Did not really work for me in the way I expected. I think that I went into this novel with way too hgh of expectations. The covid narrative felt forced and didn't really function with the author's bigger intention with the text. I felt most invested in Jenny's narrative. I enjoyed the author's prupose to encourage social change and activism.

Under the Same Stars follows 3 characters in 3 different time periods: WW2 in Germany, West Berlin, and 2020 in America. The story was engaging, I wanted to see what became of the characters and how the story unraveled. I liked the characters and how the perspectives allowed you to get to know all of them.

The writing itself was good, however I thought the writing about the teenagers in 2020 was a bit stereotypical if not trite and honestly cringy.

I would recommend to any one who wants a captivating read but for sure not the best book Ive read in the WW 2 realm.

I’m a long-time fan of Libba Bray’s work, of the way she’s able to shift between fantasy and historical fiction, incisive cultural and societal commentary and truly hilarious comedy, gorgeous romance and thrilling action. When I saw a promo for her new YA novel Under the Same Stars, I requested it without even reading the synopsis. It was the right decision.

Under the Same Stars is historical fiction that weaves between three time periods, three protagonists. First is Sophie, a teenager in 1940s Germany. Sophie and her best friend Hanna are more focused on love and friendship than on the war that increasingly encroaches on their village. They write romantic letters to mysterious pen pals, leaving their notes in the Bridegroom’s Oak that lies in the nearby forest, checking back frequently for responses. Soon, though, they are unable to deny the threats among them and have to decide how they will react to the injustice they see.

The second story takes place in West Germany in 1980. The Berlin Wall runs through the city where Jenny Campbell and her family move because of her father’s promotion. Jenny hasn’t been satisfied with herself or her life for a while, but this major change opens up possibilities for her as she happens upon the underground punk scene and, in particular, Lena, who seems to embody all that Jenny wants for herself. As Jenny is drawn into Lena’s world—and drawn to Lena herself—she struggles with the expectations of her parents, her vision for herself, and the demands of her new friends in the face of the wall that looms over them all.

Finally, there’s Miles in New York City, at the beginning of the COVID lockdown, during Miles’s senior year of high school. Miles is living alone—one of his mothers was traveling when the lockdown happened, and the other is a nurse who is self-isolating to keep Miles safe. Miles is even more lonely because he and his best friend Chloe hadn’t talked for months, and now the lockdown makes it seem as if they’ll never talk again…until she reaches out for her help unraveling a mystery.

Chloe’s grandmother suffered from a stroke and is now in an assisted living home, unable to communicate. But she sent a mysterious package to Chloe with details about her youth in Germany. Miles has taken three years of Germany and, like Chloe, is a huge fan of an investigative podcast, which has inspired Chloe to look into her grandmother’s history . . . with Miles’s help.

From here, Bray orchestrates a gorgeous balancing act, one that navigates each teenager’s coming of age, the upheaval of their unique eras, and the decisions they must make for who they want to be in the changing worlds around them.

Because there’s always just a little magic in Bray’s books, there’s also a beautiful fairytale that is told and re-told through the novel, transforming as truths emerge and come into focus.

Under the Same Stars is a stunning novel that shows, through these characters, how important it has always been to stand up for what is right and to take hold of who they truly are.

Thank you to NetGalley for the free arc!

The three historical timelines that Libba Bray chose to weave together around the theme of resistance are really interesting: Germany during WWII, West Berlin in the 80s with the punk rock scene, and 2020 during the pandemic in Brooklyn, NYC. It is intriguing to learn as the story unfolds, how the characters interrelate to each other. There is a fairytale element woven throughout the book that evolves as more information is uncovered.

The writing in this book is a bit uneven. Many parts of it are well-written and at times, gripping. However, there are sections that almost feel as if they are written by another author and not as strong. At 480 pages, I think that some editing could have been done to whittle down some of the weaker parts.

If you enjoy historical fiction books with three different storylines that converge at the end, you will enjoy this book.

LIBBA BRAY FOREVER!

I chuckled when I learned that 1/3 of the story occurs during Covid lockdown because Libba Bray's THE DIVINERS series helped me get through lockdown while living in China. It's been five long years since Bray's last book came out and I was so excited to be approved for her latest, UNDER THE SAME STARS, which is quite different from her previous work. For one, there's no fantasy element, though there is a fair bit of whimsy and fairy tale love involving a special tree in one part of the story called The Bridegroom Oak. Second, this story is split into three different timelines: Germany during the first part of WWII, West Berlin during the late '80s while the Berlin Wall was still up, and New York 2020 during Covid lockdown. The stories intertwine, of course, and there's a suspenseful mystery at the center of all of them.

