Missing: The True Story of My Family in World War II

A personal, powerful and resonant account of the Holocaust by one of this country's best-loved children’s authors.By turns charming, shocking and heart-breaking, this is the true story of Michael Rosen’s search for his relatives who “went missing” during the Second World War – told through prose, poetry, maps and pictures. When Michael was growing up, stories often hung in the air about his great-uncles: one was a clock-mender and the other a dentist. They were there before the war, his dad would say, and weren’t after. Over many years, Michael tried to find out exactly what happened: he interviewed family members, scoured the internet, pored over books and traveled to America and France. The story he uncovered was one of terrible persecution – and it has inspired his poetry for years since. Here, poems old and new are balanced against an immensely readable narrative; both an extraordinary account and a powerful tool for talking to children about the Holocaust.

Rosen makes comparisons with the present-day refugee crisis and injects hope in the final chapter (and, boy, do we need it), with one of his best poems, Today; One Day. Essential reading., Rosen handles the difficult topic as sensitively and thoughtfully as you would expect, always writing in a straightforward and accessible way for children, interspersed with his own poetry., What is so affecting about this book is its gentle tone. Instead of anger, there is contemplation – and, as always with Rosen, an innate ability to see every mystery through a child’s eyes., The personal connection, the use of source materials, the accessibility of the text and the way it encourages empathy (both with historical and current events) all make this an invaluable text for UKS2 and KS3. A poignant and essential read., Rosen intersperses his family memoir with his own poetry to create a fascinating, chilling and poignantly personal take on unimaginable horrors of genocide.

Children's Laureate Michael Rosen is one of the most popular authors for children. His bestselling titles published by Walker Books include We're Going on a Bear Hunt, A Great Big Cuddle, Little Rabbit Foo Foo, Michael Rosen’s Sad Book, Tiny Little Fly and What Is Poetry? He is a distinguished critic and academic, presents radio programmes for the BBC and is a political commentator. Follow him on Twitter under the handle @MichaelRosenYes.