Nico Krispis is living in a Jewish community in Greece as WWII rages across Europe. He’s eleven and has been raised to always tell the truth; taking great pride in his honesty. When the Germans invade Greece, they begin rounding up the Jews and forcing them onto trains. Nico was hiding and not taken with his family and becomes a tool for a German officer. The boy is told that the Jews are going to be taken to another location where they will be given jobs and Nico is to allay their fears and tell them they will be safe. The young boy likes his new job and willingly encourages the Jews to board the trains.

When Nico learns he has lied to his community, he’s shattered. The German officer misled him and now he feels tremendous guilt over his betrayal. He decides to try to follow his family and the train to Auschwitz, but there are many obstacles along the way. Nico’s blue eyes and blonde hair help him fit in where other Jews would not. He uses his looks and all his wiles, along with his newfound ability to lie, to avoid the clutches of the German army.

The setting is unique. A Jewish community in Greece is new territory not covered by WWII fiction. Nico’s transformation from a completely honest boy to a skilled liar is another fascinating aspect. The Germans, as expected, are ruthless and cruel. Comparisons to The Book Thief can be made because Truth is the narrator in this book, much like Death narrates Zusak’s novel. Truth has many insights on Nico’s actions as a liar. His voice is distinctive and he is a true observer. Nico is haunted by his actions and by what he saw and did during the war.

Albom has a gift for touching readers’ hearts. His character Nico will remain with readers, long after the last page is turned.

I have oft been a reader of World War 2 literature and, like most people, am still stunned by how Nazism spread and how the lies were passed off as truth. Albom has an uncanny ability to weave a meaningful story and give it so much depth. The story of Nico, Sebastian, Fannie, and Udo are intertwined in decades worth of intrigue, loss, and lies. Lies are so interesting here, there are lies of omission, lies of evil, lies of trickery, and the lies that we tell ourselves. So good. So thought provoking.

Honestly, one of the best stories. I read that Mitch Albom was asked why he hadn't written a book about the Holocaust and I glad he waited until he came up with this story. The writing was beautiful. The character's just stayed with you after you put the book away. A great book club read. So much to discuss. I highly recommend this book to everyone. You won't be able to put it down.

Thank you, NetGalley, for an e-ARC of The Little Liar by Mitch Albom.
"The Little Liar" presents a poignant historical fiction narrative set during the Holocaust, exploring the repercussions of truth-telling amidst the horrors of war. With one brother's tragic assumption setting the stage for conflict between siblings, the novel delves into the manipulation of a young boy who steadfastly adheres to honesty. Through the author's riveting style and poetic use of imagery, the story unfolds into a beautifully crafted tale of resilience and the enduring power of truth in the face of adversity.

This book was extraordinary. Albom found a way to tell a World War II Holocaust story in a completely unique way. As an avid reader of WWII fiction, there are few regions or topics that I haven't encountered but this hit the mark. I didn't realize that Greece was affected by the Holocaust but this book brought understanding and empathy. This is a book everyone should read!

The Little Liar, by Mitch Albom, was an amazing read. Narrated by Truth, it follows the lives of 4 people through the Holocaust and their lives afterwards. It was engaging and the unique storytelling format was a refreshing change from all the other WWII books I have read. I thoroughly enjoyed this book despite the horrific events it details.

This beautifully tragic story will stay with me for a very long time. This is Mitch Albom at his finest!

I went in mostly blind and enjoyed it, so I'm going to give a very brief synopsis. The story is about little Nico, who could not tell a lie, and his older brother, Sebastian, who resents him for many reasons. Their friend, Fanny, is destined to be intwined with them for life. The story begins during World War II when they are driven from their homes and meant for concentration camps. Nico tells his first lie which sets off a series of events that takes them years beyond the war into America and then back to Greece.

I gave it an easy ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. If you like Mitch Albom's style, you're going to love this one! It is about guilt and redemption; hope and strength. It shows standing up with boldness and standing up behind the scenes. It is beautiful and heart wrenching. I know there are a lot of World War II novels out there. Pick this one!

Thank you to @simonandschuster and @netgalley for an advanced copy which I started and then finished with my physical copy from @bookclubfavorites. Thank you to @zibbyowens for recommending it!

Mitch Albom, as always, writes an awe-inspiring and memorable book.
Nico Krispis, a Jewish boy, and his family are caught up in the horrors of World War 2. Because of their religion and the utter insanity and hatred then, their lives are upended.
Albom writes with such clarity and precision of the tragedy and devastation of that era. This is such an important addition to the literature of the Holocaust. The brilliance of having Truth as the narrator and its end explanation left me in awe of this book. Superb!