I really liked the book overall, but I gotta say that two of the three timelines were much more enjoyable to read than the last. Bray excels at writing about history and making us feel like we're experiencing it through her characters, and that's why the timelines in WWII and the 1980s were better overall than the Covid timeline, though I did like how everything got wrapped up in the end. Part of this is because the characters--Sophie and Hanna in Kleinwald 1941 and Dallas and Lena in 1980s Berlin--were just so great, and I didn't want to leave them at the end of the book. Miles and Chloe were also lovely, and I LOVED the Zoom prom, but I didn't find MIles' character journey to be more authentic and politically involved to be all that, well, authentic. I don't know if it's because I'm around teenagers all the time and talk to them about politics regularly, but all the conversations Miles had with other characters, as well as his reflections, about getting more involved in activism felt kinda cringe and cloying. When the timelines switched to 2020 I found myself getting a little bummed out even though we learned more about the central mystery during those portions. Perhaps I'll re-read UNDER THE SAME STARS in ten or so years when Covid is a little farther down the historical timeline and feel differently.

The Covid timeline aside, I think every historical fiction lover out there will adore UNDER THE SAME STARS. Get it for Sophie, Hanna, Dallas, and Lena. I'm sure you'll stay up until 3 in the morning like I did to find out what happens to them at the end of the story.

Major thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan's Children Publishing for the ARC of this rad Libba Bray book in exchange for my honest review.

This novel flips between 3 time periods.
1940’s Germany: WWII. Teen girlfriends, Sophie and Hannah, go from day dreaming of boys to witnessing friends go to war and neighbors just disappearing. Difficult times put these girls in a position to help the resistance but it will mean risking their lives.

1980’s Germany: Jenny’s dad is transferred from the US to West Berlin. Jenny makes two new friends both with secrets that change her forever.

2020 NYC: COVID lockdown for friends Chloe and Miles. Chloe’s grandma sends a package that leads them on a mystery solving mission.

Interesting story intertwined between the years. I really found the 1980’s Germany story interesting. The East/West Berlin and the Wall. I haven’t found much in historical fiction about that era so I found it quite engaging.

I love Libba Bray’s fantasy books, but this one just fell flat for me. It took too long to get into the character and then when I did, it switched points of view. Promising but not delivering.

Sophie lives in 1940s Germany and truly believes in the Bridegroom’s Oak. She has been writing to a mysterious suitor and hopes he will be her true love. With the war escalating around her, this oak may be what the resistance needs. Jenny has recently moved to West Germany in the 1980s. She strikes out against her parents when she befriends a punk-rock girl and an old lady in her building. Miles and Chloe are in 2020 NYC during the COVID outbreak. After Chloe gets a package from her grandmother, she begins to investigate two teens who went missing near the Bridegroom’s Oak eighty years ago. How are all these teens connected?

Under the Same Stars is a stand-alone historical fiction story that does a lot of bouncing around yet it eventually all comes together. Readers will need to make sure they pay attention to the beginning of each chapter to know who and when the story is about. Bray did a wonderful job of connecting these lives across decades and writing a story that will stand the test of time. Under the Same Stars is a good read for all historical fiction fans.

In the 1940s, two German girls meet at an oak tree, first to use the tree's magic to find a boyfriend and later as part of the Nazi resistance. In the 1980s, an American girl spending the summer in West Germany joins the punk scene. In 2020, a boy living alone in New York City during the pandemic spends his time unraveling a decades old mystery of two girls who went missing back in 1940s Germany.

Every single one of Libba Bray's books has been so different, and yet her writing always draws me in, and this was no exception. It took me a while to see the connection to the 1980s era, but once the connections started they didn't stop. There were several love stories woven in here, touching on some friendships that moved into love as well as one of coming out, but the stories are less about romance than about the lengths someone in love might go, especially in times of war and oppression. There were solid parallels between World War II, the Cold War, and current political factions in America. I don't think I can say which era I enjoyed the most. Overall this was a moving read that had me close to tears several times, and of the five books I was reading at the time, this was the one I looked most forward to returning to.

