Escape to the Castle in the Mountains

This is the sequel to Escape from the Black Lady’s Castle, the second novel in an adventure series about a group of orphaned Holocaust survivors who have been enlisted to smuggle Jewish children out of war-torn Europe to Eretz Israel. Each of the books can be read independently. The children in the group bear terrible scars, reminders of their horrible experiences during the Holocaust. Antek, the leader, survived the war by living alone in a forest. Yuzek suffers from an eating disorder and an obsession for cleanliness as he was forced to hide in the sewers during the war. With considerable credibility, Irit Amit describes the difficult adjustments each must make to function as a member of the group. All are united by the joint determination to help other Jewish children and reach Eretz Israel. When Miriam, the little girl who was abandoned by her family during the war, encounters her sister Hava only to part again, the entire group is supportive and sympathetic. This time the group must travel to a large castle in Italy where other young survivors await their assistance. The journey is fraught with danger, and false papers are provided just as they are about to be caught. Amit artfully weaves touching human situations with jolting suspense in this outstanding novel based on historical fact.