I enjoy Kristen Harmel’s writing. Unfortunately, the whimsical style of this one from the beginning just made it very difficult for me to stick with it. The writing is good it just didn’t appeal to me due to the fantastical elements. Also, I’ve come to the realization that I need a break from WW II historical fiction. While this is a DNF for me, I’m sure others would absolutely love it.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Mondays are for unpopular opinions. I feel pretty certain I will be in the minority, but I just didn’t love this book.

The perspective of the war from those who survived in the forest is a unique and interesting take, and I appreciated that the author didn’t shy away from the atrocities of the Holocaust. That said, I’m sorry to say it fell flat for me. I never truly connected with the characters or plot, and I suppose it just wasn’t for me.

I will say, however, that Goodreads and Bookstagram are filled with rave reviews for this book, so I think you should definitely give it a try if you enjoy reading WWII fiction.

What a unique, interesting WW2 story! This is not your typical WW2 story but was so fascinating and interesting and a part of the war I knew nothing about. Survival, love, overcoming, heartbreak and war... this book has it all! Another home run by Harmel!

Hardship teaches a person life

To Survive is the ultimate goal of all humans. How we go about accomplishing that goal varies differently. What will we do to survive and can we face the sacrifices we sometimes must make to insure our survival?

We all make choices in life, who to love, who to trust, and how to live. This is a story of all these choices. The story is of a young woman stolen as a child and raised in the Forest by an elder Jewish woman. She has no contact with other people and learned to live off the land, hide from the soldiers and how to kill to save her life.

When the elder lady dies she meets up with a group of Jewish refugees hiding in the Forest from the Nazi’s. She shows them how to survive in the Forest and to hide from the enemy. They live deep in the Forest. They learn to trust each other and find love even in these trying times. That is, until one day her past comes back with a vengeance to threaten her survival and that of one she loves.

I am amazed that this is based on true events, and that many Polish Jewish did indeed survive in the Forest. It is horrible the tales they have of the loved ones they lost and how they keep their faith and help each other.

The book is rich in the history of these Forest survivors. I think you should read it, you will be surprised at their courage and fortitude. I would recommend this book.

Thanks to Kristin Harmel, Gallery Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read a copy of the book for an honest review.

This book will be published on July 6th and I highly recommend it as it is quite possibly the most unique WWII book I’ve ever read. I had no idea that thousands fled to, and fought to survive, in Poland’s forests during WWII.

In this story, Yona was taken from her home as a toddler and raised in the woods by Jeruzsa, with little to no other human contact for 20 years. It is in those very woods that she encounters groups of Jews fleeing ghettos during WWII. Throughly researched, The Forest of Vanishing Stars is a gripping story of survival against impossible odds, of finding oneself, creating your own family, and kindness. Always kindness.

Be sure to read the Author’s Note at the end as it details the true events that lead to the creation of the novel.

I adored Kristin Harmel’s The Book of Lost Names, which I also received as an ARC last year, but it’s possible that I loved this one even more. It’s just so unique, which I appreciate after reading so many WWII novels.

Thank you to NetGalley, Kristin Harmel, Gallery Books, and Simon & Schuster for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

The Forest of Vanishing Stars
By Kristin Harmel

This is yet another World War II story, but with a bit of a twist. The 2 year old daughter of Siegfried and Alwine Juttner is stolen from her home in Berlin by a woman named Jerusza. The child disappears completely to be raised in the forest away from people by Jerusza, who seems to have mystical powers. As the child she calls Yona grows older, she asks questions about her parents, but is only told that they are bad people.

As Yona grows up, World War II rages throughout Europe. The Nazis are methodically exterminating the Jews in the ghettos of Poland. When Jerusza dies of old age, Yona finds herself involved with different groups of Jewish refugees who have managed to escape the Nazi killers. She draws upon her knowledge of woodland survival to teach the refugees how to survive.