Libra Bray’s beautiful language is in full effect in her newest book Under the Same Stars. My favorite perspective was Jenny in 1980s West Germany, and was one I kept waiting to come up. I can see students loving this book, and will be adding this book to my classroom library.

The lines between 1941 in Germany, 1980 also in Germany (specifically West Berlin), and 2020 in New York City are not obvious at first, as we learn about teenagers Sophie, Jennifer, and Miles. As with Alan Gratz's Refugee, the chapters for each are interwoven, with incredible reveals along the way. Readers will discover even more connections than the characters do. The story telling is incredible, immersing the reader in each of these distinctive time periods and drawing the thread of standing up for what is right through all of them. This is the book we need heading into 2025, with the soundtrack of David Bowie's Heroes playing in the background. Highly recommended for grades 9 & up.

I received a free copy from NetGalley. Three timelines that very slowly come together. Not sure we are ready for, or have the distance yet from the 2020 timeline, but the parallels with the other two timelines worked. The fantasy part, with the tree and animals, that story took the longest to connect with.

Years ago I read Bray's The Diviner and remember really enjoying it, and then about 5 years ago I finally finished the series. The only thing those books have in common with this one is that there are historical elements. This particular story has no real fantasy/paranormal elements in it, and it's told over three time periods with somewhat interconnected stories. Personally I only cared about 1 of said 3 stories. Was it neat to see how they interconnected? Sure, but I don't think it justified the inclusion of the other two. Perhaps I think this because I don't really know anything about the Berlin wall and the circumstances surrounding it, but seeing as the main mystery was during that WWII time everything else just seemed unnecessary. I understand the reason behind the three stories and the underlying theme that connects them, but it really just felt like it was whacking you over the head with it. That's not to say that it was all bad. I loved the fairytale like elements that were sprinkled throughout the book, and the characters in the WWII setting were great. It just feels like everything else was more or less just a means to an end for that particular story and the message the whole book was trying to drive home. I don't regret reading this one, but I don't think I'll ever re-read it (which is kind of a shame considering how pretty some of the passages were). I also don't think I'll find myself hand selling it any time soon. I'll be happy to point it out should anyone ask for a YA novel with historical fiction elements, but it's not something I'll go out of my way to point to. I will be curious to see what Bray comes up with next though.

An incredible blend of mystery and historical fiction from one of the best historical young adult authors around. Readers of Ruta Septys and Lois Lowry will enjoy this book immensely.

Under the Same Stars is the kind of story that stays with you, not only because it is nostalgically familiar but also because it reveals hidden perspectives from familiar historical time periods. The three narrative voices are distinct, and I came to root deeply for each of them, especially Miles, the voice from 2020, who can be a model for young people as they try to live authentic lives in the modern world. The central mystery of what happened in 1940s Germany (perpetuated not by a mustache-twirling stereotype, but by the Nazi system working within German law) is resolved believably and aligns with one of the central themes: we have to accept others’--and our own--tragic humanity, and deal with the fallout of our decisions with bravery and honesty. It’s a book I’m recommending over and over again. Fans of Ruta Sepetys and Kristin Hannah—check out Libba Bray.

I read Under the Same Stars over a month ago. While I don’t remember the characters’ names, I do remember the story. I found it fascinating because it intertwined the stories of three generations. The first and most important story took place in Germany during World War II. It followed two friends who believed in the power of a tree to bring love through leaving notes hidden in its trunk or branches. One of the girls, who was thought by other children to be crazy, fiercely believed in that power. She became the victim of the cruelty of a group of boys. Ultimately, she and her friend disappeared and became part of a legend that was told over many decades.
The second story took place in the1970’s. An American teenager spends the summer in Berlin and befriends an in the building where her family lived. The woman was considered strange because she loved fairy tales and especially the story of the tree that brought true love. The girl meets a punk musician and and she embraces the radical ideas of the band and their followers.
The third story takes place in 2020. It tells about a young teenage boy who tries to learn more about his family and especially his grandmother’s past life in Germany.
This novel reveals the secrets and inter —connectivity of the three stories and their characters. IThe mystery of the disappearance of the two girls is finally solved. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Under the Same Stars. I have already recommended it to several people.

This is the first one that I have read by her in a really long time. I liked the premise and thought that the character development was classic for her style. I would recommend if you’re a fan of her previous work.

