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You never know what skills may come in handy. Knitting as a tool for deliverance? The more talent you or your muscle memory cultivates, the better. Particularly during wartime. As history shows, war can come at any time. After 80 years of relative peace in the lands of Europe and USA its inhabitants may feel that it is the natural order of things and war is only for faraway lands. Does not always feel like that nowadays. But I digress. The point is that being really good at one or more practical skills, like sewing, combined with creative thinking and diligent work, can save your life. Did I just spoil the end of The Secret Buttons by Ellen M. Shapiro, a novel for middle graders? I don’t think so. The title already hints at it, and anyone can guess that the book is a survivor’s story and not someone who was killed. Even the intro page makes sure we know what it is about. Lesson number one: Keep learning and keep getting better at what you do.
The book is not just lessons, although it has a few, and I will get back to them. It is primarily an engaging and well-told story. It is a page turner in the best sense: you want to learn not just what happens next, the steps towards survival, but also what the main character is thinking and feeling. It is a real treat to follow Anni’s emotional and intellectual journey. Her intellectual curiosity and openness to the world are admirable and really transparent. As we, the readers, follow along, we also learn a lot about language and culture with her. Shapiro described the stages of language acquisition particularly well. How a language first feels when you encounter it and how, as you get more familiar with it, it becomes more comfortable. I was not expecting to read something like this in a wartime novel and enjoyed the description’s humor and accuracy. The struggle with correct pronunciation is real, just like the confusion with interlanguage homonyms.
However, because of Anni’s circumstances–being forced to flee from one place, even country, to save her own life and, for her, even more importantly, her sister’s–her fear is often palpable. Her emotions oscillate between the two main states: vibrant intellectual activity and deep fear. Nevertheless, her hands and mind are always “on”, working toward the goal of survival. This constant push-pull between intellectual sanctuary and external threat creates a pervasive sense of resilience—a desperate need to maintain normalcy and dignity when survival is precarious.
I have to write another word on how vividly Anni’s inner life is depicted. She is a highly observant narrator. Her inner monologue is the best part of the book. It is unlike any other coming-of-age story I have read. Like others, it covers her thoughts, anxieties, and nascent understanding of the world. Unlike others, she also focuses on studying religious texts and how they can guide her life experience.
I promised lessons earlier. Here are three of them, or three aspects of the same lesson;
- Keep your connection to the past and tradition alive. It can guide you. The family reading the Haggadah becomes a form of cultural self-affirmation, defining existence through shared history. Or, to use a more academic phrase, the preservation of cultural memory contributes to the preservation of life.
- Keep learning. It is dear to my librarian heart that libraries and dictionaries became Anni’s indispensable tools in the quiet resistance against oppression. Reminds me of the extent some Jews went in the concentration camps to celebrate High Holidays or other festivals, even during those impossible circumstances. Learning here is portrayed as the primary means of sustaining selfhood in the absence of physical security.
- Pass your knowledge. The way it is done here is uniquely Jewish: by arguing. Let me give some context, though, before you misunderstand: hope is found in the community’s collective will to learn, argue, and remember who they are. The transmission of knowledge from older siblings to younger ones is depicted as a vital lifeline. Learning together, internalizing the meanings of the sacred, traditional text, commitment to education ensures that the spirit, if not the physical life, survives the darkest times.
Finally, here are three sentences that were memorable for me.
- I should have known better. I did know better. (Page 79)
- My mouth opens. I have to remember to close it. (Page 153)
- [W]ith talent and luck, like Anni and Rosie, were able to knit their lives together in a beautiful new design. (Page 197)
If you want a middle-grade book that offers more than just entertainment, The Secret Buttons is a strong pick. It’s not only about surviving hardship—it’s about how people protect their sense of identity, hope, and curiosity when fear takes over. You and/or your child will follow with excitement Anni, whose inner life stays remarkably alive even in unimaginable circumstances. What makes the book especially meaningful for younger readers is how clearly it shows that the mind can be a source of strength. As Anni and others learn, remember, and discuss ideas, language becomes more than words—it becomes a form of resistance. We could all learn from that while enjoying the story itself.
ELLEN M. SHAPIRO is a graphic designer and writer. A graduate of UCLA’s College of Fine Arts, she has headed a graphic communications firm for over 20 years and taught at leading design schools, including the Designer as Author MFA program at New York’s School of Visual Arts. A contributing editor for Print Magazine and writer for Printmag.com, she has published hundreds of articles and posts and two nonfiction books about visual culture around the world. Inspired by her mother’s memories of the Holocaust in Vienna and life in wartime England, The Secret Buttons is her first novel.
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- The author just finished a 24-page study guide/slide show and a teacher’s guide.
- Currently running a special: schools and synagogues that order 12 or more paperbacks get a free hardbound copy for their library.
- People can order discounted signed copies at the author’s online shop.
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Year first published: 2025
