Tamar

Tamar
by Mal Peet


Tamar is the spy name of a man who parachuted into occupied Holland during World War II with another man code-named Dart to help the Dutch resistance against the Nazis. There is also a third person in the story, Marijke, who is loved by both men. Years later one of the two, asks his son to name his daughter Tamar, but doesn't tell him why. Tamar, when she is fifteen finds a box full of information and clues left behind by her grandfather before he died. As she pieces together his mysterious past, she is schocked to find out the truth about his actions during the war.

The story goes back and forth between time periods from the action in Holland to Tamar's search for the truth in the present day.

This book won the Carnegie Medal for best book last year in England. Not sure why. While it is an interesting read I found many of the characters unsympathetic. If you like to read stories about love, jealousy, and tragedy then this is one title you might like to try.

-Mr. Dale