Boschetti 1

1. Title- The Devils Arithmetic by author Jane Yolen

Grade Level- High School
Subject- English
Diversity Culture- Jewish Community
Themes- Family, Struggle, Hope
Summary
Hannah Stern, the main character, is a Jewish teenager who lives New Rochelle,
New York with her family. She and her family attend a Passover Seder at Hannahs
grandparents home. Hannah was not interested in going to the event. The young girl she
is tired of her grandfathers, Will, stories about his times at a concentration camp during
the Holocaust. During the Passover Seder, Hannah is chosen to open the door to
symbolically let the Prophet Elijah into the home. As she opens the door, she is
transported to 1940s Poland. Hannah takes the form of Chaya Abramowicz. Hannah is
no longer herself, yet she tries to explain to her Aunt and Uncle Gitl and Shmuel that her
name is Hannah. They do not believe her and they blame her thoughts on her recent
recovery from cholera. Cholera is a disease. Chaya (Hannah) learns that this disease
killed her parents. She has no recollection of this or anything because she just came from
modern day New York.
Meanwhile, Shmuel is marrying a village woman named Fayge. During the
wedding, a troop of Nazi soldiers arrive and capture all the Jews to relocate them.
Hannah knows what is really happening. The Nazis are moving all the Jews into
concentration camps. Hannah is aware of the events of the Holocaust and she tries to
explain to everyone not to go with the Nazis because she knows what happens at the
camps they are being transported to. Nobody listens to her because they do not really
have a choice and everybody gets onto the crowded trucks. The Jews travel for days on
the crowded trucks. Unfortunately, some people die while driving up to the camps.
When they finally arrives, the Nazis separate the Jews and divides them by gender
and age. The Jewish people are now imprisoned by the Nazis. Every prisoner is washed
and then their hair is cut short. Also, everyone is tattooed with an identification number.
Everyone is malnourished and only fed soup and piece of bread. While at camp, Chaya
meets a young girl named Rivka. Rivka tries to help Chaya and keep her from entering
Lilths Cave. Lilths Cave is the name given to the gas chamber where prisoners are sent
to be exterminated (killed). Rivka warns Chaya of the Nazi Commandant Breuer who is
responsible for choosing weak workers to be killed. Rivka informs Chaya that she has a
brother named Wolfe.
Prisoners plan an escape. Gitl overhears of this plan. The escape plan falls
through. Of the people caught trying to escape was Chayas uncle Shmuel. Shmuel is
executed among others in front of the prisoners. His wife, Fayge runs to him and she is
also executed.
Hannah had a vision a shares it with others. A guard catches them talking and
orders them to be killed. The three girls that are going to be killed are Rivka and two
other women, Esther and Shifre. Hannah saves Rivka and puts on her head hankerchief to
disguise herself as Rivka. While at the door of the cave, Hannah is transported back to

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her grandparents house. Hannah is shocked of her recent experience. She notices a tattoo
on her Aunt Evas arm. She explains to Eva what its significance is. Eva later shares that
her name was once Rivka while at the camps. Eva explains Hannah that after coming to
America, many Jews changed their names. Evas brother Will was once Wolfe. Hannah
learns that only Gitl and Yitzchak, a butcher, survived and moved to Israel where they
would later live. Yitzchak became a politician and Gitl started a charity to help survivors
of the Holocaust. The name of the charity was Chaya.