
The War Outside
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $19.49
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Allison Hiroto
-
Christie Moreau
-
Monica Hesse
-
By:
-
Monica Hesse
About this listen
New from Monica Hesse, the bestselling and award-winning author of Girl in the Blue Coat—an "important" (New York Times Book Review), "extraordinary" (Booklist, starred review) novel of conviction, friendship, and betrayal
"A must-read for fans of historical fiction."—Ruta Sepetys, #1 New York Times bestselling author
It's 1944, and World War II is raging across Europe and the Pacific. The war seemed far away from Margot in Iowa and Haruko in Colorado—until they were uprooted to dusty Texas, all because of the places their parents once called home: Germany and Japan.
Haruko and Margot meet at the high school in Crystal City, a "family internment camp" for those accused of colluding with the enemy. The teens discover that they are polar opposites in so many ways, except for one that seems to override all the others: the camp is changing them, day by day and piece by piece. Haruko finds herself consumed by fear for her soldier brother and distrust of her father, who she knows is keeping something from her. And Margot is doing everything she can to keep her family whole as her mother's health deteriorates and her rational, patriotic father becomes a man who distrusts America and fraternizes with Nazis.
With everything around them falling apart, Margot and Haruko find solace in their growing, secret friendship. But in a prison the government has deemed full of spies, can they trust anyone—even each other?
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2018 Monica Hesse (P)2018 Hachette AudioListeners also enjoyed...
-
They Went Left
- By: Monica Hesse
- Narrated by: Caitlin Davies
- Length: 9 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Germany, 1945. The soldiers who liberated the Gross-Rosen concentration camp said the war was over, but nothing feels over to 18-year-old Zofia Lederman. Her body has barely begun to heal; her mind feels broken. And her life is completely shattered: Three years ago, she and her younger brother, Abek, were the only members of their family to be sent to the right, away from the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau. Everyone else—her parents, her grandmother, radiant Aunt Maja—they went left.
-
-
Heartbreakingly Beautiful
- By Willow Star Serenity on 04-10-20
By: Monica Hesse
-
Girl in the Blue Coat
- By: Monica Hesse
- Narrated by: Natalia Payne
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Amsterdam, 1943. Hanneke spends her days procuring and delivering sought-after black market goods to paying customers, her nights hiding the true nature of her work from her concerned parents, and every waking moment mourning her boyfriend, who was killed on the Dutch front lines when the Germans invaded. She likes to think of her illegal work as a small act of rebellion.
-
-
Author Tried Too Hard to Not Be Predictable
- By Lori J. Little on 06-13-19
By: Monica Hesse
-
A Feather on the Water
- A Novel
- By: Lindsay Jayne Ashford
- Narrated by: Abby Craden
- Length: 9 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Just weeks after World War II ends, three women from different corners of the world arrive in Germany to run a Displaced Persons camp. They long to help rebuild shattered lives—including their own… For Martha, going to Germany provides an opportunity to escape Brooklyn and a violent marriage. Arriving from England is orphaned Kitty. She hopes working at the camp will bring her closer to her parents, last seen before the war began. For Delphine, Paris has been a city of ghosts after her husband and son died in Dachau.
-
-
#1 in 2022 for me!!!!!
- By Patrizia Clerico on 10-19-22
-
The Three Lives of Alix St. Pierre
- By: Natasha Lester
- Narrated by: Barrie Kreinik
- Length: 12 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Alix St. Pierre. An unforgettable name for an unforgettable woman. She grew up surrounded by Hollywood glamor, but, as an orphan, never truly felt part of that world. In 1943, with WWII raging and men headed overseas to fight, she lands a publicity job to recruit women into the workforce. Her skills—persuasion, daring, quick-witted under pressure—catch the attention of the U.S. government and she finds herself with an even bigger assignment: sent to Switzerland as a spy. Soon Alix is on the precipice of something big, very big. But how far can she trust her German informant…?
-
-
Excellent & Captivating
- By Steven Pugh on 02-10-23
By: Natasha Lester
-
The Orphan Sisters
- By: Shirley Dickson
- Narrated by: Anne Dover
- Length: 12 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A heartbreaking, enthralling and utterly unforgettable World War 2 story of two young sisters cruelly abandoned by their mother at an orphanage. 1929: four-year-old Etty and eight-year-old Dorothy are abandoned at Blakely Hall orphanage by their mother, never to see her again. With no other family to speak of, the sisters worship their beloved mam - and they are confused and heartbroken to be deserted by her when they need her the most.
