Call Across the Sea (The Heroes Quartet, 4)
Denmark in 1943 has endured a Nazi occupation without significant oppression, but this changes suddenly. Henny, a teenager living on the coast that faces across the strait to Sweden, suddenly becomes aware of new dangers. The strait outside her home has become busy with boats flying the Nazi insignia. Then she hears that Jewish people are to be rounded up as they have been in Poland. Henny worries—her neighbor and close friend is Jewish—but what can she do? She is only a teenager and not a very good student.
Encouraged by a friend, she joins the Resistance, passing out informational posters. It is not enough. With her Jewish friend threatened, she searches for ideas to help. Henny realizes that her ability to sail her father’s forty-foot sailboat Gerda III, normally used to deliver supplies to a lighthouse, means that she could make the crossing to neutral Sweden carrying a full cargo of Jewish families to safety.
It will not be easy. German guards are everywhere on land and on the water. The strait is known for its storms and rough seas. Can homes be found for people once they reached Sweden? The only thing Henny is sure of is that she has learned to sail the Gerda III night and day in all weathers.
This middle-grade novel is based on fact and is part of a series about young people acting with heroism during World War 2. The characterization and the action are realistic, tense, and without sentimentality. I found it easy to identify with Henny, her friends, and her family. The dangers appear clear and immediate without being overwrought. This is an easy and revealing read for people of any age.
