You never know what you are going to get when you open a Morris Gleitzman book. Surprise is the order of the day with any novel by the highly inventive author, and it is this ingenuity that keeps him at the top of his profession. Always entertaining and often thought-provoking, a Gleitzman novel is a proper story that satisfies on lots of levels. With Once, this clever writer has taken a potentially tricky subject and crafted a powerful short novel that will leave readers thinking long after the last page is finished. Once is a remarkable and disturbing story. The year is 1942 and we are in Poland in Eastern Europe. Young Felix is living in an orphanage run by nuns high in the mountains. He doesn't know the real reason he is there. He strongly believes that his parents placed him in the orphanage as an act of kindness because their bookselling business was having financial problems. Felix knows he is different from the other orphans because he isn't really an orphan. His parents are still alive and they will collect him when they have sorted out their troubles. He is certain that he will soon return to his old life in his parents' bookshop and that all will be well again. He knows that things have got a bit difficult for Jewish people living in Poland, but he doesn't know what is really going on outside. Once is the story of how Felix loses his innocence and comes face to face with a truth that is brutal and harrowing. The first big jolt to Felix's naivety comes one morning when Nazi soldiers arrive at the orphanage and start burning the nuns' books in the courtyard. Felix, who has been brought up to love books and everything they stand for, is appalled. If this is the way things are going, he has to get out of the orphanage and find his parents to tell them to protect the books in the bookshop. Felix walks out of the orphanage and embarks on a long and dangerous journey through occupied Poland. How can he possibly survive the horrors of Nazi occupation? Once is told in Felix's own words and this makes the story immediate and incredibly poignant. We know things that Felix does not, and this heightens the power of the tale. Throughout his quest to find his parents, Felix's good nature and his love of storytelling give him the courage and hope to keep him going. Whether being herded along the road like an animal, hiding in a cellar, listening to gunfire in the distance, and befriending a little orphan girl, Felix's faith in himself never waivers. He stays strong in the most appalling circumstances. Once is a very special story. Gleitzman avoids reducing his writing to sentimentality. The unavoidable conclusion to Felix's quest is cleverly dealt with, and its ambiguity leaves the reader to deal with the inevitable. An exciting and enriching book, Once is a story that everyone should read. Once By Morris Gleitzman Published by Puffin ISBN 014132063X John Millen can be contacted on MillenBookshelf@aol.com
