills and constantly moving to avoid any contact with other people. While she does not recall being stolen from her home, she knows this life in the wilderness is not where she started and she longs to understand who she really is.
After Jerusza's death, Yona finds a Jewish family fleeing the Nazis and learns of the terrible tragedies that are taking place in the villages. Using her wilderness survival skills, she begins to help more families who are fleeing, teaching them how to forage, how to stay hidden, and how to survive the long winters. But in return, she learns what family means and how to open her heart to others. In her efforts to help those in danger, Yona also learns the truth about her past, forcing her to make difficult decisions.