Loved this book so much! I loved each of the three different viewpoints used to tell the story. Usually I have a hard time connecting to at least one point of view and skim through that section of a book, but I appreciated and devoured every character's storyline. I loved how they all connected to Sophie and Hanna in some way.

Set during 3 separate time periods, Libba Bray weaves a historical fiction story with an impactful message about showing up. In 1940s Germany, friends Sophie and Hanna send love notes through the Bridegroom's Oak. As the war intensifies, they are faced with the decision of what role to play in Nazi Germany. In the 1980s, Jenny befriends Lena after moving to Germany from Dallas, Texas. As their friendship grows into something more, Jenny struggles with her identity as well as the political tensions between East and West Berlin. In 2020 New York, Miles and Chloe try to uncover secrets and mend their friendship during Covid lockdown.

Bray's work is beautifully written and the connections between all the parts of the story are solid. I struggled with probably the first half of the story, but I think it's more because of the audio. It was difficult to keep the stories separate for a while. I love how it all came together in the end, and no details were spared. Too daunting for the average high school reader, but a solid historical fiction piece for strong readers.

I received a free eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I adore Libba Bray, so I requested this one as soon as it popped up. I was a little iffy on the World War II angle, because I feel like that topic has just been done to death, but it’s been so long since I had a new Libba Bray book!

Oof. This one was a tough read. There are some structural elements that didn’t quite work for me (which I don’t see getting resolved by publishing - it’s the fundamental way the novel is set up that I didn’t like), but overall it just felt…preachy. I remember getting annoyed with the final two Diviners books in a similar way - when characters in settings from the past start acting like mouthpieces for current issues. I kept picking this up and putting it down, and honestly after the election I *really* wanted to be done with it, because it was hitting uncomfortably close to home (I feel like I’ve made this point before…maybe even in my review of King of Crows! that for me reading is an escape, and sometimes it’s just a little too much to read about all the horrors of the world. I am not the person who wants to be emotionally destroyed by a book!). Ahem. Anyway, I decided to keep going, mostly because I’ve been in a pretty terrible reading rut and couldn’t settle on anything else.

The story takes place across three timelines, and while it’s clear there’s a connection, and we do put all of the pieces together, it takes far too long for the puzzle to be assembled. It’s almost like Bray is delaying that gratifying “I KNEW it!” moment when you realize *this* character is *that* character all grown up. Our three POV characters are Sophie, a teen living in Kleinwald Germany in 1941; Jenny, an American girl living in West Berlin in 1980 (her father is an American businessman doing something abroad. I forget what, and it’s not really relevant); and Miles, a teen living through the early days of Covid in spring of 2020. As is often the case with these kinds of narratives, all 3 characters may as well have been in different books for the majority of the story. Again, it’s clear there’s a connection - Jenny has a weird old neighbor with a secret, Miles’s friend Chloe has a grandmother who also maybe has a secret (all German-adjacent).

Surprisingly, I actually found myself drawn to Sophie and Hanna’s story the most (the WWII timeline). They’re working for the German resistance, creating fake documents to help smuggle people out of the country. There’s a little bit of romance between Sophie and Hanna’s brother Karl (a soldier who has his own haunted backstory) that’s sweet without being too cloying. In spite of thinking World War II is massively overdone, I am still fascinated by stories from the Axis side - it’s depressing to see what lengths people will go to to delude themselves into thinking “it can’t happen here.” (Yes, I realize that’s basically the whole theme of this book!) While I really wanted to like the 1980s story, it just fell flat for me. I found all of the punk stuff incredibly grating (it doesn’t help that Jenny is very much romanticizing the whole thing…which she is forced to come to terms with).

The 2020 chapters…yikes. Not a fan. Part of it is that the lockdown times are still far too recent - I’m not keen to relive those months quite yet. The other part is that other than researching all of this stuff from the past, I’m not entirely sure what Miles is even doing here. There’s a not terribly well developed subplot of him deciding to take action and join the civil rights protests that were happening that summer. It felt a *little* shoehorned in, like Bray was trying to check off another important issue box, or really just give Miles something to do other than sit at his computer and look things up.

Without giving too much away (since this doesn’t come out until February), I think this whole story would have been better served with just Jenny as the main character. She could be more well developed, and we could trace her story through time. She has enough connections to both the 1940s and 2020s timelines for it to make sense, and we’d be able to give some of the events in her timeline more breathing room. Multiple timelines are tricky, and having three of them really drives home how much each story is missing.