-
-
Excellent story. PG-13+
- By Melissa L S on 09-18-19
By: Shirley Dickson
-
The Codebreaker's Secret
- By: Sara Ackerman
- Narrated by: Jennifer Robideau
- Length: 9 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A brilliant female codebreaker. An “unbreakable” Japanese naval code. A pilot on a top-secret mission that could change the course of WWII. The Codebreaker's Secret is a dazzling story of love and intrigue set during America’s darkest hour.
-
-
false advertising
- By Bird Miller on 09-14-22
By: Sara Ackerman
-
They Went Left
- By: Monica Hesse
- Narrated by: Caitlin Davies
- Length: 9 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Germany, 1945. The soldiers who liberated the Gross-Rosen concentration camp said the war was over, but nothing feels over to 18-year-old Zofia Lederman. Her body has barely begun to heal; her mind feels broken. And her life is completely shattered: Three years ago, she and her younger brother, Abek, were the only members of their family to be sent to the right, away from the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau. Everyone else—her parents, her grandmother, radiant Aunt Maja—they went left.
-
-
Heartbreakingly Beautiful
- By Willow Star Serenity on 04-10-20
By: Monica Hesse
-
Girl in the Blue Coat
- By: Monica Hesse
- Narrated by: Natalia Payne
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Amsterdam, 1943. Hanneke spends her days procuring and delivering sought-after black market goods to paying customers, her nights hiding the true nature of her work from her concerned parents, and every waking moment mourning her boyfriend, who was killed on the Dutch front lines when the Germans invaded. She likes to think of her illegal work as a small act of rebellion.
-
-
Author Tried Too Hard to Not Be Predictable
- By Lori J. Little on 06-13-19
By: Monica Hesse
-
A Feather on the Water
- A Novel
- By: Lindsay Jayne Ashford
- Narrated by: Abby Craden
- Length: 9 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Just weeks after World War II ends, three women from different corners of the world arrive in Germany to run a Displaced Persons camp. They long to help rebuild shattered lives—including their own… For Martha, going to Germany provides an opportunity to escape Brooklyn and a violent marriage. Arriving from England is orphaned Kitty. She hopes working at the camp will bring her closer to her parents, last seen before the war began. For Delphine, Paris has been a city of ghosts after her husband and son died in Dachau.
-
-
#1 in 2022 for me!!!!!
- By Patrizia Clerico on 10-19-22
-
The Three Lives of Alix St. Pierre
- By: Natasha Lester
- Narrated by: Barrie Kreinik
- Length: 12 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Alix St. Pierre. An unforgettable name for an unforgettable woman. She grew up surrounded by Hollywood glamor, but, as an orphan, never truly felt part of that world. In 1943, with WWII raging and men headed overseas to fight, she lands a publicity job to recruit women into the workforce. Her skills—persuasion, daring, quick-witted under pressure—catch the attention of the U.S. government and she finds herself with an even bigger assignment: sent to Switzerland as a spy. Soon Alix is on the precipice of something big, very big. But how far can she trust her German informant…?
-
-
Excellent & Captivating
- By Steven Pugh on 02-10-23
By: Natasha Lester
-
The Orphan Sisters
- By: Shirley Dickson
- Narrated by: Anne Dover
- Length: 12 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A heartbreaking, enthralling and utterly unforgettable World War 2 story of two young sisters cruelly abandoned by their mother at an orphanage. 1929: four-year-old Etty and eight-year-old Dorothy are abandoned at Blakely Hall orphanage by their mother, never to see her again. With no other family to speak of, the sisters worship their beloved mam - and they are confused and heartbroken to be deserted by her when they need her the most.
-
-
Excellent story. PG-13+
- By Melissa L S on 09-18-19
By: Shirley Dickson
-
The Codebreaker's Secret
- By: Sara Ackerman
- Narrated by: Jennifer Robideau
- Length: 9 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A brilliant female codebreaker. An “unbreakable” Japanese naval code. A pilot on a top-secret mission that could change the course of WWII. The Codebreaker's Secret is a dazzling story of love and intrigue set during America’s darkest hour.
