In an inspirational study of a postwar Jewish neighborhood, Sarah sets out to buy all the ingredients to make her mother a special surprise birthday cake and discovers that some things should never be forgotten.

A girl buys ingredients for a cake she wants to make for her mothers birthday. Along the way she had to stop at a shop that is owned by Jewish owners. She is hesitant to look at the numbers that were on the arms of the owners, but when she is caught looking at their arms, she talks with one of the owners about how it is fine to look at the numbers because it reminds people of the events that happened in history, and to not repeat it.

I didn't really think there were children's Holocaust books. However, this boom is such a good read and so sad at the same time. It shows the importance of never forgetting our history and never forgetting those who are greatly impacted.

'Don't Forget' is a great story to introduce younger children to the abstract concept of war and more specifically World War II. The author does not dive in too deep into the Holocaust and is appropriate for children of all ages. This beautifully illustrated book is about a young girl named Sarah who wants to bake her first cake as a surprise for her mother's birthday. Set in the late 1940s or early 1950s, she sets out to purchase her ingredients from the various local shops but is attempting to avoid the Singer's shop. She knows the Singers to be nice, but their secret is not. Anyone with young children knows the hazards of teaching manners and socially accepted behavior and her parents are no different. She has been taught not to look at the blue numbers on the Singer's arms and is afraid she will not be able to help herself.
As Sarah learns from the Singers, they are not ashamed of their numbers. In fact, she learns that Mrs. Singer believes the numbers should never be a secret, that we should never forget our history or we will be doomed to repeat it.
The overall message of the book is heartwarming and a valuable lesson about remembering our history is explained. Best of all, there is a recipe in the back of the book for the cake Sarah was attempting to make! I can't wait to try it! ( )

Don’t forget is a historical book about a young girl named Sarah who wants to bake a cake for her mom’s birthday but in order to do so she must go to the Singer’s store to get ingredients, the only problem is the Singer’s have a secret that makes Sarah not want to go to their store, the blue numbers on their arm. Written about post World War II, this book provides interesting insight into this time and gives us a good message about not judging someone on their past. I didn’t like this book that much though. There is really one main reason why I didn’t like it and that is the lack of historical information in the book. Though I thought it was a good concept and a good storyline, I feel the book fell very flat when it came to providing information or historical context. I feel the book was not very thought provoking and didn’t provide enough information or insight into that current time. For example when Sarah finds out that the Singer’s saw her staring at the blue numbers on their arms she apologizes, this is when, I as the reader, thought some historical information would come in and the author would explain that time period and what exactly the numbers are but instead the author just has Mrs. Singer say that they aren’t a secret and to not forget. The author then goes on to have the characters talk about the cake. This I feel is where the book fell flat and if I was reading this with no knowledge of the Holocaust I would be very confused as to what those numbers were and what bad thing happened. Though I do understand that the author’s main purpose was to convey that you should overcome stereotypes and get to know people and this can be seen by how the book ends with Sarah baking the cake at the Singer’s and saying don’t forget. I feel it took away from the historical aspect of the book. ( )