White Bird: A Wonder Story

First introduced as Julian’s grandmother, Sara Blum is the protagonist of White Bird. The Prologue and Epilogue of the book, which take place in 2019, show her to be an old woman; the main story, however, follows a young Sara when she lived in France. Born in the 1930s, Sara is the only child of Max and Rose Blum. She is smart and talented and has a happy and secure childhood until the Nazis arrive in France in the 1940s. Sara is an excellent student in all subjects except mathematics; she is also a talented artist, spending most of her math classes doodling and daydreaming. Sara and her parents are non-religious Jews; nevertheless, they are victims of Nazi persecution during World War II.

Sara is a little spoiled, by her own admission. She has had the luxury of only caring about the simpler things in life, until the war. Thus, Sara is initially self-absorbed, worrying more about looks and popularity than anything else. This is exemplified by how she ignores Papa’s request for her to wear winter boots in cold weather, choosing her red shoes instead, as they are more fashionable. Similarly, while she thanks Julien for returning her