Branded by the Pink Triangle

Winner of the Canadian Jewish Book Award for Holocaust Literature, finalist for the TD Canadian Children's Literature Award, commended as a Stonewall Book Award Honor Book, and more!

When the Nazis came to power in Europe, the lives of homosexuals came to be ruled by fear as raids, arrests, prison sentences and expulsions became the daily reality. When the concentration camps were built, homosexuals were imprisoned along with Jews. The pink triangle, sewn onto prison uniforms, became the symbol of their persecution. This book combines historical research with first-person accounts and individual stories to bring this time to life for readers. From the first chapter, with its story of a young Jewish girl who was rescued from the depths of despair and starvation in the camps by a fellow prisoner who wore the pink triangle, to the last, entitled It Gets Better, which outlines the strides forward in gay rights made in the decades since the war, the feeling of bravery and perseverance in the face of inhuman cruelty shines through.

Ken Setterington is a storyteller, author, children’s book reviewer, and a librarian. He was the first Children and Youth Advocate for Library Services for the Toronto Public Library. He has been on the award committee for the Newbery, Caldecott, and Sibert awards. He is the author of the ground-breaking picture book Mom and Mum are Getting Married!