1. Autobiographies
2. Cruelty
3. Family
4. Fear
5. Freedom
6. Happiness
7. History
8. Holocaust
9. Hope
10. Kindness
11. Migration
12. Prejudice
13. Soldiers
14. Survival
15. WW2

‘The Happiest Boy on Earth’ is framed as a conversation between 101-year-old Eddie Jaku and his great-grandchildren. It is based on his adult memoir, ‘The Happiest Man on Earth,’ published in 2020 and translated into 30 languages. This adaptation for children is 64 pages in length and can be read on many levels. The story begins with Eddie reminiscing with his great-grandchildren about his happy childhood in Leipzig, Germany before the Nazi regime came to power. Eddie’s father gave his son a ‘new’ German name and sent him away to a boarding school far from Leipzig. Eddie was away for five years studying mathematics and science, engineering and mechanics. At 18 years of age, he returned to Leipzig for a surprise visit to see his family. There was no one there. Early the next morning, Eddie wakes to Nazi soldiers who take him away to a ‘terrible place.’ Nathaniel Eckstrom’s illustration reveals the location, using the now familiar entrance sign at the Auschwitz concentration camp, ‘ARBEIT MACHT FREI,’ which translated from German to English, means ‘Work sets you free.’

There is a page of Eddie’s reflections where he observes, for the benefit of his great-grandchildren who are listening to his life story (and hence this book) that ‘there were people who had forgotten that we are all the same — all equal — all deserving of dignity, kindness and freedom.’

There is a happy ending to Eddie’s story as he moves to Australia to join his sister. ‘What I share is my story of a long life made strong with the things that I’ve learned. Love and kindness, friendship and generosity, curiosity and hope. These things have made me grow from the happiest boy on Earth to the happiest man on Earth.’ Eddie gives his grandchildren a poignant message: ‘Now it’s time for you to make the world a better place.’ The final two pages include photographs of Eddie, his wife, friend Kurt, sister Henni and his mother and father.

Only brief factual statements about the camp and the treatment of the Jews incarcerated there are included. Illustrations too limit details. Authentic illustrations appear in soft watercolours and feature scenes of a happy family life before the Nazi regime. There are images of life in the city, protests against the Jews, Hitler winning crowd support, Eddie’s life isolated from family and his incarceration in a concentration camp. These illustrations ground the story with realistic detail while avoiding excessive images of this dark period of history.

Postscript
Eddie Jaku OAM was born Abraham Jakubowicz in Germany in 1920. In World War 2, Eddie was imprisoned in Buchenwald and Auschwitz concentration camps. In 1945, he was sent on a death march but escaped and was rescued by Allied soldiers. In 1950 he moved with his family to Australia. Eddie passed away in October 2021, aged 101.

1. Pan Macmillan Teachers’ Notes for ‘The Happiest Boy on Earth’ https://de3d63255e2ed87306a1-58ee2046ea610b14668745360eaa8ac0.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/teachers-guides/9781760985608_tn.pdf
2. Reading Time 3 Dec 2022 review by Margot Hillel of ‘The Happiest Boy on Earth’ https://readingtime.com.au/the-happiest-boy-on-earth/
3. Australian Jewish News 1 Sept 2022 review by Jessica Abelshon of ‘How the happiest boy, became the happiest man’ also includes Eddie Jaku’s TEDx talk: ‘The Happiest Man on Earth: 99-year-old Holocaust survivor shares his story’ https://www.australianjewishnews.com/how-the-happiest-boy-became-the-happiest-man/
4. YouTube Sunday Project ‘Remembering Eddie Jaku: The Happiest Man Alive’ at 100 years of age, Eddie Jaku is interviewed by Lisa Wilkinson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MlSHm-8gpc
5. Brightly. Liz Lesnick reviews 19 Children’s and YA Books to Help Remember the Holocaust’. This annotated list was created in 2019 and updated in 2022. https://www.readbrightly.com/childrens-books-to-remember-the-holocaust/
6. Sydney Jewish Museum ‘The Holocaust: the Nazi Genocide Against the Jewish People’ https://www.holocaust.com.au/resources/supplementary-material/children/