-
-
false advertising
- By Bird Miller on 09-14-22
By: Sara Ackerman
-
Hatchet
- By: Gary Paulsen
- Narrated by: Peter Coyote
- Length: 3 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Newbery Award-winner Gary Paulsen's best-known book comes to audio in this breathless, heart-gripping drama about a boy pitted against the wilderness with only a hatchet and a will to live. On his way to visit his recently divorced father in the Canadian mountains, thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson is the only survivor when the single-engine plane crashes. His body battered, his clothes in shreds, Brian must now stay alive in the boundless Canadian wilderness.
-
-
Outstanding!
- By Raquel Aceves-Mittman on 02-14-12
By: Gary Paulsen
-
Code Name Sapphire
- By: Pam Jenoff
- Narrated by: Nancy Peterson
- Length: 13 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
1942. Hannah Martel has narrowly escaped Nazi Germany after her fiancé was killed in a pogrom. When her ship bound for America is turned away at port, she has nowhere to go but to her cousin Lily, who lives with her family in Brussels. Fearful for her life, Hannah is desperate to get out of occupied Europe. But with no safe way to leave, she must return to the dangerous underground work she thought she had left behind.
-
-
Such a disappointment.
- By V. Temple on 03-29-23
By: Pam Jenoff
-
The German Wife
- A Novel
- By: Kelly Rimmer
- Narrated by: Nancy Peterson, Ann Marie Gideon
- Length: 13 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Berlin, 1930—When a wave of change sweeps a radical political party to power, Sofie von Meyer Rhodes’s academic husband benefits from the ambitions of its newly elected chancellor. Although Sofie and Jürgen do not share the social views growing popular in Hitler’s Germany, Jürgen’s position with its burgeoning rocket program changes their diminishing fortunes for the better. But as Sofie watches helplessly, her beloved Berlin begins to transform, forcing her to consider what they must sacrifice morally for their young family’s security, and what the price for their neutrality will be.
-
-
Awkward Narrative
- By Terri S. on 07-14-22
By: Kelly Rimmer
-
Last Stop Auschwitz
- My Story of Survival from Within the Camp
- By: Eddy de Wind
- Narrated by: Robert Fass
- Length: 7 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Written in the camp itself in the weeks following the Red Army's liberation of the camp, Last Stop Auschwitz is the raw, true account of Eddy's experiences at Auschwitz. In stunningly poetic prose, he provides unparalleled access to the horrors he faced in the concentration camp. This poignant memoir is at once a moving love story, a detailed portrayal of the atrocities of Auschwitz, and an intelligent consideration of the kind of behavior - both good and evil - people are capable of.
-
-
wow
- By Ann on 02-08-20
By: Eddy de Wind
-
The Paper Girl of Paris
- By: Jordyn Taylor
- Narrated by: Liza Seneca
- Length: 8 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sixteen-year-old Alice is spending the summer in Paris, but she isn't there for pastries and walks along the Seine. When her grandmother passed away two months ago, she left Alice an apartment in France that no one knew existed. An apartment that has been locked for more than 70 years. Alice is determined to find out why the apartment was abandoned and why her grandmother never once mentioned the family she left behind when she moved to America after World War II. With the help of Paul, a charming Parisian student, she sets out to uncover the truth.
-
-
A new favorite of mine
- By Rachael on 06-23-20
By: Jordyn Taylor
-
When We Had Wings
- By: Ariel Lawhon, Kristina McMorris, Susan Meissner
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 13 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this sweeping story based on the true experiences of nurses dubbed "the Angels of Bataan," three women shift in and out of each other's lives through the darkest days of the war, buoyed by their unwavering friendship and distant dreams of liberation.
-
-
A sanitized view of the Japanese in WWII.
- By Mary on 04-04-23
By: Ariel Lawhon, and others
-
The Librarian Spy
- A Novel of World War II
- By: Madeline Martin
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 10 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ava thought her job as a librarian at the Library of Congress would mean a quiet, routine existence. But an unexpected offer from the US military has brought her to Lisbon with a new mission: posing as a librarian while working undercover as a spy gathering intelligence. Meanwhile, in occupied France, Elaine has begun an apprenticeship at a printing press run by members of the Resistance. It’s a job usually reserved for men, but in the war, those rules have been forgotten. Yet she knows that the Nazis are searching for the press and its printer in order to silence them.
-
-
Good story, disturbing narration.
