Number the Stars

Number the Stars
Author(s)	Lois Lowry
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Historical fiction
Publication date	1989
Pages	138 total number of pages including about the author and afterword

Number the Stars is a work of historical fiction about the Holocaust of the Second World War by award-winning author Lois Lowry. The story centers around ten-year-old Annemarie Johansen, who lived in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1943 and was caught up in the events surrounding the rescue of the Danish Jews. She and her family risked their lives to help Annemarie's best friend, Ellen Rosen, by pretending that Ellen is Annemarie's older sister. Annemarie's older sister had died earlier in the war as a result of her work with the Danish Resistance. The story's title is taken from a reference to Psalm 147, in which the writer of the book relates that God has numbered all the stars in the universe. It is meant to tie into the Star of David, specifically to Ellen's necklace, which is symbolic to the story.

The novel was awarded the Newbery Medal in 1990 as the "most distinguished contribution to American literature for children".

Plot summary

The story opens with Annemarie Johansen and her friend Ellen Rosen having a running race on the streets of Copenhagen. Two Nazi soldiers stop them and ask them both questions. When Ellen and Annemarie's parents were told by Kirsti (Annemarie's younger sister), that the older girls were confronted by the soldiers, Annemarie's mom tells them to take a new route on their way from school. That night, Annemarie reminisces about her older sister Lise, who was hit by a car and killed (it is later revealed that the Nazis intentionally hit her). She also recalls her father seeing a boy tell a Nazi soldier about how all of Denmark is King Christian X's bodyguard.

Soon after, Peter Nielsen (who was Annemarie's sister Lise's fiance), a man working in the Danish Resistance, visits Annemarie and her family and tells them that the Germans have started closing Jewish stores. The next day, Ellen and her parents go to the synagogue for a Jewish holiday but come to find out that the Nazis found the list of all Danish Jews and they are coming to capture them. Peter takes Mr. and Mrs. Rosen with him into hiding, and Ellen Rosen (disguised as Lise) comes to live with the Johansens.

In the middle of the night, Nazi soldiers arrive at the Johansens' apartment and demand that they reveal the where the Rosen family is. Ellen Rosen is almost killed when one of the Nazi soldiers recognizes that two of Mr. Johansen's daughters are blonde and have straight hair, while Ellen is dark-haired. Mr. Johansen retrieves baby photos of his three daughters, with their names listed, which clearly show that Lise had hair similar to Ellen's when she was a baby. The soldier tears the photo and leaves.

After the Nazis leave, Mr. Johansen calls his brother-in-law, Henrik, and makes encoded arrangements to bring Ellen to him. Later, Annemarie, Ellen, Mrs. Johansen, and Kirsti leave by train for Uncle Henrik's home in Gilleleje. One peaceful day goes by at Henrik's, then Mrs. Johansen tells the girls that their Great-aunt Birte has died and they will be having a funeral. However, Annemarie knows that Great-aunt Birte doesn't exist, and confronts Uncle Henrik. He explains to her that she is right, and says that it is easier to be brave when you don't know the full truth.

Many strangers arrive at Uncle Henrik's house for the funeral, among them a rabbi and several Jewish families. A group of Nazi soldiers arrive and interrupt the funeral, and Ellen's parents and Peter Nielsen arrive shortly after. A soldier questions Annemarie about the funeral and asks her mother to open the casket. Her mother told the soldier that she would love to do so, since country doctors were not reliable, and it was only the country doctor who told them that opening the casket would spread germs because Great-aunt Birte had died from typhus. The soldier slaps her face and leaves in frustration. Peter reads the beginning of Psalm 147 to the group from the Bible, recounting the Lord God numbering the stars. Annemarie thinks that it is impossible to number the stars in the sky, and that the world is cold and very cruel like the sky or the ocean, which Mrs. Rosen is scared of.

Peter opens the casket and distributes warm clothing and blankets to the Jewish families who then depart, splitting up to attract less attention. Peter leads the first group, while Annemarie's mother leaves with the second. Annemarie says goodbye to Ellen and goes to sleep for the night. In the morning, she finds that her mother has not returned. Annemarie looks out the window to see her lying on the grass below. She frantically runs outside and finds, to her relief, that her mother has only broken her ankle. Her mother realizes that a package important to the Resistance was accidentally dropped by Mr. Rosen when he tripped on a flight of stairs. Mrs. Johansen, knowing the importance of the package, gives Annemarie a basket filled with cheese, bread and an apple (presumably lunch for her uncle) and hides the package inside. Annemarie runs off, onto a wooded path towards her uncle's boat.

When she nears the harbor, she is stopped by German soldiers on patrol, and lies that she is merely delivering lunch to her uncle. The soldiers toss some of the food onto the ground and eventually reach the package, which they tear open, finding only a handkerchief. The German soldiers laugh, toss the cheese and handkerchief to the ground, and walk away. Annemarie continues onward to Uncle Henrik and gives him the package. He boards his fishing boat and leaves for Sweden.

Uncle Henrik returns to Denmark later that evening and explains to Annemarie that the Rosens and many other Jewish people were hiding in his boat. He also explains that the handkerchief contained the scent of rabbit blood and cocaine, to attract the dogs so when they sniffed it, the cocaine would temporarily numb the German dogs' sense of smell.

Two years later, the war ends, and all of Denmark celebrates. Several revelations are made: Peter was captured and executed by the Germans. The Jews who were forced to leave Denmark return and find that their friends and neighbors have kept up their apartments in anticipation of their return. Annemarie finds out how Lise dies. Before the Rosens come back, Annemarie asks her father to repair Ellen's Star of David necklace (which had been broken off the night the Nazis broke into the apartment in order to conceal her identity), wanting to wear it herself in honor of her.

External links

• Lois Lowry - Author

Awards
Preceded by Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices	Newbery Medal recipient 1990	Succeeded by Maniac Magee