Number the Stars


Number the Stars is a work of historical fiction by American author Lois Lowry, about the escape of a Jewish family from Copenhagen, Denmark, during World War II.
The story centers on ten-year-old Annemarie Johansen, who lives with her mom, papa, and Kirsti, her sister in Copenhagen in 1943. She becomes a part of the events related to the rescue of the Danish Jews, when thousands of Jews were helped to reach neutral ground in Sweden in order to avoid being relocated to concentration camps. She risked her life in order to help her best friend, Ellen Rosen, by pretending that Ellen is Annemarie's late older sister Lise, who had died earlier in the war. Lise had been killed by the Nazi military as a result of her work with the Danish Resistance, though her former fiancé Peter, based in part on Danish resistance member Kim Malthe-Bruun, continues to help them. The story's title is taken from a reference to Psalm 147:4, in which the writer relates that God has numbered all the stars and has named each one of them. It ties into the Star of David, worn by Ellen Rosen on her necklace, which is a symbol of Judaism.
The novel was awarded the Newbery Medal in 1990 as the previous year's "most distinguished contribution to American literature for children". Lois Lowry traveled to Copenhagen to conduct research and interviews for the book. She took the photo of the girl used for the cover. That cover was used on many editions of the book.

Plot summary

Annemarie Johansen and her friend, Ellen Rosen, are ten-year-old girls living in Copenhagen, Denmark, during World War II. Annemarie has a 5-year-old sister named Kirsti. There are Nazis on every street corner in Copenhagen. Butter, sugar, coffee, and cigarettes are rationed.
After an encounter with two German soldiers, Annemarie and Ellen are told to be much more careful. Later on, it turns out that for unknown reasons the Germans are "relocating" Denmark's Jews. At the synagogue, the Nazis have taken the names and addresses of all the Jewish people in Copenhagen. Ellen and her family are Jewish. Ellen's parents have fled with Peter, the former fiancé of Annemarie's older sister, Lise, who died years before. Ellen must stay with the Johansens, pretending to be Lise, even though she is half the age of the real Lise. Soldiers enter the Johansens' apartment at 4 in the morning, thinking that the Rosens are "Paying a visit" to the Johansens. Annemarie and Ellen wake up and Annemarie breaks the Star of David necklace off Ellen's neck. If the soldiers had seen it, they would have known Ellen was a Jew. The soldiers see Ellen's dark hair and become suspicious because the Johansens have blond hair, and Ellen has brown hair. Luckily, Lise had brown hair as an infant. Mr. Johansen shows the Nazis a picture of baby Lise, and they leave.
Mrs. Johansen, Annemarie, Ellen, and Kirsti leave the next morning to go to Uncle Henrik's house by the sea. Sweden, a Nazi-free country, can be seen from Uncle Henrik's house. Before they had gone to his house, Mr. Johansen had spoken in code to Henrik. When they get there, Henrik seems like his ordinary self. The next day, Henrik says that Annemarie's Great-Aunt Birte has died. A huge casket is placed in the middle of the living room. Annemarie knows that there is no Aunt Birte, but learns from her uncle that it is easier to be brave if you do not know something, so she does not tell Ellen the truth about her "aunt".
Later on, many people come to mourn "Aunt Birte", to Annemarie's puzzlement. Nazis come to the house and see all the people and start questioning the family. They explain that Great-Aunt Birte has died, and they are carrying out traditional rituals. The Nazis order the casket opened, and Mrs. Johansen acts fast. She says that Great-Aunt Birte had typhus, a very contagious and dangerous disease, or so the doctor said. She goes to the casket to open it, but one of the soldiers slaps her in the face and says they can open it when the soldiers leave.
After they leave, the wake continues. Peter, who is present, reads the beginning of Psalm 147 from the Bible to the group, recounting the Lord God numbering the stars. As the psalm is not familiar to Annemarie, her thoughts begin to wander. She wonders how it is possible to number the stars in the sky and remembers Ellen saying that her mother is afraid of the ocean because her mother thinks it is cold and cruel. Annemarie thinks that the night sky and the world are also cold and cruel. Peter opens the casket and gives the warm clothing and blankets concealed within it to the Jewish families. They depart in smaller groups to avoid attracting attention. Ellen says goodbye to Annemarie and her mother.
In the morning, Annemarie sees her mother crawling in the distance because she had broken her ankle. After helping her mother back to the house, Annemarie finds a packet of great importance to the Resistance, a packet which Mr. Rosen dropped when he accidentally tripped on a flight of stairs. Mrs. Johansen tells Annemarie to fill a basket with food and the packet, and run as fast as she can. Annemarie runs off onto a wooded path in the direction of her uncle's boat. She is halted by Nazi soldiers with dogs. When they question Annemarie about what she is doing out so early, she lies, saying that she is taking a basket with a meal to her uncle. The soldiers do not believe her, and one of them grabs at the basket. However, the soldiers eventually let her go, and Annemarie makes it to her uncle's boat. She gives Uncle Henrik an envelope that contains a handkerchief. The handkerchief had traces of cocaine on it to numb the dog's sense of smell. When the Nazi dogs took onto the boat sniff the handkerchief, they can no longer smell Uncle Henrik's hidden "cargo": the Jewish people he is smuggling to safety.
Uncle Henrik returns to Denmark later that evening from Sweden. He tells Annemarie that many Jewish people, including the Rosens, were hiding in his boat. He also explains that the handkerchief in her package contained the scent of rabbit blood, which attracted the dogs, and the strong odor of cocaine, which numbs their noses, preventing them from tracking down the Jews in Henrik's boat. Several revelations are made, including that Peter is in the Danish Resistance.
Two years later, the war in Europe ends, and all of Denmark celebrates. The Jews who were forced to leave Denmark will find that their friends and neighbors have kept up their apartments in hopes of their return. Peter had been captured and executed by the Nazis in the town square earlier in the war, after which Annemarie learned that her sister Lise died, not in an accident, but because the Nazis intentionally hit her with a military car: she was also in the Resistance. It is unknown whether Ellen or her parents return to Copenhagen.

Reception

Critical and popular reactions were positive. Kirkus Reviews said that "...like Annemarie, the reader is protected from the full implications of events--but will be caught up in the suspense and menace of several encounters with soldiers and in Annemarie's courageous run as a courier on the night of the escape."
In addition to winning numerous awards, the book has been one of the best-selling children's books of all time. According to Publishers Weekly, it was the 82nd best selling children's book of all time in the United States with sales above 2 million as of 2001. Sales have remained solid, even years after publication.

Theatre adaptations

In 1996, Doug Larche, with the editorial assistance of Susan Elliott, wrote a dramatic adaptation of "Number the Stars" which was published by The Dramatic Publishing Company of Woodstock, Illinois. The work has had over 250 productions, including opening two Holocaust Museums and playing two summers at the Danish International Immigrant Museum. It continues to be produced at major youth and regional theatres, as well as community, university, college, high school, middle school and academy theatres around the world. In 1998, The Dramatic Publishing Company released "Number the Stars A Musical Play", adapted by Sean Hartley.

Film adaptation

In September 2017, actor Sean Astin announced that he had spent the last ten years attempting to get a film adaptation greenlit.

Awards