Reviewed by Maria Beltran for Readers' Favorite
Jugend by Aalia Lanius is a historical fiction novel that is set in 1937 Europe juxtaposed with events unfolding in 2017 in the United States of America. Fourteen-year-old Ernst, an enthusiastic member of the Hitler Youth, is chosen to participate in what is made to look like a bicycle tour of London. But his real task is to spy on a wealthy British family of Jewish descent suspected of sheltering Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany in 1937. Clark, on the other hand, is a young American boy who lost his mother to cancer and his father to the Iraq war. Orphaned and living with his guardian, his dad's friend who is a rabid white supremacist, Clark finds himself spying on a Muslim family that are long-time residents of the US, but branded as terrorists.
Aalia Lanius' Jugend is a riveting tale of two boys innocently caught in historical events that have drastically changed their lives and enormously impacted the very history of the world. Ernst and Clark are two young boys who are forced to make a decision between good and evil when children their age should just be starting to learn the intricacies of life. Fast paced and gripping, Jugend successfully tells a complex and emotional story in a way that is easy to understand. Aalia Lanius' creative writing style is subtle, without a lot of frills, and the result is a novel that is informative, enjoyable and emotionally tugs at the reader's heart. The content of this book is universal and is relevant to any other time in history!
By Taj Mayfield
On June 1st, Aalia Lanius of Unsugarcoated Media will take to New York City to display her latest book, Jugend, at the publishing industry’s leading trade event.Established in 2014, BookCon is an annual fan convention where readers can experience the origin of the story from the creator themselves. Hosted yearly in the vibrant city of New York, the event sets out to combine the energetic elements of pop culture with the storytelling aspects of the book industry. BookCon operates as an extension of BookExpo–the country’s largest gathering of book industry professionals from around the globe. From Discovery Channel’s Adam Savage to world-renowned figures like John Cena, BookExpo and BookCon 2019 will be the home of some the biggest names and personalities that entertainment has to offer.Unsugarcoated Media author Aalia Lanius will be alongside those names, as she is set to exhibit Jugend. The latest book from Lanius follows two young boys as they embark upon a pair of hateful missions. Jugend touches upon a number of hard-hitting topics, from Islamophobia to White supremacy, and pulls no punches in addressing today’s society. Readers’ Favorite evaluated Jugend as a five-star novel, calling it “universal and relevant to any other time in history.”“My focus has always been to educate and bring people together,” explained Lanius. “I’m passionate about, not a perfect society, but one where we truly can help and accept one another.”Lanius will be displaying Jugend at BookCon 2019 from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. Saturday June 1st, as part of the Book Expo New Title Showcase programming. The event will be held at the Javits Center in New York City and tickets are currently available at the events website, www.bookcon.com.
