Alternating stories set from the late 1920s to 1947 follow Erik and Hans, best friends from Berlin, and Ruby and Kate, British pen pals. Growing up, Erik and Hans share adventures and dreams. Neither boy likes the changes in their country as Hitler rises, but both end up Luftwaffe pilots, even as Erik’s mother harbors a Jewish woman in their home. When war breaks out, Ruby, living in Plymouth, and Kate, in Oxford, are 12. Ruby has never gotten along with her older brother, Will, who has often been unkind about her facial birthmark and many other things. It was a relief when he joined up and left home; then he goes missing in France. Kate, youngest of six, wants to do something meaningful for the war effort, like her older siblings, but isn’t sure what that might be. The girls share a godmother, Clarry, who brings Kate to a farm outside Plymouth to pick up Ruby, who is coming to stay with Kate’s family. A fifth main character is a mistreated, abandoned dog who, with Clarry’s help, finds his way to Kate’s family. All of the storylines converge when Erik and Hans end up in a dogfight with British fighters over the Plymouth farm. These singular primary characters, all white, are surrounded by richly developed secondary characters, mostly family members with whom they have distinct relationships; all of them are an essential part of this story about friendship and family, growth and change, and, especially, compassion and kindness. (Ages 8-12)