Finally, Yona meets her watershed moment in a Polish village when she comes face to face with her past. The resolution is somewhat predictable but still manages to keep the reader involved.

While I was a little put off by the author's use of mysticism to get things going in the direction she wanted, I really did enjoy the story and would recommend it to anyone looking for a different take on the tried and true World War II book.

By now, many people have heard stories of Jewish families escaping the Nazis by fleeing into the woods. But then what? People who are used to living in cities practicing a trade are suddenly living in the wilderness. They have families to feed and clothe in addition to remaining hidden from those soldiers who are sent to hunt them down and slaughter them. This is their story. With the addition of a little fantasy, Harmel delivers her meticulous research in a format unlike any other WWII story. There is a clash of lifestyles, faiths, and cultures in this quest for survival. Yona learns that life is more than just survival. The Jewish people learn all that they are capable of surviving. This book has tales of sacrifice, betrayal, love, and of course, survival. A wonderfully refreshing perspective of the plight of the Jewish people during WWII.

I received an advance copy of this title via NetGalley.

I was thrilled when NetGalley graciously granted me an advanced electronic copy of this novel by Kristen Harmel in exchange for an honest review. I fell in love with Harmel’s “The Book of Lost Names” and couldn’t wait to read her new novel. “When the Forest Meets the Stars'' begins like a haunting fairy tale: an old woman kidnaps a baby (Inge) from a German couple and renames her Yona which means dove and foretells that Yona will be a great help to many people. She raises her in the forest while teaching her all it’s secrets: how to scourge for edible plants, mushrooms and how to fish in the winters and how to fight in combat. Yona, who is a kind, innocent and soulful girl, stumbles across Jews living in the forest who are running from Germans. She vows to protect and help them survive in the forest. Is it a coincidence that Yona’s name translates to the word “dove” which symbolizes peace? I don’t think so since Yona takes her role seriously as a savior,: leading the group she protects from harm and starvation and teaching them her skills of survival. The novel is engrossing and despite it’s “Where the Crawdad’s Sing” feel propelled me into the world of Jews who are forced from the ghettos into the forest after the Nazis massacre village after village. Although the novel is heartbreaking it has to be told: it’s a story of survival, gut wrenching loss and the rebuilding of a community. During 75 percent of the book I was so engrossed in the fast pace story I couldn’t put it down. But the last 10 pages were awkward because of a cliche “Hollywood” climax that threw the novel off balance with an unnecessary confrontation that didn’t enhance the story. I was so disappointed in this scene because it detracts from the survival of the group . This last section was really 2 stars . But Harmel ‘s beautifully written “Author’s Notes” moved me more than the novel's ending itself as she discusses the history and research that went into this novel. I’m stunned to learn that 1200 people lived in the forest to evade the Germans and their community had hospitals, jails, banks etc. It’s heartbreaking that the Jewish suffered through this horrifying time and the novel touchingly captures the unjust,the sadness and the hope. A 3.5 stars upped to 4.

(3.5 stars, rounded up)

Trigger warnings: antisemitism, murder, war, kidnapping

Yona is stolen from her German parents as a baby and raised in a forest by a Jewish woman with precognition. Jerusza teaches Yona how to live off of the land and survive in a harsh world.

When Yona is older, Jerusza dies and leaves Yona alone in the forest. She happens upon a group of Jewish refugees fleeing German persecution and decides to help the men and women survive in the forest.

Yona enjoys the company of the Jewish community and begins to see them as a family of sorts. Tensions between the villagers create drama and teach Yona about human nature. As Yona witnesses firsthand the hate and devastating actions of the Nazis, she must also come to terms with her German heritage.

Living in the forest is migratory so that the inhabitants can avoid discovery, so there's no specific setting and the forest itself becomes a character of sorts. The book takes place in rural German-occupied Poland/Belarus. Harmel explains in the author's note at the end that the area was part of Poland during the war, but is a part of modern-day Belarus.

