Author: Anna Rose Johnson
Recommended Age: 12-14
Date Published: 2025
Genre: Historical Fiction
Summary: With the German front encroaching on London during the air raids of World War II, Rosemary’s family is forced to flee England to her grandmother’s home in Wisconsin. But Rosemary has never met her grandmother, and years of separation have hidden a secret about Rosemary’s past, identity, and place in the world.
Notes from The Radical Reader:
- Noble Characters: Rosemary reminded me of many classic female heroines like Laura Ingalls Wilder and Beth March. The way Rosemary works to unify her long-separated family is a joy to read, and her struggles many young teen girls will resonate with. Her friendship with Jacob, her grandmother’s errand boy, is a healthy example of a childhood platonic relationship and will remind readers of other classic literary duos.
- Captivating Plots: Rosemary’s family has been separated for years, forced to live apart as World War II brought financial dangers to the family. But now they are unified and traveling across the Atlantic Ocean to live together at their grandmother’s home in Wisconsin.
- Elaborate Worlds: Set in 1940, the German front is encroaching on London and threatening the lives of its citizens. When the children are evacuated, Rosemary’s family takes her and her two younger brothers to their grandmother’s home in Northern Wisconsin. But Rosemary’s father has been hiding a secret about their family, a secret that could threaten to tear apart the newfound home Rosemary is learning to love.
Noteworthy Elements:
- Profanity: The words “gosh” and “golly” are each used once. The expression “oh heavens” is used one time.
- Other: Rosemary’s father is at first depicted as a man who can’t settle with one job and continually upends his family. However, watching Rosemary’s father change throughout the course of the book mirrors the entire transformation of the family as they learn to love and care for one another after so many years of separation.
