Listen free for 30 days
Listen with offer
-
When the World Was Ours
- Narrated by: Tom Lawrence, Willow Nash
- Length: 7 hrs and 1 min
Failed to add items
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
99p for the first 3 months
When the World Was Ours
Buy Now for £9.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
Summary
One moment can change a life forever.
A powerful and heart-breaking novel about three childhood friends living during the Second World War whose fates are closely intertwined, even when their lives take very different courses. Inspired by a true story, this is the perfect story for fans of The Book Thief and Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl.
Vienna, 1936.
Elsa, Leo and Max have always been best friends, a special team of three. Then the Nazis come.
As a growing darkness descends around them, Leo and Elsa run for their lives, taking two very different paths across Europe. And Max, once their closest friend, now becomes the enemy as he is drawn into the Hitler Youth. Will the friends ever find their way back to each other? Will they want to?
Inspired by a true story, When the World Was Ours is an extraordinary novel that is as powerful as it is heartbreaking, and shows how the bonds of love, family and friendship allow glimmers of hope to flourish, even in the most hopeless of times.
Three friends. Two sides. One memory.
Critic reviews
"When The World Was Ours is Liz's masterpiece...an instant classic." (Anthony McGowan, winner of the 2020 CILIP Carnegie Medal)
"An exceptional read." (The Sunday Times)
"Vital glimmers of hope enlighten this profoundly poignant book." (Guardian)
More from the same
What listeners say about When the World Was Ours
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Wayne Haddon
- 06-02-21
Incredibly, amazingly sad
You will smile, Cry, and realise how precious life is and how lucky you are.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Lydia Pink
- 17-11-23
Amazing
It was so amazing and really sad. An awesome book I would definitely recommend it hone you like it as much as I did
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- A. M. Taylor
- 05-12-22
Amazing story
Not for bed but very good for someone interested in World War Two and what it was like in Germany
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sigrin
- 23-10-23
Powerful
This book is not just for teens who it is recommended for, it is a must for all.
It follows the lives pf three children and their growing up in Germany during the rise of the nNazi party and the consequences of this and world war 2 on the lives of these once innocent children.
Powerful and brilliant story telling
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance3 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 28-12-22
Amazing
I live the book but would live to have just one more voice for the book also when they are speaking maybe a little more emotion because I can't really tell if they are narrating or talking. Great book I love it, so emotional I couldn't stop crying
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Paul
- 21-04-23
Emotional read
This book makes you think of the innocent lives lost to war. Parts of it made me smile and made me sad.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- savyshopper
- 14-02-21
Thought Provoking
I thougherly enjoyed this book. It made me hope nothing like this should happen again
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Gillian
- 25-05-23
Should be a GCSE course book.
Such a heartbreaking story and all the more so because it’s told from three angles. In my opinion, this is a much better story than The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, which didn’t stir me in the way that this book does. Maybe it’s time to start including some of these stories as GCSE course books lest we forget.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- l wod
- 12-04-21
A Great Read
Full of love, hope for the future and tragedy coming together to make a brilliant story.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mrs Amy Morgan
- 31-01-23
Fantastic read
Emotional, emotive and heart warming. The fact it’s based on a true story makes it even more compelling.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!