MilkWeed - Blog #1

Blog #1 – Milk Weed

The story MilkWeed by Jerry Spinelli is a story about a young orphan boy in a ghetto in Warsaw, Poland during the holocaust. The book starts with the main character running through the streets with stolen goods wrapped in his arms. A man is yelling from behind him, “stop thief.” Shortly after this encounter he meets a boy named Uri. Uri is a part of a group of boys that live together, and like him, do not have parents. At first the group is skeptical of his lack of identity.   Uri, the ringleader of the group believes that he should stay with them. When they ask him his name he answers,  “stop thief”. This is the name he goes by until Uri gives him the name Misha Pilsudski. Misha continues to prove himself to the group by being extremely helpful when scavenging for food. However, this is not the only problem the group of boys face.

We meet the other main characters shortly after the book begins.  These characters are, a boy named Uri and a group of orphaned boys.  After meeting Uri and the group of boys, Misha, for the first time belongs somewhere. Another important character in this story is a young Jewish girl, Janina. Misha meets Janina while searching for food in a garden near her house. The two become inseparable friends. He attends her birthday party and visits her regularly. That is until the real danger commences.

The protagonist is oblivious to the world around him. He does not know what a Jew is or know anything about the dangers surrounding the German troops. Throughout the first couple of days he realizes he does not know who he his or have memories of his past. With the help of Uri he creates his own story. He is now named Misha Pilsudski, who has wandered to Poland after escaping his kidnapper. Soon after he becomes comfortable with his new group, he comes to learn about the trouble and danger he is about to face.  He realizes that jackboots and tanks are nothing to be in awe of and that he should be afraid.