“Nicky and Vera: A Quiet Hero of the Holocaust and the Children He Rescued”
by Peter Sis.
Norton Young Readers, New York, 2021, 64 pages, Grades 2-4
Our Lord tells us in the Sermon on the Mount (St. Matthew 6:3-4), when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Jesus is telling us that we should give to others from charitable love and not desire to receive acclaim for our actions.
This is not the easiest thing to do, for it is natural to desire praise for our good deeds. But some people act out of pure love. These people are known as saints. Nicholas Winton is one such person. Esteemed writer and illustrator Peter Sis tells us Winton’s powerful and remarkable story in the outstanding picture book, “Nicky & Vera: A Quiet Hero of the Holocaust and the Children He Rescued.”
Nickolas Winton, known as Nicky, is born in London May 19, 1909. He is an eager student and excels in mathematics and photography. Early in his life, he takes up fencing and becomes so good at the sport that he is placed on the national team.
Winton later works as a banker and travels across Europe. To work more effectively, Nicky learns French and German. His life seems full and happy. But the political situation in Germany upsets this.
The Nazis take over the country and impose their violent system on the land and plan to attack neighboring countries. One of the countries is Czechoslovakia. In Czechoslovakia, a prosperous Jewish family raises a beautiful family. They have several daughters; one being named Vera. The Nazis take over the country and begin arresting and persecuting the Jewish population.
In his travels, Nicky can see the potential brutality of the Nazis. He is faced with the problem of how to save some of the Jewish children in Czechoslovakia. This is extremely difficult because he has no governmental connections and little money. But he pushes ahead with a daring plan to take trainloads of Jewish children from the capital of Prague. Winton arranges for British families to shelter these threatened children, but he still has to arrange for their train passage across Europe to England.
He comes up with an audacious plan that can only be accomplished by a fearless man willing to risk everything. The trains Winton secures will be known in history as the Kindertransport, or Children’s Transport. As the Nazis close the Czech borders, Winton manages to place 669 children on eight Kindertransport trains and the youngsters escape death. Nickolas Winton is truly their savior. How does he do it?
How does Nicky purchase passage for the 669 threatened children? Who is Vera and what role does she play in this remarkable story? Why does Winton never tell anyone about his heroic deeds? How is this finally discovered? How are Nicky and Vera reunited at last? To find out the answers to these and other questions, go to the library and check out this magnificent story, “Nicky and Vera: A Quiet Hero of the Holocaust and the Children He Rescued” by Peter Sis.
This picture book biography of Nicky and Vera is winning award after award this year. It is a marvelous story of courage, daring and charity. Despite his not wanting to make his story known, Winton is recognized in Great Britain and elsewhere for his charitable heart and greatness of character. In an incredibly touching scene in the book, he meets many of the children he saved from murder.
Queen Elizabeth knights Nickolas Winton in 2003 for his service to humanity in saving Jewish children in Czechoslovakia. He will live to be 106 years old and dies in 2015. This is a truly remarkable book and story. Highly recommended.
