Archive for the ‘A Year of Borrowed Men’ Category

“The text is clear and accessible to young readers. The narrative is interesting for reading aloud. The illustrations are beautiful full-page, and sometimes double-page, spreads, all in generous color. For me they combine clarity and immediacy with an evocative quality from the picture books of my own childhood. I have no hesitation in recommending this […]

“…Told from a child’s perspective, this book is a very human look at hard times in European history. Full of tender and sweet moments and the harsh realities of suspicion sand cruelties of war.” Click here to read the full review

“…A Year of Borrowed Men is a gentle story, poignant in its hopeful perspective, perhaps because it is narrated by 7 year old Gerda, and Michelle Barker is able to retain all the innocence of a child in her writing. A cruel, hateful regime and war, after all, doesn’t mean one needs to sacrifice their humanity, […]

“…This is a book that has been on my shelf for far too long. Today, I will remedy that by telling you about it. It is a story of Germany at the end of World War II. Based on her mother’s memories of that time in her life, Michelle Barker chooses to tell it in […]

“…Based on her mother, Gerda’s, childhood memories, author Michelle Barker tells the story of their family’s farm in Germany and of the French prisoners of war who were sent to help run it while their own men were away soldiering. Little Gerda has a tender heart towards these seven men, who are supposed to be […]

Pajama Press is excited to announce that four of our titles have been nominated for the 2017 Ontario Library Association Forest of Reading Awards. The Hill, written by Karen Bass, is nominated for the Red Maple Award. Click here to view the The Hill classroom discussion guide. Elephant Journey, written by Rob Laidlaw and illustrated […]

“A gentle story, told from the view point of a German girl, of how the war impacted German families. A beautiful, poignant story that subtly introduces humanity during times of war.” Click here to read the full review.

Pajama Press is thrilled to announce that three of our titles have been nominated for the 2016 Canadian Children’s Book Centre Awards. A Year of Borrowed Men, written by Michelle Barker and illustrated by Renné Benoit, has been nominated for the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award. The picture book, which is written from the WWII […]

On August 26th, the website Jewcy.com published a critique of A Year of Borrowed Men. The article asks why there has not been any conversation about the absence of the Holocaust in this World War II story. We would like to have that conversation. In today’s global climate, we saw a lot of value in […]

Pajama Press is proud to announce that two of our recent titles have been shortlisted for the 2017 Chocolate Lily Book Award. Bad Pirate, written by Kari-Lynn Winters and illustrated by Dean Griffiths, and A Year of Borrowed Men, written by Michelle Barker and illustrated by Renné Benoit, have both been nominated under the Picture […]