I have heard of Number the Stars before.  I didn't remember reading it in school, but the cover definitely hit part of my memory when I saw the book.  After reading about 20 pages, I realized that I had indeed read this while growing up.  Bits and parts came flooding back to me as I finished the book.  All things aside, what an excellent read!  I can see now why this book caters to adolescent readers.  The plot is focused around a 10-year-old girl and her family, so many young readers will relate (given they're around that age). 

I could see myself relating to Annemarie at that age.  She's old enough to remember how things were before the Nazis took over, but still young enough not to get the full complexities of a lot of the issues surrounding her life.  The part that still sticks out to me the most is when Kirsti shoves the soldier's hand away when he plays with her curls.  When my brother was younger, I often remember him saying or doing things that he just should not have in front of people.  I definitely understand Annemarie's frustrations with her younger sister and feeling like she always had to look after her.  When my parents divorced, my brother was three and I was six.  Six years old is really not that mature, but I took my brother under my wing while my mom worked to support us and my sister.  Even though I cared for my brother, there would be times when I just wanted to lock him in the basement until my mom got home from work.  Once time, he was playing with his toys in the living room where we also had this big fish tank.  The way it was structured, there was about two inches of space between the floor and the bottom of the tank.  Well, my brother got a toy stuck under the tank and decided to reach with his arm.  Yep.  Now he's stuck.  Since my mom wasn't home, I freaked out a little bit and worried for my brother.  Later, I was just annoyed with him.  This resonates quite similar to how Annemarie feels about Kirsti.

While a part of me connects to Annemarie's personality, I definitely felt more connected to the adults in this book.  As a very young adult of 20 years old, I don't know if I could ever do something as courageous as those people do.  It makes me feel kind of like a wimp, to be honest.  These people risked their lives in a great way to help their friends.  When the soldiers come to the Johansen's apartment while their hiding Ellen, I felt for Mrs. Johansen.  She kept telling the soldiers, "Please, not too loud. My daughters are trying to sleep."  She was trying so hard to get them to realize that this was just a normal household with little children in it.  As a future teacher, I can only imagine some situations I may potentially be in.  I'm sure my responses would be quite similar.  Who knows what kind of things will happen when I'm teaching, and I need to make sure I'm prepared for anything.

I think Number the Stars should be a staple in the classroom.  It presents pertinent issues appropriately for children.  It isn't too harsh, but it doesn't try to be invisible, either.  Plus, by having the main character as a young child, it makes it easier for students to connect with the story.  For example, you can ask your class "How would you feel if you were separated from your parents and you had absolutely no idea where they were or no way to communicate with them?"  Some may be like, woo hoooooo!!  But in the mindset of the story, many students may really consider and connect.