Hilary hates Jews. As part of a neo-Nazi gang in her town, she's finally found a sense of belonging. But when she's critically injured in an accident, everything changes.
Somehow, in her mind, she has become Chana, a Jewish girl fighting for her own life in the ghettos and concentration camps of World War II.
Han Nolan offers powerful insight into one young woman's survival through the Holocaust and another's journey out of hatred and self-loathing.
Reader's guide and an interview with the author included.

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16 year-old Hilary Burke-a Neo-Nazi- is injured terribly in a motorcycle accident. Her boyfriend, Brad, also a Neo-Nazi getting off with only a few scratches and bruises.

As she slips in and out of consciousness, she falls into the life of Chana, a jewish girl who is wrapped up in the times of the Holocaust. Her terrifying life as a young Jew helps her realize what she is doing(hanging Jews in trees and beating them up) is absolutely wrong.

When Hilary is telling the chapter, all she can see is a 'Grandmaw', the actual Chana. Chana helps her realize that what she is seeing is her life as a child. At the end of the book, Chana's only living relative, her sister Nadzia, comes to tell Hilary something that hurts them all...especially after what Hilary(Chana) has just been through in her dreams.

To find out more, I won't mess up this review and tell you what happens next. You have to read the book...

Recommended for: 13+

6 of 6 found the following review helpful:

My New Favorite BookFeb 03, 2001
By Brandy
"If I Should Die Before I Wake" is now by far my favorite book. It is a sentimental story about a 16-year-old neo-nazi named Hilary and how her life crosses paths with the life of a young Jewish girl living in Europe during World War I named Chana. When Hilary gets in a car accident with her boyfriend Brad she finds herself in a coma at a Jewish hospital. As she struggles for her life she passes over from the views of her life to Chana's. As Chana, Hilary sees the many horrible and emotionally terrorizing things that the Nazis did to the Jews. Many of Chana's family members and friends are killed. This book gives a very descriptive, mind altering explanation of the concentration camps and the brutal deaths of the Jews. After seeing this Hilary realizes how wrong the Nazis were and changes her views about Jews. This book was very passionate and I recommend it for anyone who likes a good tearjerker because this book will definetly make you cry. Han Nolan did an excellent job of portraying the realities of the Holocaust.

4 of 4 found the following review helpful:

Great for Younger ReadersNov 29, 2003
By Leeann
I had some mixed feelings about this book. For one thing, I pretty much predicted the plot just from reading the back cover. Also, Nolan's language just didn't move me the way some authors can. That said, this is still an extraordinary book, and I know it would've amazed and inspired me had I read it at a younger age, back before I knew much about the Holocaust. So, if you are [or you know] a young adult reader with little knowledge of the Holocaust who might develop an interest in it, I'd certainly recommend this book.

3 of 3 found the following review helpful:

If I should Die Before I WakeOct 25, 2006

If I Should Die before I Wake by Han Nolan is a heartbreaking novel about a sixteen-year-old named Hilary. Hilary hates Jews. But, as fate would have it, after a terrifying motorcycle accident with her boyfriend, Hilary lies dying in a Jewish hospital. She starts slipping in and out of reality, and is bombarded by dreams from another place, time and person. She becomes Chana, a Polish Jew during the Holocaust. After her father's death at the hands of the Nazis, she gets caught up in a roundup and is transported to the Lodz ghetto with the rest of her family. Many do not survive there, but those who do get sent to the mass gassings of Auschwitz. The scent of death lingers, and Chana can't run or hide from the looming red sky, while Hilary is flung into memories of her shattered past. I really liked this book because it kept switching between the visions of Hilary and Chana. It was also very descriptive and you can see changes in the characters as the story progresses. It's not a very happy book, and so if you want something that will make you cry, this could be a possible outlet for your tears. This story of two broken lives that somehow intertwine despite their differences will teach you so much about strength of character, and strength of heart.

3 of 3 found the following review helpful:

If i Should die Before i WakeFeb 27, 2001
By Ali Woodworth
If i Should Die Before i Wake is a Holocaust book. It's a great book but it can be a little confusing at first. It can be confusing because the author switches on and off telling about two girls' lives. Hilary is a German girl in her mid-teens. She's a Neonazi. Then while riding with her boy friend on his motorcycle they crash. Hilary is seriously injured and is sent to a Jewish hospital, where she lies unconscious. In the hospital bed next to Hilary is Chana, an older woman. She's Jewish and went through a concentration camp and survived. Hilary then has flashbacks of Chana's life. (flashbacks like she is Chana) This experience could change her life and veiws forever. A scene in the book that stuck out in my mind is when Chana's father stops working to rest. The Nazi's drape him over a tree limb and taunt him. Chana is walking by from her day at work for the Nazi's when she sees her father. She offers to do his work so he can rest. The Nazi's agree. Chana is in the middle of doing her father's work when she hears a shot. The Nazi's shot her father dispite her efforts.

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