Natalie In the Shadow of the Swastikais a debut novel written by Antoinette Constable, who was a young girl in WWII France. This book for young adult readers, is the story of a child coming of age during the Second World War. Set near Paris, eight-year-old Natalie and her family--a Jewish mother, gentile father and two sisters--must cope with the harsh facts of war and Hitler's occupying army. In 1940, Natalie's safe surroundings are forever changed when her ailing father suddenly leaves. Her struggles with the pain of family separation and dangerous threats against her Jewish mother reveal her growing maturity in the face of confusing loss. Natalie's fierce resolve to hold onto her hope and love of family, despite the violence of war, shows how one child of war moves from innocence to a wisdom beyond her years.