ECHO

Echo, by Pam Munoz Ryan is a wonderful story about the lives of three young people who face enormous odds and come out triumphant.  The book is found in the Juvenile section of the library but it is inspiring even for adults.  Beautifully told it is a story that echoes through time and across continents.

First is the story of Friedrich Schmidt, who as a young boy growing up in the Black Forest of Germany is faced with the uncertainties of living through the Holocaust.  Friedrich is an amazingly
talented musician with a birthmark on his face.  Interestingly, Ryan, the author, uses this deformity to show the intolerance of Hitler and the ability to convince the German people to follow his ideas against even this young child, instead of the usual plight of the Jews.  He is given a harmonica that he plays with uncommon aptitude.  The harmonica gives him inner strength to face the world around him.

Next we meet two young brothers in Philadelphia, PA who have been sent to an orphanage after the death of their last living relative.  They also have exceptional musical talent and with a lucky twist of fate end up adopted by a wealthy woman who is grieving the loss of her own family.  With a harmonica that he finds in a music store Mike Flannery echoes the beautiful music necessary to save both himself and his brother.

Lastly, we learn about the life of Ivy Maria Lopez, the young daughter in a family of migrant traveling farmers.  They move from town to town in Southern California following the work.  Ivy gets a harmonica that gives her the inner conviction she needs to feel strong and secure to walk into a new school situation, make friends and keep her family together.  In this story we explore the role of the tenant farmer and the exportation of the Japanese landowners to internment camps during World War II in California.  The prejudice against people that are just not understood.  We also see how Ivy and her parents and neighbors survive the feeling of the unknown suspense of having a son off fighting the the European theater, with either the Army or the Marines.

Munoz Ryan weaves together a story with so many lessons and such a clear picture of what each of her three main characters are feeling in each situation.  This is not only an amazing novel but young people reading it will learn quite a lot of history from children their own age.  They will easily be able to relate to each well developed main character.