T4: A Novel in Verse by Ann Clare LeZotte

T4: A Novel in Verse by Ann Clare LeZotte is the story of Paula Becker, a young German girl who became deaf as a baby after an illness. Paula and her family struggle to learn different ways to communicate, but eventually fall into a routine - even her beloved dof figures out ways to communicate with her! Paula has to go into hiding, however, when Hitler began his campaign for creating the "master race". During the Holocaust, Hitler and the Nazis not only gathered and killed many Jewish people and Gypsies, he also signed a secret order to have doctors kill people living with disabilities. This program was known as T4. Paula had help from Father Josef and escaped the city for various safer places, always moving when the SS came too close to discovering her. At a homeless shelter, Paula meets Poor Kurt, an old man who slept and ate there every night. They decide to go out on their own to help other people who were suffering at the hands of Hitler and the Nazis. All does not go as planned, however, and they end up back at the homeless shelter. When the war ends, Paula returns home to her family and brings Poor Kurt with her. After he cleans up and shaves, Paula sees for the first time that Kurt, who is actually Walther, part Romani or Gypsy, is only 3 years older than she!

WOW! This was a great book! Because this book is written in verse, it is a quick read. I had never heard of the T4 program before and I am shocked and saddened by it. This book did an excellent job of describing Paula's experience and the facts behind Hitler's terrible plan, while keeping it all appropriate for a young audience. I was glad for the happy ending!