This book is set after the end of WWII.. There are many orphans from the Nazi work camps, and no one seems to know what to do with them. They are fed and clothed, but do not have homes. Canada was one of the few countries to allow Jewish orphans into the country, so long as they were taken in by Jewish families who would take on their care/expenses. This book starts with the process of applying to get into Canada.. they were very strict with age, and the children needed to be essentially medically perfect. Once chosen they take a boat across to Canada. The boat itself seems like a wonderland... nice beds, plenty of food (They keep taking food and hiding it) etc. They arrive at Pier 21 and take a train across Canada with children getting off at every stop. We follow a set of children to the last stop - Vancouver. We see how the children settle into their new families (or not) and fit in with the community (or not). Greenies is a term for new immigrants. This is a YA book, so although there are some flashbacks to the awful conditions in the workcamps, they are handled carefully. In that way it reminded me somewhat of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.. flashbacks take some of the sting out (vs. 'real time' memories). I very much enjoyed this book, and would recommend it for adults and YA alike. ( )

I have an interest in war history, but most of the books I read focus on the worst parts of the war, and the total depression and destruction it left behind. Yet this book begins with those parts, because whether we want to forget them or not, we can't because they're a part of history and part of us as people, and slowly towards the end we find the characters fitting in and finding home in their new country. About them making what happened a part of them, but moving on into a new life and experiencing happier things in Canada. I like that this novel tells us about the support, the hard times, the good times and then, of course, the Holocaust, which is something we should never forget. ( )