Book Buzz: Lion’s Run by Sara Pennypacker
“When I learned about the Lebensborn, many years ago, I had a hard time believing this could be true. When I was able to confirm it, I was deeply appalled and knew I had to write about it. And I felt a book about this subject could only be for adults…the strong feelings I had about the Lebensborn never left me. Even back then, I felt girls should know about this terrible aspect of that war…It wasn’t until I learned, later, that children as young as 11 were working as couriers for the Resistance that the first seed for The Lions’ Run was planted. I began to wonder if those 11-year-olds were aware of how courageous they were. I think a lot about courage in kids; they are often confused about what it means to be brave.”
― Sara Pennypacker, Interview, Publisher’s Weekly
What booksellers are saying about Lion’s Run
- There are so many ways to be brave. In a Nazi occupied village full of secrets and fear, Lucas discovers his own way to be a hero. I loved this exciting story of how to be a friend in time when fighting for freedom comes with a high cost.
― Susan, M Judson, Booksellers, Greenville, South Carolina | BUY
- In this story of World War II and the French Resistance, a gentle boy is driven by his conscience fo join the resistance, which culminates in an impulsive act that threatens his life, but could save another. Lucas is a quiet hero. An excellent story of courage and friendship in the face of danger
― Amy, The Snail on the Wall, Huntsville, Alabama | BUY
- In 1944 German occupied France, Lucas, an orphan, contemplates the meaning of bravery, even as he rescues kittens, helps a local girl hide her racehorse from the Germans, joins the Resistance, and begins to hatch a daring plan to rescue a baby from the Nazi run Lebensborn maternity home. A great read!
― Mary, The Little Bookshop, Midlothian, Virginia | BUY
- A beautiful tale of an orphaned boy who must choose between a world of safety and what he’s known and doing what is ultimately right. This book had me completely in pieces at the end with tears streaming down my face. A wonderful story of bravery, love, empathy, and fighting for what is right.
― Shree, Hills & Hamlets Bookshop, Chattahoochee Hills, Georgia | BUY
About Sara Pennypacker
| Sara Pennypacker is the author of the New York Times bestselling Pax and Pax, Journey Home; the award-winning Clementine series and its spinoff series, Waylon; and the acclaimed novels Summer of the Gypsy Moths, Here in the Real World, and Leeva at Last. She divides her time between Cape Cod and Southern California. You can visit her online at sarapennypacker.com |
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“There’s a moment in the book where Sage learns that grief is like hunger and that she will always be grieving like there’s never going to be a day that we don’t need to eat,…I can have breakfast, and then by dinnertime, I need to eat again, and next week I’m going to need a meal, and three years from now, I’m going to be hungry. That was freeing for me as a person. It wasn’t just a plot point or something to just put in the book. It was really what I needed for myself to understand that I would always miss my mother, or that there will always be some issue that we’re fighting against and standing up for in this nation, and that I can hold all of that. That’s normal and I’m okay.”
“I’ve moved a lot, including back and forth across the country three times! When I moved to the Washington, DC, area, I learned about luna moths—beautiful and short-lived moths who can only be found on the eastern side of the country. This helped me realize that there would be special and unique things about my new home. Since so many kids deal with the difficult experience of moving, I thought this might be the beginning of a new story idea.”