Recommended for readers of World War II fiction who are looking for a markedly different story.

‘The Forest of Vanishing Stars” by Kristin Harmel is a historical fiction about a young woman, stolen from her wealthy German parents at the age of two, raised in the wilderness of eastern Europe finds herself conflicted when her past comes for her and her future beckons. In 1941, she happens upon a group of Jews fleeing Nazi terror, this is when she learns what is happening in the outside world. She feels a calling to help and teaches the group how to survive in the wilderness.

Kristin Harmel’s writing was easy to read comprehend. The novel was categorically equal parts heartbreaking and inspiring as Holocaust novels tend to be. The protagonist, Yona, is taught by her kidnapper everything needed to survive on her own in the forest. But left out all emotional necessities young people crave as they age. Yona quickly learns what it's like to be a part of a group, and falls into a family role very easily. Yona's growth throughout this novel was a marvel of her strength and resilience.

Reading Kristin Harmel’s book reminded me of the reasons in which I love reading historical fiction novels set during World War II. There were moments in the book, specifically when the Jewish group questions God and tries to come to grips with reality, that I found myself in awe of Kristin’s writing. I especially like that Kristin added parts of the Jewish religious teachings and thought into this piece. I often find myself questioning my own beliefs in God, so I resonated with that aspect of the book.

I wish Harmel would have given the reader closure as far as why Jerusza kidnapped Yona. It seemed as if Jerusza was forever speaking in riddles and non-answers which was a frustration for me. But I also think she was meant to be characterized that way.

I thought it was a powerful 4-star read and I recommend this book for lovers of historical fiction set during World War II, someone who is interesting to learn more about the Holocaust and the terror the Jewish people faced during the course of the war.

A WWII historical fiction book told from the perspective of a girl living in the wilderness. I thought the story was really good. This was my first Kristin Harmel book and I will be going back to read her previous work since this one was so enjoyable.

Meet Yona. Yona is a young woman who grew up learning how to survive in the wilderness after she was kidnapped at a young age. Shortly after her kidnapper dies, she runs into a group of people who desperately need her help. Her honest heart and willingness to share her survival skills make her a priceless resource to this group of Jews fleeing the Nazis. But Yona has to learn the hard way what it means to be part of a community as she decides where she belongs.

Harmel's writing immediately captivated me and transported me into this unique WWII story. There are multiple parts to the story: Yona's kidnapping and upbringing, her initial encounter with the Jewish group she becomes part of, her escape to a German occupied village where she learns the truth about her past, and the ending where she gains confidence in who she is and where she belongs. I was emotionally with Yona every step of the way and having never read Harmel's books before wondered if she was going to break my heart.

Admittedly there were times where I wondered where the story was going or how Harmel would tie everything together. Luckily the strong writing and emotional ties to the characters kept me going as the earlier pieces of this book came back for a strong ending. I loved Yona's struggle with honesty, identity and truth and how her interactions with each of the characters and her empathy for their experiences allowed her to become an even more amazing woman.

This magnificent story of humanity, compassion, and survival is one that is relevant to the past and to our present. I will absolutely be recommending it to friends!

I really enjoyed The Forest of Vanishing Stars. There are a lot of Holocaust novels out now but Harmel's story is different because it is told from the point of view of the partisans who ran into the forrests to escape the Nazis. These groups of people formed their own "towns" and families because their own families were dead and their former homes and towns were lost to them. These people were desperate, heartsick and needed to find something to live for. Staying safe from the Nazis or taking revenge on them -- both tropes that Harmel expands on in her book -- gave these people something to live for and in turn, a way to stay sane.
Yona, the book's heroine is actually the child of a Nazi officer, although she doesn't learn that until she is almost an adult. Raised by an Jeruza, an old woman, who is part of a line that Yona continues, she is part clairvoyant, part misfit as well as an outdoorswoman. Yona shares her vast knowledge with the partisans she meets -- the first time she has been part of anything or known anyone other than her life with Jeruza,.Yona has to learn to lead, to trust, to love, and to learn that people and feelings are not always black and white.

