The War I Finally Won by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley | eBook

A New York Times bestseller

Like the classic heroines of Sarah, Plain and Tall, Little Women, and Anne of Green Gables, Ada is a fighter for the ages. Her triumphant World War II journey continues in this sequel to the Newbery Honor–winning The War that Saved My Life

When Ada’s clubfoot is surgically fixed at last, she knows for certain that she’s not what her mother said she was—damaged, deranged, crippled mentally as well as physically. She’s not a daughter anymore, either. Who is she now?

World War II rages on, and Ada and her brother, Jamie, move with their guardian, Susan, into a cottage with the iron-faced Lady Thorton and her daughter, Maggie. Life in the crowded home is tense. Then Ruth moves in. Ruth, a Jewish girl, from Germany. A German? Could Ruth be a spy?

As the fallout from war intensifies, calamity creeps closer, and life during wartime grows even more complicated. Who will Ada decide to be? How can she keep fighting? And who will she struggle to save?

Ada’s first story, The War that Saved My Life, was a #1 New York Times bestseller and won a Newbery Honor, the Schneider Family Book Award, and the Josette Frank Award, in addition to appearing on multiple best-of-the-year lists. This second masterwork of historical fiction continues Ada's journey of family, faith, and identity, showing us that real freedom is not just the ability to choose, but the courage to make the right choice.

"Honest . . . Daring." —The New York Times
"Stunning." —The Washington Post
★ "Ada is for the ages—as is this book. Wonderful." —Kirkus, starred review
★ "Fans of the first book will love the sequel even more." —SLJ, starred review
★ "Bradley sweeps us up . . . even as she moves us to tears." —The Horn Book, starred review
★ "Perceptive . . . satisfying . . . will stay with readers." —PW, starred review
"Beautiful." —HuffPost

The New York Times Book Review - Laurel Snyder

Rarely is a children's book so honest in its approach to suffering, and the possibility that recovery will never be complete. Ada will always limp, and she may always feel survivor's guilt or struggle to trust those who love her. In this way, The War I Finally Won is daring. But there is comfort too, in Ada's desire to love and grow. This willingness to allow for true contrast is the book's greatest strength. Despair and hope, coldness and warmth, fear and trust, ugliness and beauty…The War I Finally Won explores how pain can lead to strength, or fear to joy. In the end, we accept that Ada will carry her burden. But we also know that she will work to be okay. The power of this book is that it describes, slowly and sometimes painfully, that it is possible not just to live through pain, but to live with it.

Publishers Weekly

★ 08/28/2017
Bradley picks up directly after the events of her Newbery Honor–winning The War That Saved My Life, which introduced tenacious Ada who—after years of mistreatment from her mother because of her club foot—summoned the determination to carve out a better life for herself amid the onset of WWII. The war affects 11-year-old Ada more directly now, as she, her younger brother, and their guardian Susan reunite with the prim Lady Thorton, her daughter Maggie, and their family, and Ada undergoes a surgery that allows her better use of her foot. These familiar characters are joined by Ruth, a 16-year-old Jewish German refugee, who has been separated from her family, including a grandmother detained in a concentration camp. Ada and Ruth’s interactions, which begin warily and flourish into sisterhood and trust, portray a perceptive look into othering; it’s Ada who first sees Ruth is more than her German heritage. Bradley sensitively portrays Ada’s journey to accept selfless kindness and love after years of neglect in a poignant and satisfying story of found family that will stay with readers. Ages 9–12. Agent: Ginger Knowlton, Curtis Brown. (Oct.)

From the Publisher

A New York Times bestseller
A Washington Post Best Book of the Year
A Boston Globe Best Book of the Year
A Kirkus Best Book of the Year
A Horn Book Fanfare Best Book of the Year
A Southern Living Best Book of the Year
A BookPage Best Book of the Year
An Indie Next List selection

"Stunning . . . By turns tough and tender, this novel leavens complex themes with moments of wonder and joy." —The Washington Post

"Rarely is a children’s book so honest . . . [and] daring. But there is comfort too, in Ada’s desire to love and grow. . . . The power of this book is that it describes, slowly and sometimes painfully, that it is possible not just to live through pain, but to live with it.” —The New York Times

