Book review: 'I Saw a Beautiful Woodpecker' is one of my new favorite WWII children's books

It's 1939 and young Michal Skibinski has been given an assignment by his teacher to write one sentence a day over summer break. This exercise is supposed to help improve his handwriting. And, while his handwriting probably does improve, what he doesn't realize is that he's also keeping a first-account of the opening days of World War II.

Image from Amazon

This book really touched my heart with its simplicity and childlike expressions. I kept trying to read between the lines, wondering what else happened on the days of that long ago summer. As Michal writes about seeing planes in the sky and I read a bit about the bombings, I knew that things were Poland were only starting and wondered how he would fare throughout the war.

The artwork blew me away. It's PERFECT for this book. The emotions artist Ala Bankroft conjures up with her expressive style and use of color helped make this book one I could not put down. My 5th grade daughter felt the same way. Please, please go here and flip through the book to see just a bit of what I'm raving about.

I Saw a Beautiful Woodpecker is one of those amazing books that doesn't come along often, but when it does you want to snatch it up and never let it out of your sight. If you are like me and finish this book dying to know more details, do yourself a favor and read a bit more about Michal and what happened to some of the people mentioned on the book's last page. 

Also, just to clarify, this book is non-fiction. It is the actual writings of eight-year-old Michal Skibinski that have been translated into English. Wow!

Book Breakdown:

128 pages

Geared toward ages: 6 to adult

Educational factor: low

Moral content: Nothing to worry about; war is seen simply through a child's eyes.