Lines of Courage by Jennifer Nielsen – Book Review

Title: Lines of Courage Author: Jennifer A. Nielsen Publisher: Scholastic Press Release Date: May 17, 2022

From the beginning of World War I (WWI) to its bitter and brutal end, five young people from five different countries face unimaginable challenges and show exceptional bravery as they try to survive the war to end all wars. Felix, a Jewish boy from Austria-Hungary, witnesses the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, which sets off a series of events leading to the war. Kara and her mother work on a Red Cross train, glimpsing the devastation of the frontlines up close. Juliette’s French village is destroyed, and she desperately tries to reunite with her family. Elsa and her German family struggle to survive as the war turns against the Central Powers. Finally, Dimitri is thrust into the war’s infamous trench warfare and does what he can to live one more day. Although each young person’s experiences are different, their courage connects them in the most unexpected ways.

Lines of Courage by Jennifer Nielsen is an ambitious, well-researched, and moving portrait of WWI. The alternating perspectives creates a fast-paced plot that will absorb readers and keep them engaged. While the connections between the stories may feel tenuous to some, all should overlook the tidiness of the plot line for Nielsen’s choice of setting. WWI is often overlooked as a topic for middle grade, historical fiction due to its complicated history. Nielsen does a remarkable job weaving together this history through five compelling experiences, all the while communicating important themes about what it means to be courageous when the world is at its worst.

Lines of Courage is an excellent starting point to explore the history of WWI. Not only is it an important epoch to explore, it is a vital one to understand the events that follow in the 20^th century. The complicated nature of WWI can make it easy to gloss over, but Nielsen’s retelling makes it accessible and understandable, providing educators a perfect springboard to comprehensively teach this era of history. Such a cross-curricular experience for students will provide them with critical knowledge that will equip them to ask important and pressing questions about the next world war that followed so close on the first’s heels. All of which offers valuable lessons – if we only stop to learn and contemplate how events from the past can not only help us understand the present but also guide us to better futures.

Thank you to Edelweiss+ and publisher, Scholastic Press, for an eARC of this book.

Classroom Applications

• Cross-curricular Study – Teach the novel in conjunction with a History unit about WWI.
• Literature Circles – Use novel for small groups or choice reading with a variety of books that focus on WWI.
• Book Club or Book Exchange – Share the novel with students that enjoy reading historical fiction.

Nonfiction Connections

The list below outlines topics that will enrich your students’ understanding of the novel.

• WWI
• Causes of WWI
• Aftermath of WWI

Book Companions

The following are great books to pair with Lines of Courage. In parenthesis are the specific aspects students could explore when synthesizing across the texts.

• War Horse by Michael Morpurgo (Nonfiction Connections, Character Connections, Themes)
• Grenade by Alan Gratz (Character Connections, Themes, Story Structure)
• Any Novels by Jennifer Nielsen

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