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The Bicycle Spy

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By DeeDee
 
The Bicycle Spy
By Yona Zeldis McDonough
Scholastic, 2016. Fiction. 197 p.
Marcel loves bicycle riding and dreams of one day competing in the Tour de France. Unfortunately the Tour has been canceled the last 3 years because of WWII.  Marcel keeps his riding dreams alive by using his bike to make deliveries for his parents who own a bakery shop. One day he discovers that his deliveries are more important than he could have imagined.  He tries to keep the truth about his parent's "deliveries" a secret, even from his new friend, Delphine.  Little does he know that his parent's secret work, and his bike riding skill, may some day save Delphine's family's lives.

During WWII children sometimes made heroic efforts to help their Jewish friends escape capture by the Nazi's. Marcel is a believable 10 year old boy, who pushes through his fear to accomplish what needs to be done to save his friend. McDonough does a good job of keeping the description of the fate of Jews during the war at an age appropriate level. This is a great new historical fiction for children who liked Number the Stars, or The Snow Treasure.
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