The Missing: The True Story of My Family in World War II

Gr 6-9–Rosen chronicles his quest to uncover the truth about his family history and the many theories of what happened to some of his relatives after World War II. This short book is written in chronological order, and most chapters end with a poem or part of a poem by Rosen. Although a lot of specific information regarding the war, especially from an English perspective, will be novel to most readers, most of it is specific to the author and his family. The abridged poems are moving and complement the topic covered in the previous chapter. In fact, the poetry could stand alone as an emotional literary work, instead of a narrative device that incorporates the granular details of discovering the author’s family history. The language is simple, and the content is covered in a way that is not traumatic for young readers. The back matter, which includes further reading, photos, and letters, is a helpful resource.