Number the Stars

The unforgettable Newbery Medal-winning novel from Lois Lowry. As the German troops begin their campaign to "relocate" all the Jews of Denmark, Annemarie Johansen's family takes in Annemarie's best friend, Ellen Rosen, and conceals her as part of the family.

Through the eyes of ten-year-old Annemarie, we watch as the Danish Resistance smuggles almost the entire Jewish population of Denmark, nearly seven thousand people, across the sea to Sweden. The heroism of an entire nation reminds us that there was pride and human decency in the world even during a time of terror and war.

A modern classic of historical fiction, Number the Stars has won generations of fans and continues to speak to today's readers. Jessica Grose wrote in a November 2022 New York Times essay entitled "This Perfect Mother-Daughter Read Holds a Powerful Lesson for Fighting Antisemitism" "Number the Stars is particularly relevant to our family, and to this moment."

As School Library Journal put it: "Readers are taken to the very heart of Annemarie's experience, and, through her eyes, come to understand the true meaning of bravery."

“"The whole work is seamless, compelling, and memorable'impossible to put down; difficult to forget." ' The Horn Book”

"The whole work is seamless, compelling, and memorable--impossible to put down; difficult to forget." -- The Horn Book

"Like Annemarie, the reader is protected from the full implications of events--but will be caught up in the suspense and menace of several encounters with soldiers and in Annemarie's courageous run as a courier on the night of the escape." -- Kirkus Reviews

"Readers are taken to the very heart of Annemarie's experience, and, through her eyes, come to understand the true meaning of bravery." -- School Library Journal

Lois Lowry was born in Hawaii and grew up in New York, Pennsylvania, and Japan. She has received Newbery Medals for two of her novels, Number the Stars and The Giver. Ms. Lowry now divides her time between Cambridge and an 1840s farmhouse in Maine. To learn more about Lois Lowry, visit her website at

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