Two Pieces of Chocolate by Kathy Kacer and illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard is not an easy book to talk about. It is a story about strength and survival illustrated by imagery that brings to life the situation realistic, but also does soften the seriousness. But after that if you tell what happens, it really tells the whole story and you will not need to read it.
Based on real events that happened to a young girl, her mother and fellow prisoners in their final concentration camp, this is not an unknown story (we have seen stories, Holocaust stories, that deal with sacrifice and community) but it is the way it is presented that is different from other similar stories. The text and format are longer and darker than a usual picture book, and the size is larger than usual. It is not for all readers, but all should read eventually. While there is nothing graphic, it is obviously what is happening to the people. The conditions and fear they have is obvious. The faces and bodies of the characters are shown in a realistic manner, but not grotesque.
I cannot recommend this book and yet I cannot recommend it enough. The ending with the afterwards and the further information of what happened to a few of the people involved is interesting and allows us to have a hopefulness to the things that we experienced on the pages and these people did in real life. If you were to give this to a child or your classroom, read it first to know if they are ready for it as it is mature with the concepts and content.