Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic!
Review: I went to the National Book Fair yesterday, and bought this book. I even got it SIGNED by Jerry Spinelli! And let me tell you, it is GREAT!It's brilliant. This book is about the holocaust, but a different take. Most holocaust books are about the camps, this is about the ghettos. You learn about the horrors, and it truly makes you feel lucky to be born in the place and time you are. The plot is great, the way it's written is great....just amazing. If you loved Jerry Spinelli's other books, you'll love this too!
Rating:
Summary: milkweed
Review: I'm so glad that I pulled this book out to read, even with the terrible cover art. It makes sense after reading the book, but I doubt it'll be appealing to children. After a slow beginning, the story does pick up and I was eager to find out what happened to Misha. This is an emotional story, complete with all the terrible details of living in the Warsaw ghetto. But, by focusing on the events seen through Misha's eyes, the reader senses an innocence in Misha that is endearing. Knowing the realities of the Holocaust, I really didn't expect a happy ending, but it is a satisfying one.
Rating:
Summary: Hard political lessons will open a boy's eyes to the reality
Review: Jerry Spineli's Milkweed tells of a boy who lives in the streets of Warsaw, and who dreams of being a Nazi someday with all the heroism he perceives to go with it. Hard political lessons will open his eyes to the reality behind Nazi sentiments in this hard-hitting and realistic story of a Jewish boy who wants to be otherwise.
Rating:
Summary: Heartbreaking yet Hopeful
Review: Jerry Spinelli has crafted a stark and horribly vivid portrayal of the Nazi occupation of Warsaw, Poland during WWII.
Through the eyes of a young vagabond we see a childlike view of what it was like to live through this horrific time.
Misha is a young boy who is orphaned and living on the streets. He is told he is a gypsy and given the name Misha, by his friend and protector Uri.
From this point on Misha progresses in his understanding of all that is going on around him... he comes face to face with "Jackboots", Nazi soldiers... "Flops", turncoat Jews tormenting their own people... and those being persecuted-- Jewish people.
The saddness of this story comes through loud and clear when Misha becomes attached to the Jewish family, the Milgorms. Misha befriends, Jainna a young girl and quickly becomes part of the family and embraces his background as a Jew.
I applaud Spinelli for writing this book. I realize there are many books written for middle school students on the Holocaust, but we must never stop reading about it... if we do we may forget just how terrible it really was. And if we, as tolerant caring people forget the horrors, we could easily slip back into the cruelty and utter stupidity of the Nazi tormentors. We must never become like them.... ever!
This is a mistake from history no one should ever repeat!
So as you read this... remember that all people have value and it's our job to make sure we never allow something like the holocaust to happen again.
Rating: 
Summary: More fine work from Jerry Spinelli
Review: Jerry Spinelli has created a unique protagonist for "Milkweed." Odd, impressionable little Misha manages to survive in the time of the "jackboots," living by what wits he has. This book transcends war cliches to deliver a gripping, grimy portrait. The ending is favorable, without being "happy" or neat. "Milkweed" is definitely a keeper. Look past the dreadful cover art and you'll find a beautifully wrought story of the horrors of war and the perseverance of a simple boy.
Rating:
Summary: Milkweed
Review: Jerry Spinelli has once again written a powerfully moving story in his latest book, Milkweed. This story about a young, slightly stupid, Jew is well written (even though it's in Dick and Jane style) and powerful. The main character, a boy called Misha, is niave to the destruction and persecution the Holocaust is causing, and doesn't even know his name. I think this story is like Aladin in some ways, because of the poverty and problems, and like the Diary of Anne Frank because of the horrible way they treat the Jews. I reccomend this novel to people who like a good read.
Rating:
Summary: Milweed
Review: Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli it is a very good book and I enjoyed it a lot. I love books about the Jews in World War II because it is so interesting. Milkweed is about a little boy who does not know his name. He's called Jew, Gypsy, Stopthief, Runt, Happy, Fast, Misha, and Jack. People just tell him what he should be called. He is an orphan who survives by taking food from people and the markets. One day while he was running a guy named Uri caught him. Uri took him to his buddies that lived in a barn. They were smugglers and would take food from people and markets too. The war started to begin and they were taking all the Jews to the ghetto. All of his friends were Jews and were going to be sent to the ghetto. They tried to hide but the Germans caught and sent them to the ghetto. The Nazi's built a wall around the ghetto and so no one can get out. There is no food to eat, no money, and people are dying from starvation and illnesses.