- By John on 09-22-22
By: Madeline Martin
-
The School for German Brides
- A Novel of World War II
- By: Aimie K. Runyan
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Kathleen Gati
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As the war begins, Hanna Rombauer, a young German woman, is sent to live with her aunt and uncle after her mother’s death. Thrown into a life of luxury she never expected, Hanna soon finds herself unwillingly matched with an SS officer twenty years her senior. The independence that her mother lovingly fostered in her is considered highly inappropriate as the future wife of an up-and-coming officer and she is sent to a “bride school.” There, in a posh villa on the outskirts of town, Hanna is taught how to be a “proper” German wife.
-
-
It's ok
- By Donna Grimsley on 06-15-22
By: Aimie K. Runyan
-
The Last Hours in Paris
- A Novel
- By: Ruth Druart
- Narrated by: Daphne Kouma, Jess Nesling, Ben Jacobsen
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Elise Chevalier knows what it is to love…and to hate. Her fiancé, a young French soldier, was killed by the German army at the Maginot Line. Living amongst the enemy, Elise must keep her rage buried deep within. Sebastian Kleinhaus no longer recognizes himself. Forced to join the Third Reich and wear a uniform he despises, he longs for a way out. For someone, anyone, to be his salvation.
-
-
I loved this book!
- By Bob L. on 10-19-22
By: Ruth Druart
-
The Storyteller
- By: Jodi Picoult
- Narrated by: Mozhan Marno, Jennifer Ikeda, Edoardo Ballerini, and others
- Length: 18 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jodi Picoult's poignant number one New York Times best-selling novels about family and love tackle hot-button issues head on. In The Storyteller, Sage Singer befriends Josef Weber, a beloved Little League coach and retired teacher. But then Josef asks Sage for a favor she never could have imagined - to kill him. After Josef reveals the heinous act he committed, Sage feels he may deserve that fate. But would his death be murder or justice?
-
-
The Baker, The Nun, The Virgin and The Monster
- By Suzn F on 03-05-13
By: Jodi Picoult
-
Our Darkest Night
- A Novel of Italy and the Second World War
- By: Jennifer Robson
- Narrated by: Marisa Calin
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It is the autumn of 1943, and life is becoming increasingly perilous for Italian Jews like the Mazin family. With Nazi Germany now occupying most of her beloved homeland, and the threat of imprisonment and deportation growing ever more certain, Antonina Mazin has but one hope to survive - to leave Venice and her beloved parents and hide in the countryside with a man she has only just met.
-
-
Good book overall, but too sappy to be a historical novel
- By Gina Nello on 03-30-21
By: Jennifer Robson
-
The Girl Who Escaped From Auschwitz:
- A totally gripping and absolutely heartbreaking World War 2 novel
- By: Ellie Midwood
- Narrated by: Alison Campbell
- Length: 12 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nobody leaves Auschwitz alive. Mala, inmate 19880, understood that the moment she stepped off the cattle train into the depths of hell. Edward, inmate 531, is a camp veteran and a political prisoner. They are locked up for no other sin than simply existing. But when they meet, the dark shadow of Auschwitz is lit by a glimmer of hope. Edward makes Mala believe in the impossible. That despite being surrounded by electric wire, machine guns topping endless watchtowers and searchlights roaming the ground, they will leave this death camp.
-
-
Very sorrowful book
- By paula wright on 03-30-21
By: Ellie Midwood
Critic reviews
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2018
A 2019 YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults Pick
A 2018 BCCB Bulletin Blue Ribbon Title
A 2019 Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People
"Once again, Monica Hesse delivers an incredibly compelling and beautifully researched novel. The War Outside vividly brings readers into an underrepresented and dark period of American history. A must-read for fans of historical fiction."—Ruta Sepetys, #1 New York Times bestselling author
* "...superb....A satisfying and bittersweet novel, perfect for those who enjoyed Markus Zusak's The Book Thief."—SLJ, starred review
"Monica Hesse takes a setting we think we understand and shifts it in an important way...a tightly plotted exploration of the consequences of fear."—The New York Times Book Review
What listeners say about The War Outside
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- dana747
- 01-01-23
A peek into history
So many people know nothing about these camps. It’s such a poor mark on our country of freedom. Thank you for the history lesson with a personal touch.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- ADonnon
- 10-15-19
the ending made it worth it
During the story I couldn't quite say I really liked the book and I couldn't put my finger on why. But the ending tied everything up in an unexpected way so that I really did like the story!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful