"Many books for young people have been written about the voyage of the MS St. Louis from Hamburg, Germany to Cuba and back to Europe in 1939. However, Barbara Krasner's novel in free verse is an original telling of this heart¬rending story. Twelve-year-old Ruth Arons and her parents leave their home and family in Breslau for what they hope will be a safe haven in Cuba. Ruth makes friends with Wolfie Freund, a boy her age, and together they think up all kinds of mischief. Their carefree antics and the courteous treatment of the passengers are shown in stark contrast to what awaits them on their arrival in Havana harbor when they learn that their visas have been deemed invalid. Told from the first-person point of view and with touches of poignancy and wry humor, we see how the early relief the passengers felt on leaving Nazi Germany turns into grief and despair. After the passengers are turned away from Cuba, as well as from the United States (and Canada), they must return to Europe to an uncertain and frightening future.
Krasner's use of imagery is stunning. Metaphors such as, 'All of us lined up on the deck, / ship-locked seagulls / yearning for flight' or similes such as, 'I cling to Wolfie like salt on a pretzel' are powerful and moving. The rhythmic flow draws the reader inside the narrative. You will want to read this book in one sitting, never letting go until the very last words. In addition, the layout and design of 37 Days at Sea add depth to the emotional events. Some pages are filled with text; others are almost empty, with broken lines, large white spaces, and words scattered about. End matter includes a Timeline of Events and Further Information (films, oral testimonies, books). For additional poetic tellings of the Holocaust refugee story to Cuba, see Margarita Engle's Tropical Secrets (Henry Holt, 2009), the 2010 Sydney Taylor Book Award winner (Teen), and Ruth Behar's Letters from Cuba (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2020), Sydney Taylor Notable Book (Middle Grade) 2021.
" -- Anne Dublin, retired teacher-librarian, Holy Blossom Temple, Author of Jacob and the Mandolin Adventure.