7/27/2023 0 Comments Echo of war wow![]() ![]() But in 1944 in Southern California, Ivy cannot attend the neighborhood Lincoln School as it is for white children only. Her talent with the harmonica makes her hopeful she might someday play the flute and she writes long letters to Fernando about her hopes and dreams. She misses her old school and even more, she misses her older brother Fernando who is away fighting in World War II. Part III: When Ivy must start a new school, one of her only comforts is the hope of an excellent music program. Can Mike figure out a way to save Frankie from returning to the orphanage? Could his musical talent save him as well? A harmonica contest might be the answer to his problems. However, their new guardian seems anything but excited about adopting two boys, in fact she avoids them at all costs. When a man shows up at the orphanage looking for boys with musical talent, the two are saved from the orphanage and their luck seems to have changed. ![]() Living in an abusive boys’ home, their hope to be adopted seems to be slipping away as they grow older. Mike is a gifted piano player and all-around musician who dreams of a better life for himself and his younger brother. ![]() Part II: The same harmonica surfaces two years later in rural Pennsylvania, in the hands of orphans Mike and Frankie. Can Friedrich find the resources and daring to rescue his father? During this turmoil, Friedrich discovers a majestically crafted harmonica and finds a sense of inner peace and courage while playing it that he will desperately need when his father is imprisoned in a work camp. Friedrich’s sister has joined the Nazi Youth movement and the family fears that she might report their political views. Friedrich’s father is pressured to report him to the Nazi party for his intellectual and physical conditions, but doing so would mean Friedrich would be sterilized (or worse). In 1933, the Nazi party prizes their version of physical, intellectual, and racial perfection. Part I: Friedrich, a young musician and aspiring conductor, is socially shunned due to his awkwardness and the physical deformity of a large facial birthmark. The sisters save his life, guiding him from the clutches of the forest and entrusting him with two things-a special harmonica and the charge to someday save their lives. The book opens with the story of Otto, lost alone in a forest, who encounters three cursed sisters trapped by a witch’s spell. A (perhaps magical?) harmonica travels through each tale, from the fairy tale inspired prologue to the stories of Friedrich in Germany, Mike in Pennsylvania, and Ivy in California. The uniting themes across each of the four sections include the power of music, the dangers of intolerance, and the powerful results of choosing compassion and courage over selfishness and fear. (p.25)Įcho blends genres framed by a tale of magic and mystery, with the bulk of the story told across three distinct settings of historical fiction. Even in the darkest night, a star will shine, a bell will chime, a path will be revealed. ![]()
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