I highly recommend this book -- the characters really spring to life from the page and much of the book is based on real events.

Yona was kidnapped out of her crib at a very young age and forced to live in the forest with a woman named Jerusza. Jerusza felt it her duty to take Yona from her German parents.

Yona knew nothing other than living off the land, surviving in the forest, and stealing things from stores and people in the villages.

When Jerusza died at 102 years of age, Yona was alone but able to survive because of her skills.

When Yona meets a group of Jewish folks who had escaped the ghetto, she felt it her duty to help them survive.

THE FOREST OF VANISHING STARS takes us with Yona through her years with Jerusza and her harrowing, frightening, and dangerous time with the group as we see them learn the ways of the forest, live with fear, hide from the Nazis, and learn to trust each other.

When she is betrayed by the group, she leaves them and has to again make decisions on her own.

Ms. Harmel again did meticulous research and portrayed the plight of the characters with such authenticity that you were right there with them suffering through all the horrible conditions they had to endure.

This book is a beautiful tribute to the human spirit, to perseverance, and to finding the qualities a person possesses for empathy, kindness, and making choices.

Another FIVE star but very heartbreaking gem from Kristin Harmel. 5/5

This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book grabbed me from go. After my last WWII historical fiction read, I felt I needed a break from the period. Then I saw I got approved for the ARC and had already heard great things about the book, so I jumped right back in to Europe during WWII.

Yona is kidnapped by a mysterious older woman, Jerusza, from her Berlin apartment at the age of two. She is taken to the forest where Jerusza teaches her how to survive. After Jerusza passes away, Yona finds herself learning about what is going on in the outside world from a Jewish family she attempts to help. You see, Yona is able to sense and feel things before they happen. When danger is imminent, she listens to the sounds of the forest to guide herself to safety. After tragedy strikes the family she tries to help, she is heartbroken.

Soon, she comes upon another group of Jewish refugees who have escaped from a ghetto. She teaches them what she learned herself about things to eat, how to fish, and how to survive the brutal winters of Eastern Europe. She knows it cannot be a permanent thing for her, even though she falls in love with one of the refugees.

Yona experiences heartbreak, rebirth, tragedy, renewal, and love as the story continues. Will she be able to help this group that depends on her for survival until the war’s end? Will she ever find out what happened to her parents after she was taken from them in the night? Will she suffer an earlier than expected death that Jerusza warned her of or live until her 100th year which was also foretold?

This is my first Kristin Harmel book to read, but her previous novel, The Book of Lost Names is on my list to read. This book, simply put, is amazing. If I could give it more than ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️, I would in a heartbeat. Please someone, make this one into a movie that actually sticks to the author’s intent in telling the story.

#netgalley #arc #theforestofvanishingstars

I have always found the Holocaust intriguing, as tragic and devastating and heart wrenching as it was. When I saw this book pop up and read the description, I was very excited and got my hands on it immediately!

In 1922, an old woman named Jerusza kidnaps young Igne from her home in Berlin, Germany. From that moment on, the young girl would be called Yona, meaning “dove” in Hebrew, to match the birthmark of a dove on her wrist. Jerusza teaches Yona how to live in the forest and survive on what mother earth provides. Shortly after Jerusza dies, Yona comes across a group of Jews who escaped their ghetto and were seeking refuge in the forest. Against her better judgement (and Jerusza’s judgement) Yona offers to teach them what she knows about surviving in the wilderness. As the group learns to fish and hunt, Yona learns just how beautiful- and brutal- it is when you open your heart.

