Irena Sendler and others in the underground movement in Warsaw doing World War II helped saved 2,500 Jewish children from the Nazis. This compelling adaption of a book for adults documents their work in a chronological account that is full of tension, but grounded by the commitment of Irena and her compatriots, some of them Jews themselves, to do what they knew to be the right and decent thing, the only thing possible, regardless of the risks. While Irena is the primary focus, small sections throughout the narrative follow the efforts of several others with whom she worked saving Jewish children, many of them from the Warsaw Ghetto, through clever, courageous, bold endeavors. Most of the children were placed with willing Polish Christian families. A work of nonfiction shot through with poignancy concludes with a final chapter that follows the fate of Irena (who died in 2008 at age 98, a hero in Poland and beyond) and some of her key co-conspirators, an adapter’s note, and endnotes. (Age 12 and older)

From New York Times bestselling author Tilar Mazzeo comes the extraordinary and long forgotten story of Irena Sendler—the “female Oskar Schindler”—who took staggering risks to save 2,500 children from death and deportation in Nazi-occupied Poland during World War II—now adapted for a younger audience.

Irena Sendler was a young Polish woman living in Warsaw during World War II with an incredible story of survival and selflessness. And she’s been long forgotten by history.

Until now.

This young readers edition of Irena’s Children tells Irena’s unbelievable story set during one of the worst times in modern history. With guts of steel and unfaltering bravery, Irena smuggled thousands of children out of the walled Jewish ghetto in toolboxes and coffins, snuck them under overcoats at checkpoints, and slipped them through the dank sewers and into secret passages that led to abandoned buildings, where she convinced her friends and underground resistance network to hide them.

In this heroic tale of survival and resilience in the face of impossible odds, Tilar Mazzeo and adapter Mary Cronk Farrell share the true story of this bold and brave woman, overlooked by history, who risked her life to save innocent children from the horrors of the Holocaust.