Line #4 Literature/TheSilverSword


1	''The Silver Sword'' [[note]] Known as ''Escape from Warsaw'' in America [[/note]] is a children's novel written by Ian Serraillier. The book is set in during the Holocaust, where the Balicki family has been split apart due to refusal to support [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler Hitler]]. Joseph Balicki has been taken to a work camp far away in the mountains, Margrit Balicki has been dragged off to an unknown location by the Nazis, and the three children, Ruth, Edek and Bronia, find refuge in a bombed cellar on the streets of Warsaw after their house was destroyed by the Nazis, supposedly with them in it. They survive off of what they can, until a boy named Jan inadvertently brings them news of their father escaping to Switzerland, and they set out to reunite their family.
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5	!!Contains examples of:
6	* ABoyAGirlAndABabyFamily: The Balicki siblings. Ruth and Edek are two years apart in terms of age, while Bronia is eight years younger than Edek.
7	* DisproportionateRetribution: Joseph was imprisoned for turning a picture of Hitler towards the wall.
8	* EarnYourHappyEnding: After a hard journey from Poland, the Balicki children make it to Switzerland and reunite with their parents. Jan becomes officially adopted as one of the family.
9	* FriendToAllLivingThings: Jan, apparently.
10	* HeroicSacrifice: Jan goes through one after choosing to help Ruth and Bronia recover Edek from the lake instead of going to collect the frightened Ludwig, which he never sees again.
11	* ImpersonatingAnOfficer: In the first chapter, Joseph escapes from the camp by knocking out a guard, and stealing his uniform.
12	* MacGuffin: The titular Silver Sword, a letter-opener Joseph once gave to his wife.
13	* ParentalAbandonment: Nobody knows what happens to Jan's parents, possibly including him. They were likely taken away by the Nazis, and killed.
14	* SeparatedFromTheAdults: After the Nazis take both their mom and dad away, the kids are left to fend for themselves on the streets of Warsaw, barely even escaping themselves.
15	* TeamMom: Ruth. Towards the end, it is mentioned that Bronia even came to see her as a ParentalSubstitute.
16	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: When Jan first meets Joseph, he carries a gray kitten. When he is found by Bronia and Ruth, the kitten is gone and Jimpy (a rooster) has taken its place. Jan mentions later in the book that he had a gray cat, but it died. The cause of its death is never explained.
17	** Averted with Jimpy; the bird is explicitly stated to have been killed in a fight which breaks out at a feeding centre.
18	* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue:
19	** Bronia becomes an artist, painting pictures of the war.
20	** Edek spends two years recovering from tuberculosis and studies engineering.
21	** Ruth marries a Frenchman and starts a family of her own.
22	** Jan eventually mends his thieving ways and becomes an informal veterinarian.
23	* YouAreNumberSix: When the alarm bells are sounded after Joseph's escape, Joseph points out his camp number burnt into his arm.
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Context Literature / TheSilverSword