Until the Stars Align

How would you feel if you were torn apart from your family, relocated to an unfamiliar country, and forced to live with virtual strangers, not knowing if you will ever see your loving parents? That is the theme Carolyn Summer Quinn explores in Until the Stars Align, a historical fiction novel set during World War II. It primarily focuses on kindertransport, a movement in which many Jewish children were transported from Germany to the apparent safety of Great Britain just before the onset of the war.
While there are many books portraying the devastating scenes in the concentration camps, Quinn zooms in on kindertransport, showing yet another heartrending aspect of the war. It shows how countless families were torn asunder, the parents letting go of their precious children in the faint hope that they would survive. The children's plight tugs at our conscience as they leave the only home they ever knew. Quinn portrays how their hearts are torn in two, one half filled with new hope, adjusting to life with the foster families, while the other half still beats for their biological parents.
The novel tells us the story of three cousins and their foster homes. The eldest, Rosi, struggles to maintain contact with her sister Anni and cousin Emilie, each residing in a separate house. Quinn depicts how the disparity between the socioeconomic status of the foster families affects the cousins who grew up as parts of a single family. Yet, it heartens us to see them trying to cheer each other up. Their newfound friendships also brighten the days.
A parallel storyline focuses on their parents trying desperately to leave Germany, reminding us how the war forced close-knit family members to concentrate on their own survival. Quinn perfectly captures the sense of an impending doom prevailing before the war. Her portrayal of pre-war Germany highlights the ongoing rise in anti-Semitic activities, ranging from school-ground bullying to destroying synagogues to sending the Jews to so-called work camps. The feeling that everything can go wrong at a moment's notice chills us to the core.
On the brighter side, the novel showcases the kind-hearted British families who adopted the children, saving them from a doomed fate and giving them the best opportunities they could afford. The Pearlies feature prominently in this book, their cheerful songs and dances uplifting people's spirits during a dark time, and their donations helping many. Quinn does not forget those kind individuals who paid no heed to Nazi propaganda, including neighbors who helped their Jewish friends, doctors who treated Jewish patients, and officials who assigned visas to get Jewish people out of Germany. She commemorates these acts of kindness that shine through in an otherwise harsh and heartless world.
While set in one of the most tumultuous times in world history, Quinn's novel is nonetheless a story of resilience and hope. After all, hope is the only thing that survives when everything seems dark. I recommend Until the Stars Align to anyone who loves historical fiction, especially WWII stories.

--Review by The Chrysalis BREW Project, Australia