Lines of Courage

Lines of Courage by Jennifer A. Nielsen

The book starts with a Jewish family in Austria-Hungary. They see the events of the assassination of the archduke and the outbreak of the war. In the book it appears as a series of unfortunate events. The car ended up inadvertently back in a dangerous place. Then some warmongers helped encourage the start of war, in spite of the desire for peace. For the characters, the city they are in is one of the first to fall to Russians. They had tried to leave, but were not able to make it on time.

The book is told from the perspective of various parties from Germany, France, Austria-Hungary and Russia. This puts a human touch on the war. There were many struggles going on with the different people involved. There were also some interactions among the people. The book seems to have a bit of "historical revisionism". The atrocities of the Communists in Russia and Nazis in Germany are heavily foreshadowed. 

Uprising

Uprising by Jennifer A. Nielsen

A young girl  (Lidia Durr) is living with her family in Poland at the outbreak of World War II. Her father is a former officer in the Polish army and goes off to help protect his country.  However, the country quickly capitulates as it is attacked by both the Russians and Germans. The Germans occupy Poland and put an end to school. (Somehow law and order seem generally in place.) Jews are rounded up in a ghetto. Poles that attempt to support them are shot. However, Lidia still wants to do what she can to help them out, especially as she remembers a family friend who is Jewish. They try to sneak things in when delivering potatoes.

The family loses their house and their savings to the Nazis. Mother most work a job to feed them and they move to a smaller house. Lidia goes to an underground school. Her brother joins the underground fighters. The Jews fight back through a ghetto uprising that is defeated. Later the Poles launch the Warsaw Uprising to take back the country. They have some moments, but they don't succeed.

In an afterward, the author mentions that the story was based on the real-life experiences of Lidia Durr. It is a terrifying story of a society that is marginalized as well as the marginalized of the marginalized.