ACCESS DIGITIZED EDITION
Guide/Reviews Database
BIOGRAPHIES
Shulevitz, Uri

The Sky Was My Blanket: A Young Man's Journey Across Wartime Europe

160 pp. | Farrar | August, 2025 | Trade ISBN 9780374392468 $19.99 | Ebook ISBN 9780374392475 $11.99
(2) 4-6 The late Shulevitz, author of the acclaimed memoir Chance: Escape from the Holocaust (rev. 11/20), recounts the story of his beloved uncle’s experiences in the early twentieth century and during the Holocaust. Born in 1915 Poland, Yehiel left home at fifteen seeking adventure beyond his close yet restrictive family: “Although Father was a kind and loving man, when it came to religious observance, he was strict and allowed for no compromises.” Leaving home was a decision that ultimately saved his life after Germany invaded Poland and his parents and two of his brothers (the third being Shulevitz’s father) were murdered by the Nazis. The specter of the Holocaust hangs heavily over the narrative (“Ugly graffiti was scrawled on walls: Jews, your time is coming”), but Yehiel’s life was full of incident: working his way across Eastern Europe, studying Hebrew and leatherwork in Vienna, joining a brother in Paris, moving to Barcelona and fighting against fascism in the Spanish Civil War, joining a Jewish Resistance group, getting married, surviving World War II, and becoming a naturalized French citizen. The use of first person adds a storytelling element: Yehiel was like a second father to the author, who met his uncle in 1946 when the Shulevitzes arrived after their own wartime ordeal, and it’s easy to “hear” the voice of Yehiel in the straightforward and engaging narrative. Shulevitz’s recognizably textured line work appears throughout, while images by his uncle, who began painting later in life, are appended.
Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2025

RELATED 

BIOGRAPHIES

Saving American Beach
by King, Heidi Tyline
BIOGRAPHIES

Violet and Daisy
by Miller, Sarah
BIOGRAPHIES

Notes from a Young Black Chef
by , Onwuachi, Kwame & Stein, Joshua David
BIOGRAPHIES

Dr. Fauci
by Messner, Kate
BIOGRAPHIES

Indelible Ann
by Browne, Meghan P.
More

Get connected. Join our global community of more than 200,000 librarians and educators.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

We are currently offering this content for free. Sign up now to activate your personal profile, where you can save articles for future viewing.

ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?