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Description
Zasha- German Shepherd- with one of her puppies!
______________________________________________

I first read Finding Zasha in 5th grade- back in 2017. I read it because I needed to do a historical fiction book report and I needed to find a book that would fit that requirement- but also at the same time, be interesting enough that it wouldn't be sheer torture to get through it. It just so happened that at the library, this was the first was historical fiction novel I came across that I liked- with animals, no less! And any book with animals couldn't go wrong- so I ended up picking this book for my report.

Never in a million years could I have imagined that I would reread it again one day, but for far more different reasons, and after I matured so much more as a person- and became much more interested in history as a whole.

I sent an email to the author of the series- Randi Barrow- and to my surprise, she responded back!

Finding Zasha and Saving Zasha (the book that was published before it, but after it in terms of plot) are great reads, especially if you like WW2-era history and dogs/animals.

They were great books when I was in 5th grade and still great today- so take that as you will.

Amazon's summary is as follows:

For Finding Zasha:

Randi Barrow is back with another gripping heroic World War II story about a boy and his best friend, a German shepherd!

In 1941, the Germans began the long, bloody siege on Leningrad. During the chaos, twelve-year-old Ivan is sent to live with relatives when his mother's job is moved to the mountains. But it is a long and dangerous journey to get out of Leningrad. After settling into a new town it falls under Nazi occupation and Ivan is picked by Axel Recht, an especially heinous soldier, to come work for the Nazis. One of Ivan's more pleasant tasks is to train Alex's dogs. Yet Ivan is determined to use his position to undermine the Nazis and rescue the dogs. But Ivan underestimates Axel's attachment to Zasha and Thor, and soon finds himself being hunted by a ruthless soldier who will stop at nothing to get his dogs back. As World War II rages around them, Ivan must find a way to hide from Axel, protect Zasha and Thor, avoid the constant barrage of deadly bombings, and survive in the devastating conditions of a city cut off from the world.

For Saving Zasha:

In post WWII Russia, one boy dares to save an entire race of outlawed dogs -- the German shepherd!

World War II has just ended when thirteen-year-old Mikhail finds a dying man and his German shepherd, Zasha, in the woods. It's dangerous -- some say traitorous -- to own a German dog after Germany attacked Russia, so Mikhail must keep Zasha a secret to keep her alive.

But Mikhail's rival, Katia, is determined to find the dog she is sure he's hiding. At the same time, a soldier named Dimitri is breeding a new Russian dog at a nearby farm. So many dogs were lost in combat, to starvation, and in the slaughter of German dogs that the country is in dire need of every kind of dog.

Description
Zasha- German Shepherd- with one of her puppies!
______________________________________________

I first read Finding Zasha in 5th grade- back in 2017. I read it because I needed to do a historical fiction book report and I needed to find a book that would fit that requirement- but also at the same time, be interesting enough that it wouldn't be sheer torture to get through it. It just so happened that at the library, this was the first was historical fiction novel I came across that I liked- with animals, no less! And any book with animals couldn't go wrong- so I ended up picking this book for my report.

Never in a million years could I have imagined that I would reread it again one day, but for far more different reasons, and after I matured so much more as a person- and became much more interested in history as a whole.

I sent an email to the author of the series- Randi Barrow- and to my surprise, she responded back!

Finding Zasha and Saving Zasha (the book that was published before it, but after it in terms of plot) are great reads, especially if you like WW2-era history and dogs/animals.

They were great books when I was in 5th grade and still great today- so take that as you will.

Amazon's summary is as follows:

For Finding Zasha:

Randi Barrow is back with another gripping heroic World War II story about a boy and his best friend, a German shepherd!

In 1941, the Germans began the long, bloody siege on Leningrad. During the chaos, twelve-year-old Ivan is sent to live with relatives when his mother's job is moved to the mountains. But it is a long and dangerous journey to get out of Leningrad. After settling into a new town it falls under Nazi occupation and Ivan is picked by Axel Recht, an especially heinous soldier, to come work for the Nazis. One of Ivan's more pleasant tasks is to train Alex's dogs. Yet Ivan is determined to use his position to undermine the Nazis and rescue the dogs. But Ivan underestimates Axel's attachment to Zasha and Thor, and soon finds himself being hunted by a ruthless soldier who will stop at nothing to get his dogs back. As World War II rages around them, Ivan must find a way to hide from Axel, protect Zasha and Thor, avoid the constant barrage of deadly bombings, and survive in the devastating conditions of a city cut off from the world.

For Saving Zasha:

In post WWII Russia, one boy dares to save an entire race of outlawed dogs -- the German shepherd!

World War II has just ended when thirteen-year-old Mikhail finds a dying man and his German shepherd, Zasha, in the woods. It's dangerous -- some say traitorous -- to own a German dog after Germany attacked Russia, so Mikhail must keep Zasha a secret to keep her alive.

But Mikhail's rival, Katia, is determined to find the dog she is sure he's hiding. At the same time, a soldier named Dimitri is breeding a new Russian dog at a nearby farm. So many dogs were lost in combat, to starvation, and in the slaughter of German dogs that the country is in dire need of every kind of dog.