Lowery
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Lois Lowry was born on March 20, 1937, in Honolulu, Hawaii. She attended Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, and the University of Southern Maine, where she earned her bachelors degree in English in 1972.
Lowry divides her time between an apartment on Bostons Beacon Hill and an 1840 farmhouse in New Hampshire.
Her novel Number the Stars won the Newbery Medal in 1990.
Lowry writes about the ordinary events and emotions of everyday life, such as first dates, making friends, embarrassment, and fear of failure. Lowry often contrasts the imagined and wished dreams of the young with the realities that they must confront.
Annemarie is the protagonist, or main character in the novel, and can be seen as the heroine. She is a tall, blonde, ten-year-old Christian girl living in Copenhagen, Denmark during World War II. Annemarie is a dynamic character. She changes during the course of the novel due to her experiences and actions. We are aware of Annemaries changes because Lowry narrates Number the Stars in the third person limited omniscient viewpoint in order to reveal Annemaries thoughts and feelings.
When the novel begins, Annemarie is a relatively innocent child. She runs races with her best friend, Ellen Rosen, and plays paper dolls. She is annoyed because there are Nazi soldiers at every corner. She is aware of the changes that her family has had to adapt to, such as food and fuel shortages. Annemarie understands that she mustnt draw attention to herself, that she needs “to be one of the crowd.” Everything has changed for Annemarie. The only constants in her life are fairy tales.
Annemarie begins to lose her innocence when she realizes that Ellens life is in danger. She proves her friendship with Ellen many times by protecting her from the Nazis. At her house, she pulls Ellens Star of David necklace off her neck to keep the Nazis from knowing that Ellen is Jewish. She later realizes that she must lie to protect Ellen and other Jews, so she pretends that she is mourning a great-aunt that doesnt exist. Finally, Annemarie faces the Nazis alone in the woods, and, relying on the Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale for courage, she bravely stands up to the Nazis.
Annemarie learns the meaning of bravery. She understands from her experience that ordinary people are called upon to be courageous. She also realizes that it is much easier to be courageous if you dont know the extent of the danger. Annemarie knows that bravery is the result of standing up for what you believe in, regardless of the dangers.
At the end of the novel, the war is over and Annemarie is hopeful that Ellen and her parents will return. As a symbol of her friendship with Ellen, she puts on Ellens Star of David Necklace to wear until she can personally return it to Ellen.
Number the Stars is a historical novel set in Denmark during World War II. Lowry has written the novel in third person (“He says,” as opposed to, “I said,” which is first person), using a limited omniscient viewpoint (only Annemaries thoughts and feelings are revealed). Ten-year-old Annemarie Johansen and her family live in Copenhagen, Denmark. Their lives have changed drastically because the Nazis now occupy Denmark (1943). Through Annemarie, we learn that the Danes must abide by curfews and use blackout curtains on their windows. They have no fuel for heat, and electricity has been rationed. The Danes must use candles to light their homes. They have sadly become accustomed to Nazi soldiers standing on every street corner and have learned to be “just another face in the crowd,” going about their business, trying not to be noticed by the Nazis. The adults are fearful and sad because they understand the dangers of the Nazis occupation of Denmark and they have experienced loss resulting from the actions of the Nazis. Annemaries older sister, Lise, was killed because she was an active member of the Danish Resistance, a group of people opposed to the Nazi occupation of Denmark and supportive of the Danish Jews. Annemarie, her five-year-old sister, Kirsti, and her best friend, Ellen Rosen, are unaware of the danger that surrounds them. They are only aware of obvious changes that have affected their lives. They are aware of the food shortages (sugar is no longer available, they eat bread without butter, and their mothers drink “coffee,” which is really just herb-flavored water); they cant get rubber tires so bicycles have wooden wheels; they are unable to get leather shoes–just shoes made from fish scales; and they play with paper dolls cut from old magazines. Some things, however, continue as usual. Annemarie still plays with Ellen, and all of the children attend school. Annemaries father and Ellens father go to work the same as always.
Number the Stars begins with a foreboding tone. Annemarie, her sister, Kirsti, and Ellen are running home from school and are questioned by the Nazi soldiers. Mrs. Hirsch, the button store owner, and her son are taken away by the Nazis. When the Rosens, upstairs neighbors and good friends of the Johansens, go to their synagogue to celebrate the Jewish New Year, their rabbi warns them that they are in extreme danger of being taken and “relocated” by the Nazis. When the Johansens find out, they offer to help them because, “thats what friends do.”
The Rosens must go into hiding or risk being relocated by the Nazis. Peter Neilsen, Lises fiancй and a member of the Resistance, takes Ellens parents with him on the eve of the Jewish New Year. Ellen stays with Annemarie and her family pretending to be Annemaries sister. The tone is suspenseful as Nazi soldiers demand entrance to the Johansens apartment in the middle of the night, searching for the Rosens. Terrified, Annemarie notices that Ellen has on her Star of David necklace. Annemarie yanks the necklace from Ellens neck and hides it in her hand. Because Ellen has dark hair and Annemarie and Kirsti have blonde hair, the soldiers question Annemaries father about Ellens identity. He corroborates Ellens story, telling the soldiers that she is Lise. Mr. Johansen produces a picture of his dead daughter, Lise, who had dark hair as an infant. The soldiers reluctantly accept the picture as proof and before they leave the apartment, they spitefully destroy the pictures.
The next day, Mrs. Johansen takes Annemarie, Kirsti, and Ellen to her brothers farmhouse which is in Gilleleje, near the coast. Annemarie knows the trip is not a vacation, but she doesnt understand what is going on. The night before, when her parents telephoned her uncle, they seemed to be talking