Setting: Israel
Time Period: 1948
I’ve come to really enjoy Robert Elmer’s YA (young adult) novels. This one, True Betrayer, is set in Jerusalem around the time of World War II and is a story of loyalty, trickery and adventure during turbulent times. Elmer’s series are a great way to introduce kids to what happened to the Jewish people all over the world during WWII and teach about history, friendship and most importantly, the Lord. (Elmer has another series, “The Young Underground,” which is set in Denmark during WWII.)
In True Betrayer, Dov and Emily have to do some brave things to help their friends who live outside Jerusalem in a kibbutz. I liked that there was both a boy, Dov, and a girl, Emily, as lead characters in the book. Both kids had a big part and point of view in the story, so if you have young readers, this book would appeal to both boys and girls. Also, there was a dog in the story! So, if you’re a lover of furry friends, that’s a big plus. The two things that really stood out to me in this book historically was that the author used the bad guy to educate readers on how WWII affected the Middle East, especially Israel, and also included a kibbutz in the story; which gave the book a really neat local flare. The book had an interesting plot and was appropriate for the age group.
Conclusion: I would recommend True Betrayer to young readers, especially ones interested in stories set in different parts of the world and/or in war times. It is #6 in a series, The Promise of Zion Series, so you might want to read all the books instead of just jumping in with this one. (I downloaded it for free on Kindle during a special promotion, hence why I read #6 first. lol) It’s a good introduction to what happened in Israel during WWII and shows how the Arabs supported Hitler, but how God was faithful to His people. It was a short, clean, enjoyable read that parents can trust for their kids!
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