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#stunninggraphicnovel

Writer's picture: Nutty BookwormNutty Bookworm




Book Info:

Song of a Blackbird by Maria van Lieshout

Genre: Young Adult Historical Fiction Graphic Novel

Publishing Date: January 21, 2025

 

Synopsis:

Fictionalized but based on true events, Song of a Blackbird has two intertwined timelines: one is a modern-day family drama, the other a thrilling tale of a WWII-era bank heist carried out by Dutch resistance fighters.

In the present day, teenage Annick is desperate to find a bone marrow donor that could save the life of her grandmother, Johanna. She turns to her family history and discovers a photograph taken by Emma Bergsma.

Decades earlier, Emma is a young art student about to be drawn into what will become the biggest bank heist in European history: swapping 50 Million Guilders’ worth of forged bank notes for real ones―right under the noses of the Nazis! Emma’s life―and the lives of thousands, including a young woman named Johanna―hangs in the balance.

In this stranger-than-fiction graphic novel, Maria van Lieshout weaves a tale about family, courage, and the power of art. Deeply personal yet universal, Song of a Blackbird sheds light on an untold WWII story and sends a powerful message about compassion and resistance.

Content Warning: grief

 

Book Links:

 

About the Author:

Maria is a Dutch-American illustrator and graphic novelist.She grew up near Amsterdam, and studied Visual Communications at George Washington University in DC. Maria has a background in brand design and innovation and has illustrated/written 15 picture books for kids. Her historical graphic novel about a female artist in the Amsterdam resistance during WWII will be published by FirstSecond January 2025.

Please follow Maria on Instagram at @vanlieshoutstudio or visit www.vanlieshoutstudio.com for more information.

Author Links:

 

Tour Schedule:




Song of a Blackbird is a stunning graphic novel surrounding real life events of Nazi Occupation of Amsterdam in 1943 and another timeline of 2011. These timelines move seamlessly throughout the story and really gives it something extra. Also the use of the muted colours of the illustrations set against some realife buildings of that era just makes it more real for the reader.


I also found the notes at the back of the graphic novel which in my view should not be overlooked as you learn about the real people that Maria had based her characters on and was truly fascinating.


This would make an excellent book to have discussions about and should be read .


For all the above reasons Song of a Blackbird receives 4 stars.



























































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