Tropical Secrets: Holocaust Refugees in Cuba

Tropical Secrets: Holocaust Refugees in Cuba by Margarita Engle is a poetic style historical fiction that’s a real page turner! It tells of WWII era Cuba through the eyes a Jewish Refugee from Germany, the daughter of a Cuban official, the Cuban official, and an old Ice Cream Man, who is also a refugee. Throughout the book readers learn little known historical facts of what life was like for refugees during WWII. The story easily keeps the reader’s attention as each character is interwoven into the beautiful story of how life was in Cuba during a pivotal time in world history. Although the characters are fictitious, the author included historical notes to explain that the situations and major events in the book are factual. There are brief periods of characters describing violence in their home countries when they left which may be difficult for sensitive children. The way the story is told in verse may not be everyone’s favorite writing style.

(Reviewed by an Official Good and Beautiful Reviewer)