I would say the first half of this book held my interest, and then it just got boring and repetitive. The second half seemed to consist of “God’s plan” and “praise God” and “God be with you” as every other sentence, and it just seemed like the author was trying to hit a minimum word count or something. I understand that the Holocaust was a mass extinction of Jews and all that jazz, but the constant reminder of it was just too much for me. Maybe that’s just my agnosticism getting in the way… Between the constant religion talk and at the drop of a hat Yona was either crying or vomiting over something she had heard, I began to skip paragraphs and halfheartedly skim sentences just to move on.

I don’t know... I’m probably part of the minority, and that’s fine. This book was okay, a solid 3 stars. I held high expectations for it because I saw it compared to Where the Crawdad Sing, and I suppose there were some similarities between the two books, but Crawdads had far better execution. I truly do feel like an asshole for giving a 3-star rating on the account of actual stories of survivors are woven in the storyline, but this book just wasn’t for me.

Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review! This book is set to be published on July 6th, 2021.

I am drawn to historical fiction, particularly as it relates to WWll era and I read as much of it as I can get my hands on. Harmel’s tale was unique and powerful, and interesting from page one. I loved Yona and her fearless survival instincts. Kidnapped at a young age and growing up in the seclusion of the forest, she learned to live off the land. During WWll many Jews hid in the forest to escape the Nazis and when Yona’s world intersects with theirs the story comes alive. That this fictional book was based on true events makes it all the more powerful. Very well done.

This is not your typical WWII historical fiction. From the very onset I experienced many emotions while reading this book. I found myself being angry with characters in the book while shedding tears for some and cheering on others. I was saddened when I turned the last page, which to me is indicative of a great read. I have read and enjoyed other books by this author and this one did not disappoint. Thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the ARC.

First off I have to say that I always appreciate WW2 fiction that is set in Eastern Europe, and especially in rural Poland, or any of the rural USSR areas that were overrun by the Nazis at the time. The Nazis were brutal in any country they occupied, but they were exceptionally brutal in the east, rounding up thousands of Jewish people at a time, leaving mass graves all over the countryside, and would kill anyone else who crossed their paths too. There are many, many fictional stories based in France or the UK during the war, many stories of the French Resistance, but less based in the east. For this reason alone I was really excited to read Kristin Harmel’s The Forest of Vanishing Stars.

Yona was kidnapped from her German family home in Berlin at the age of two, by an old woman named Jerusza. They lived a solitary, roaming life, living in forests in Poland and the Soviet Union. Jerusza had taken Yona based on one of her premonitions, premonitions that had never failed her before, and taught her everything she knew about survival in the world: languages, foraging, fighting, hunting, building etc. She even taught her to read and write, as well as all of the typical subjects one would learn at school. But when Jerusza dies in 1941, Yona is left to figure out her own place in life. When she comes across a group of Jewish people fleeing the Nazis she has to make a decision that will possibly change her future, and her own ability to survive.

I loved Yona, this wild but loving character who knows how to kill a man with her bare hands, feed a group of starving humans with berries and fish, but has never experienced life in a community. I also loved how the author describes life in the forest: I literally felt like I was there myself, imagining the small huts they created to sleep in the summer, and the bunkers they dug in the winter, the way they foraged for food and herbs, and how Yona uses her knowledge of the forest to help others survive.

So many people hid in forests in the east during WW2, many of them urban dwellers who had never spent more than a holiday or a few days at a time in the countryside. I think these stories are really important to tell, especially now as most of the people who survived being persecuted by the Nazis are no longer here. Kristin Harmel does a fantastic job of telling a story that is fictional, but entirely based on fact, and I was really happy to read her detailed note at the end of the research that she did, and how she created the narrative. I am usually not a huge fan of love stories within war stories, unless they happen organically, and I feel like Yona’s journey into love and betrayal bonded perfectly with the rest of the narrative.

If you are an avid reader of historical fiction and WW2 fiction I highly recommend this book!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Beautiful book that weaves together nature and humanity during WWII. It was such an intriguing concept from the get go. I only wish we had been told more of Yona’s great destiny, the build up did not match the outcome. Still a great read. Love everything Harmel has written!