I really enjoyed this book and did not want it to end. This book made me feel like I was a Jew, and I was going through all of the things that they went through. Like your right by their side watching loved ones die and I couldn't anything about it. It is a really a good book and if you read it I hope you will think the same.
Rating:
Summary: A Holocaust Story
Review: Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli was the best, most riveting novel that I have read for a long time. The story is told from the viewpoint of a small, naïve, orphan boy living in Warsaw, Poland during the holocaust. The boy, who adopts the name of Misha, doesn't remember anything of his past. He meets an orphan named Uri who teaches him how to live in the city as a thief. When the Jackboots invade Warsaw, Misha is mistaken as a Jew, and put in the Ghetto. In the Ghetto, Misha lives with his friend Janina's family, who soon adopt him as their own son. When the Jews are finally taken to the camps, Misha escapes. He grows up and moves to America, living with the memories of the injustices done to him and other Jews during the holocaust.
The narrator's point of view, and the choppy, odd way in which it is written sets Milkweed apart from other books. It gives an image of the holocaust that is not normally seen, one where the person is being prejudiced against, and is still optimistic and oblivious to what is going on around him. The book is amazingly powerful, but in a different way than most novels about the holocaust. There are not horrible descriptions of the torture being inflicted on the Jews, leaving the reader sick to their stomach; instead the horrible events of the time are woven into the story along with humor, happiness, optimism, and naiveté. This gives the novel an under the surface seriousness and power, while still being funny and enjoyable to read. Jerry Spinelli doesn't make any attempt to explain what is happening as well, leaving the reader in the same position as Misha. This makes Milkweed somewhat confusing, but more interesting. Milkweed was an enjoyable, powerful, emotion-filled novel, told from a new point of view, and I believe that it is not only Jerry Spinelli's best, but also one of the greatest novels for young adults or for any age.
Rating:
Summary: A Holocaust Story
Review: Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli was the best, most riveting novel that I have read for a long time. The story is told from the viewpoint of a small, naïve, orphan boy living in Warsaw, Poland during the holocaust. The boy, who adopts the name of Misha, doesn't remember anything of his past. He meets an orphan named Uri who teaches him how to live in the city as a thief. When the Jackboots invade Warsaw, Misha is mistaken as a Jew, and put in the Ghetto. In the Ghetto, Misha lives with his friend Janina's family, who soon adopt him as their own son. When the Jews are finally taken to the camps, Misha escapes. He grows up and moves to America, living with the memories of the injustices done to him and other Jews during the holocaust.
The narrator's point of view, and the choppy, odd way in which it is written sets Milkweed apart from other books. It gives an image of the holocaust that is not normally seen, one where the person is being prejudiced against, and is still optimistic and oblivious to what is going on around him. The book is amazingly powerful, but in a different way than most novels about the holocaust. There are not horrible descriptions of the torture being inflicted on the Jews, leaving the reader sick to their stomach; instead the horrible events of the time are woven into the story along with humor, happiness, optimism, and naiveté. This gives the novel an under the surface seriousness and power, while still being funny and enjoyable to read. Jerry Spinelli doesn't make any attempt to explain what is happening as well, leaving the reader in the same position as Misha. This makes Milkweed somewhat confusing, but more interesting. Milkweed was an enjoyable, powerful, emotion-filled novel, told from a new point of view, and I believe that it is not only Jerry Spinelli's best, but also one of the greatest novels for young adults or for any age.
Rating:
Summary: Spinelli's best
Review: Milkweed is a rare find. It tells a heartbreaking story in a unique voice that is as appropriate for adults as it is for children. Spinelli's main character, Misha, is one of the most memorable I have encountered in young adult literature. The deceptively simple prose that Spinelli uses to describe the world of the Nazi-occupied Warsaw is right on target-- it makes the book believable and poetic.
Although I felt that the book's ending was rushed, I think that this is the finest example of young adult historical fiction that I have ever encountered. Please read this book, and then pass it on to as many children and adults as you can.
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