★ "Thoughtful, brave, true, and wise beyond her years, Ada is for the ages—as is this book. Wonderful." —Kirkus, starred review

"It’s rare when a sequel is just as beautifully written and just as touching (maybe even more so) than the first book. . . . Bradley writes the story in such a way that the reader is by turns both touched and then, pages later, heartbroken. Over and over.” —HuffPost

★ "Fans of the first book will love the sequel even more; truly a first purchase. While it stands alone, encourage readers to read both books to fully appreciate Ada’s remarkable and wholly believable triumph." —School Library Journal, starred review

"Harrowing and heartening." —San Francisco Chronicle

★ "Bradley sweeps us up in the story she’s telling and at the same time raises hard questions and makes us think—even as she moves us to tears." —The Horn Book, starred review

★ "A perceptive look into othering . . . Bradley sensitively portrays Ada’s journey to accept selfless kindness and love after years of neglect in a poignant and satisfying story of found family that will stay with readers." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Ada . . . is one of the most unforgettable characters in modern children’s literature." —The Washington Post

"In a hard times, complicated people do the best they can. That’s what we see in this bittersweet moving story . . . (Be prepared for both tears and smiles with this one!)" —ImaginationSoup

"Ada’s story is a winning combination of history and healing, and fans may hope that Bradley isn’t quite finished with her just yet." —Booklist

School Library Journal

★ 09/01/2017
Gr 4–6—Eleven-year-old Ada picks up her story shortly after The War That Saved My Life left off. She's in the hospital, nervously awaiting the surgery that will fix her club foot, when Susan receives a letter from Lady Thornton that obviously upsets her. Turns out, Ada's mother was killed in a bombing. Ada does not know how to feel about that, but, ever practical, she worries about where that leaves her and brother Jamie now that they are war orphans instead of child evacuees. Despite Susan's assurances that the three of them are family now, Ada remains prickly and irritable, particularly when Jamie falls easily into calling Susan "Mum." The three move into a cottage on the Thornton estate and are soon joined by Lady Thornton when the big house is needed for the war effort. Ada is leery of Lady Thornton, but living in close quarters brings out the best and worst in everyone, especially when Lord Thornton arrives with a German Jewish girl named Ruth whom he wishes Susan to tutor. Ada's unique voice helps evoke the novel's vivid setting and numerous complex characters. There is destitution but plenty of humor. There is also plenty of heartbreak and loss, so readers will want to keep a box of tissues handy. VERDICT Fans of the first book will love the sequel even more; truly a first purchase. While it stands alone, encourage readers to read both books to fully appreciate Ada's remarkable and wholly believable triumph.—Brenda Kahn, Tenakill Middle School, Closter, NJ

Kirkus Reviews

★ 2017-08-07
Ada returns in this sequel to Newbery Honor book The War That Saved My Life (2015).Shortly after the events that closed the last book, a successful surgery means overjoyed 11-year-old, white Ada no longer has a clubfoot. She can walk, run, and ride relatively pain-free, but pain returns in a different way: Ada's abusive birth mother has been killed in an air raid. Enough back story is provided that readers new to Ada's story won't be lost. Patient Susan, providing a home to Ada and her little brother, Jamie, during the Blitz, becomes their legal guardian, but Ada, damaged by 10 years of abuse, doesn't ever feel safe. Living in the midst of a world war only adds to Ada's constant worries, and from blackout screens to rations, the stress and strain felt in everyday Kent during World War II is plain. But Ada finds comfort in her horse, Butter, and her family, which grows to include privileged Lady Thorton and Ruth, a teenage, Jewish German refugee. Ada's struggles with her trauma are portrayed with such incredible nuance and heart-wrenching realism that readers are sure to empathize deeply and revel in the joy of watching thoughtful, introspective Ada heal and grow. When tragedy strikes, all suffer, but Ada is able to help another in greater anguish than herself thanks to lessons from her own painful past. Thoughtful, brave, true, and wise beyond her years, Ada is for the ages—as is this book. Wonderful. (Historical fiction. 10-14)

The War I Finally Won

eBook

Customer Reviews

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Recently Viewed

The War I Finally Won

eBook

Customer Reviews

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Recently Viewed

Related Subjects