Faceless

September 6, 2021
Set during WWII, Newbery Honoree Lasky’s intense historical drama follows a white family of spies whose tradition of serving Great Britain dates back to Henry VIII. Thirteen-year-old Alice Winfield has for years trained for her first A-level mission, and her celebrated older sister, Louise, once promised to be her guide. But when Louise opts out of the family business, only Alice and her mother join the teens’ undercover father on a secret mission in Berlin: taking down Hitler. Upon arrival, Alice becomes Ute, a German girl “certified to be... Aryan, with no contamination of foreign blood.” As Alice works to achieve high marks in school and remain as unnoticeable and unmemorable as the “tabula rasas” from which she is descended, she finds herself dangerously drawn to an unhoused boy. With a well-detailed historical backdrop and a puzzling familial mystery, this novel delivers intrigue via tense scenes involving Hitler himself. Albeit fictional, this up-close glimpse at the historical figure’s inner circle and last days centers an unnervingly calm protagonist maintaining an elaborate ruse while navigating the increasingly dangerous streets of Berlin, where knowing who is friend and foe determines survival. Ages 8–12. Agent: Brenda Bowen, the Book Group.

September 15, 2021
Spying for the British in the final years of World War II, 13-year-old English girl Alice Winfield embarks on a dangerous mission to Berlin. Involved in British spying for centuries, the Winfields are Rasas, or agents with perfectly proportioned, forgettable faces, ideal for espionage. Alice's mother is a veteran Rasa spy for MI6, her father's an operative stationed in Berlin, and her 19-year-old sister, Louise, has been trusted with complex missions. When Louise suddenly resigns and has plastic surgery to alter her face, Alice feels lost. Parachuting into Germany with her mother to join her father in Berlin on her first top-level mission, Alice poses as a schoolgirl. Winning a coveted Reich Praktikum, or student internship, in Hitler's household, she goes everywhere the F�hrer goes, observing and reporting back about his mental state as part of an assassination plot. With the Allies approaching, clever Alice tries to fulfill her mission, secretly help a homeless Jewish boy, uncover the mystery of Louise's sudden appearance in Germany, and remain inconspicuous while surrounded by enemies. Alice's behind-the-scenes position within the epicenter of Nazi power during the final days of the war provides an intriguing perspective on Nazi luminaries, 1940s German student life, wartime deprivations in Berlin, Nazi xenophobia and racial theory, and the excitement and danger of being a wartime spy. Repeated themes of identity and references to Wagner's Ring cycle prove effective. Characters read as White. Fascinating and riveting, especially for history buffs and spy aficionados. (historical notes) (Historical fiction. 9-13)

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October 1, 2021
Grades 5-8 Born into a family of British secret agents, 13-year-old Alice has undergone extensive training before her first mission is assigned. She and her mother parachute into Germany in 1944 and join her father in Berlin, where she quickly establishes her new identity as Ute Schnaubel at school and in the patriotic League of German Girls. Soon she's assigned to help with housekeeping services for the Third Reich within their Berlin stronghold, a maneuver enabled by British intelligence, which wants Alice to report on Hitler's emotional state. Meanwhile, she secretly befriends a homeless Jewish boy who forages in garbage cans for his food. After Hitler's death, Alice's family must immediately escape from Germany on their own. In this historical novel, Lasky makes the idea of a competent 13-year-old spy seem surprisingly convincing. The narrative has its moments of high tension when Alice plays her part as Ute. Somewhat disconnected from the main story, a subplot revolving around Alice's estranged older sister is resolved in the end. A page-turner, particularly for readers intrigued by WWII.

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October 8, 2021

Gr 5 Up-Spies during World War II are front and center in Lasky's fourth story on this period. It's 1944 and Europe is struggling through the war. Thirteen-year-old Alice Winfield comes from a long line of spies, a special group of people called the Tabula Rasa who are skilled in many areas-but their distinctive feature is that they have faces one can't remember. Alice and her family fly from their native England to Nazi Germany, where she and her parents all have different intelligence assignments. Alice's older sister Louise has been left behind, as she retired from the family business and has undergone facial cosmetic surgery. Our main heroine performs her role impeccably, and she manages to get closer and closer to Hitler for her mission. After years of training, does she have what it takes to succeed and bring down Germany's most powerful and dangerous man? The storyline is very promising, but the text is difficult at times, with period words that are not often understood in context, plus a lot of German that readers might struggle with. The intended audience is middle grade, but at times the slow pace of the book and overall plot might be a hard sell for children in this age bracket. There are a few instances of body- and fat-shaming that are very off-putting, so readers should be forewarned. VERDICT Give to historical fiction lovers and purchase where WWII stories are popular.-Carol Youssif, Taipei American Sch., Taiwan

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