Mitch Albom is one of my favorite authors and I look forward to his novels. He tells beautiful stories and shares thoughtful lessons. This story, however, is a haunting telling of the horrors of WW II, the holocaust and the atrocities suffered in the concentration camps. At times hard to read, Albom made you care about the lives and struggles of his characters.

FANTASTIC!!! I absolutely loved this book. I thoroughly enjoyed that Truth was a narrator. Mitch Albom has created another masterpiece, he never disappoints.

The Little Liar by Mitch Albom is his latest book. This is a heartbreaking story of a family that was deceived during the war. Nico, Fannie, and Sebastian's story is a glimpse on what happened during the Holocaust. It is nice to know new things about War.

#NetGalleyARC This was such a unique and different way to tell a WW2 story. I love Albom's writing style and at first, was a little confused by who the real narrator was, but by the end, I was like YES, got it. A classic Albom novel, highly enjoyable and worth the read.

A sadly timely book about the horrors of hate and importance of truth, this is a fast paced story about Jews from Greece and the Holocaust. It was very clever how Truth told the story of The Little Liar. A book everyone should read.

This book felt kind of like grandpa Simpson trying to tell me a story about the Holocaust. It was rambling, way too “tell, don’t show,” and I didn’t feel any connection with the characters because they went pretty much entirely on instinct. No thoughts, just vibes. I liked the concept of truth as a character, until that was ruined at the end. And I didn’t mind exploring the idea of the impact that trauma can have on your ability to process the importance of truth. But this was probably his weakest book.

There are so many novels written about the Holocaust that it's a challenge to stand above the crowd. However, Mitch Albom does so with his latest novel, The Little Liar: A Novel. I love Mitch's writing style and was eagerly waiting to read this one. Of course, the timing of when I picked it up made the story even more haunting and harrowing than it already was.

Mitch doesn't hold back in telling of the horrors of the Holocaust. I know he is of Jewish descent, but I don't know if had any direct connection (such as relatives who perished or survived). In either case, it is so incredibly pertinent to keep telling people what happened during that time, whether or not your characters are fictional. There were some aspects that reminded me of The Devil's Arithmetic, a movie I saw this past summer that was based on a book. That is because Mitch really put the cruelty of the Nazi officers front and center, showing how horribly they treated Jewish people and anyone else they thought was beneath them.

I liked that this novel was shown from different perspectives, including that of Truth. Truth was the narrator of the story and was overseeing everything that happened. The only perspective I didn't like was that of Udo, the Nazi officer who was featured throughout. He was meant to be the enemy though and reading his perspective didn't make me sympathetic to him in the slightest. The only concern I had, which I hope was corrected for the final publication, is that Mitch referred to all the characters as protagonists at the beginning and Udo was most definitely NOT a protagonist. I'm glad he only did that once and then just called everyone characters.

I didn't know about the Jewish population in Greece or that the Holocaust had affected them too. So I learned something new from this novel.

While the novel went a bit long, it never got stale and it stayed interesting the whole time. However, some things just seemed too good to be true at times.

A lot of the story was heartbreaking, but I don't want to say anything further as to not spoil it. It is a must-read, especially right now. This book illustrates why "Never Again" is so important and why we need to keep Truth at the forefront of everything.

Young Nico has never told a lie. Until a cruel Nazi soldier twists this reputation to deceive an entire town into deportation to concentration camps. Memorable characters struggle to survive the war and find truth. This one stays with you.
Thanks to Booklist and NetGalley for the arc!

Even though I cringed reading some pages, I felt compelled to continue reading The Little Liar by Mitch Albom. Through all the awfulness, it turned out to be a story of truth and love.

"Some lies are easier to believe than the truth." Nico is a young boy who has never told a lie but that changes when he is convinced to lie to the Greek Jews in his hometown of Salonika as they are being transported to the death camps. The story follows the lives of Nico, his older brother Sebastian, their friend Fannie and the deceptive Udo Graf, a cruel and heartless Nazi. A haunting story, beautifully written story depicting not only the incredible depths of depravity and horror committed during World War II but also the kindness and hope that can occur during your darkest moments. I highly recommend this compelling and unforgettable novel from Mitch Albom!

I've enjoyed a lot of Albom's book, but in a low-key way. The Little Liar, though, really hit me in a strong and powerful way. I've read a lot of WWII and Holocaust fiction and wasn't sure I was up for another. Yet the perspective taken by this book is new in a number of ways. First, I appreciated it's concentration on the Jewish community in Greece - I learned things I hadn't known before in spite of all my reading. Second, I loved the way the novel followed four key characters who were vitally interconnected but having very different experiences. Third, the narration by "truth" was a very effective choice. I was worried initially that it would be derivative of The Book Thief (narrated by death) but it wasn't at all, and it provided both narrative distance and an intimacy that was extremely effective.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this Advanced Readers Copy of The Little Liar by Mitch Albom!