The Reading Warehouse

In 1941 in occupied Paris, brothers Maurice and Joseph play a last game of marbles before running home to their father's barbershop. This is the day that will change their lives forever. With the German occupation threatening their family's safety, the boys' parents decide Maurice and Joseph must disguise themselves and flee to their older brothers in the free zone.

Surviving the long journey will take every scrap of ingenuity and courage they can muster. And if they hope to elude the Nazis, they must never, under any circumstances, admit to being Jewish.

The boys travel by train, by ferry, and on foot, facing threats from strangers and receiving help from unexpected quarters. Along the way they must adapt to the unfamiliar world beyond their city--and find a way to be true to themselves even as they conceal their identities.

Based on an autobiographical novel by Joseph Joffo and adapted with the author's input, this true story offers a harrowing but inspiring glimpse of a childhood cut short.

Joseph Joffo was born in Paris in 1931. He is the author of several books, but he is best known for his memoir A Bag of Marbles, published in 1973. It has been translated into eighteen languages, and in 1975 it was adapted to film. Like many of Joffo's books, A Bag of Marbles was based on his life story. After the war Joseph, his mother, and his brothers returned safely to Paris. His father died in a concentration camp.