Making Bombs for Hitler

Lida’s younger sister only briefly appears in the novel, but she is the driving force behind Lida’s will to survive. When the sisters are separated in the first pages of the novel, Larissa’s poignant cries for Lida to stay with her cut Lida to the core. Larissa represents loss, family, and hope. Memories of Larissa and the lilac tree help Lida mentally rise above terrible conditions and envision a positive future.

Lida feels a powerful connection to Larissa, even believing she would know if her sister were dead. The fleeting glimpse of Larissa in the Nazi family’s car tests Lida’s compassion, but Lida recognizes that Larissa would have had no choice in what happened to her under Nazi rule, just like Lida herself. Larissa’s letter to Lida proves that Larissa shares the same familial connection and love for her sister.

The “wild-haired” boy that Lida first meets in the cattle car becomes like a brother to Lida. Luka is from Kyiv, and like Lida, has already suffered terrible family losses under both the Nazis and Soviets. Luka’s pharmacist father was declared an “enemy of the people” by the Soviets and sent to a Siberian prison. Luka’s mother is an enslaved laborer for the Nazis. Luka was an enslaved laborer, but he escaped and survived a tank battle on the Soviet front before being recaptured.

Like Lida, Luka is a survivor with abundant compassion and courage. Luka tenderly looks after Marika in the train car and suffers beatings to help others. Luka thinks of Lida as the sister he never had. When Luka’s hopes of returning home to his father are crushed, Lida is there to help him. The two demonstrate the sustaining power of friendship.

Fourteen-year-old Zenia is from Kyiv, like Luka. She is kind to Lida and Marika on the train car. She is one of the first to suggest that the girls in Barracks 7 help one another and urges Lida to begin a song to lift their spirits. Zenia reflects the supportive power of connection and friendship. Zenia lost her entire family to the Nazis and is “all alone in the world” (46). Zenia is Jewish, and Lida knows that if the Nazis discover this, they will likely execute her immediately. Zenia seems initially conflicted about accepting Lida’s crucifix as a disguise, not wanting to hide her religion, family, or culture. Zenia accepts the crucifix when Lida urges her to survive so that she can tell others her story. Even though Zenia escapes without Lida, she finds a way to return Lida’s crucifix.

Zenia’s story reflects the Nazis’ extreme antisemitism, which is echoed in the loss of Lida’s family friends, Sarah and her family. Zenia’s story fortunately has a positive ending: Lida’s comments indicate that Zenia emigrated to Israel after the war. Historically, Israel became an independent state following World War II, in May of 1948.

A Hungarian political prisoner, Juli is initially disdainful of Lida and makes it clear to Lida that the Germans do not consider Ukraine a real country or Russians valuable people. Because Hungary is allied with Germany, Juli receives better food. Her privilege illustrates the Nazis’ prejudice and their use of food as a vehicle for their discrimination and control. Later, Juli and Lida become good friends, and Lida values Juli as the “sister of [her] heart” (166).

Juli’s job in the hospital torments her. She must assist the Nazis who drain blood from the youngest enslaved laborers. Juli attempts to comfort the dying children but is tortured because she cannot prevent their deaths. Juli, however, risks her safety for Lida and others. She smuggles food into camp from the farm she where she works on weekends and procures shoes for Lida. Juli makes up for her helplessness by caring for all enslaved laborers injured in the camp bombing, then reclaiming her power and killing Officer Schmidt, sacrificing her life to allow others to escape. With her compassion and selfless act of rebellion, Juli’s character illustrates Skrypuch’s themes of individual courage, showing that acts of humanity still shine amongst the cruelties of the Nazis.

Natalia is a Polish prisoner who lives in Barracks 7 and works with Lida and Zenia at the bombmaking factory. Natalia escapes with Zenia and Kataryna and eventually finds Lida after the war. Their happy reunion reveals the strength of their friendship. Natalia, like most survivors, travels from refugee camp to refugee camp searching for her family. Natalia is more wary of the Soviets than Lida and will not return to Soviet-controlled Lviv, even though it is her home. Instead, she plans to immigrate to Canada or the United States. Lida dreams of going home again and initially has difficulty understanding why Natalia would move to a strange country. Lida learns, to her heartbreak, that Natalia is right: It is not safe for Ukrainians to return to Soviet rule. Natalia’s character reflects the power of friends and family. Her fear of the Soviets foreshadows both Luka and Lida’s loss of their homeland.

Broad-faced, sturdy Inge runs the work camp’s laundry. She is a big eater, enjoying two fat sandwiches for lunch and ignorantly exacerbating starving Lida’s hunger. Inge approves of Lida’s hard work with the heavy laundry and approves of Lida’s needlework even more. Inge gushes to Officer Schmidt about Lida’s skill: “Saying that Lida can sew is like saying Wagner can compose a pretty tune” (112). Lida is thrilled that Inge finds her useful and even feels “a lurch of sadness in [her] heart” (162) when she learns Inge was killed in the bombing.

Inge reflects how even civilians internalized the Nazis’ prejudiced ideology. Despite being proud of her generosity—and Inge is one of the most compassionate Germans that Lida encounters—Inge does not do more to help Lida. Inge believes OST workers are inferior to the Germans. Inge will not let Lida wash her clothes with the Germans’ clothes. Inge also reveals a callous lack of empathy for non-Germans. She praises her soldier-husband as being a “good provider” for sending her beautiful clothes but does not question how he got them or care about what happened to their original owner.

The “crisply-uniformed” Nazi officer with his shiny boots and long whip is the novel’s most prominent antagonist. Schmidt embodies the inhumanity of the Nazi regime. Officer Schmidt treats the OST workers as if they are “subhuman” and believes their lives are inconsequential. Officer Schmidt exemplifies the Nazis’ prejudiced ideology: The enslaved laborers are inferior and worthless unless they prove useful to the Nazi war effort. Schmidt callously orders a policeman to “get rid of” (24) sick Marika, sends the young children to be exsanguinated, and has the entire OST workforce murdered. Officer Schmidt takes pleasure in his cruelty and his sense of superiority: He punitively reassigns Lida to the bomb factory because she was “too comfortable” in the laundry, and he smiles before shooting Juli.

One of the first people to show unconditional compassion to Lida, Nurse Astrid works to alleviate Lida’s suffering: singing to her, cleaning her, and helping her heal, eat, and “feel like a human again” (189). Nurse Astrid only asks that Lida trust her, but trust is difficult after everything Lida has endured. Although Nurse Astrid is a force of good—the antithesis of Officer Schmidt—Lida still feels like a prisoner in the American Army hospital. Lida finally realizes that Nurse Astrid has her best interest at heart and appreciates that Nurse Astrid goes above and beyond to help her: finding her socks and boots and driving her to the refugee camp. Nurse Astrid’s care underscores the trauma that Lida and all the enslaved laborers and refugees have experienced, calling attention to the long physical and emotional road the survivors face.