Touch Wood: Rene "Touch Wood" is based on the author's own life when she was growing as a Jewish girl during the German invasion of France. In 1940, Renée and her family were living in Alsace, France, where nothing ever changed. No one expected anything unusual to happen. Then one day, a war with Germany is announced on the radio. The Germans wanted to annex Alsace and forced the Jews to leave. France was split into two zones- the Free Zone and the German occupied zone. Renée's father chose for them to move to Paris, because it is a big city where he can find work, and also because Renée¹s mother has childhood friends there. So, Renée, her parent