One of the reasons I find the Christmas season so busy is that I have to spend time reading the books I am going to give away. It just doesn't seem right to have a book in my possession, even for a short time, and not at least try to read it. After years of practice, I have become a fast and tidy reader. This past Christmas I made it through most of my gift-to-be books without leaving a trace. I started with the books I had to mail.

For my niece in Ottawa, I chose Tell No One Who You Are by Walter Buchignani (Tundra Books). It is an account of three years in the life of a young Jewish girl in Belgium—three years during which she was hidden from the Nazis by non-Jews. While Regine Miller's family were dying at Auschwitz, she had to conceal her true identity as she was shuffled from home to home—a tall order for a ten-year-old.

The most shocking thing in the book is a reproduction of a typed page that lists the names of Regine's mother, father, brother, aunt and uncle. Beside each name is a date and a convoy number: the destination is recorded as Auschwitz.