Upon the Head of the Goat: A Childhood in Hungary 1939-1944

Synopsis

In 1939, nine-year-old Piri is happy to spend her spring vacation at her grandmother Babi’s house in the Ukrainian countryside. There, Piri freely enjoys the meadows, rivers and wildflowers. In her busy household, Babi makes sure her granddaughter continues to speak Yiddish and observe the Sabbath. But there is a darker side to this paradise. The Hungarian soldiers riding through the beautiful landscape are a threat not only to the Ukrainians but also to Jews. And when Piri returns to Hungary, she hears rumors of the ghettos. Gradually, the young girl realizes that the world she loves has changed forever. Aranka Siegal’s powerful story is drawn from her own life. She was a survivor of Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen. A Newbery Honor Book and a School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, Upon the Head of the Goat creates a personal view of the Holocaust that was mirrored in countless lives during that ominous time.