Interesting although I wonder if it will be too sentimental

I enjoy reading novels about the lived experiences of noncombatants during wartime. It's especially compelling for me when the author writes in another language, as in this case. However, I'm reluctant to read novels with child protagonists as they are often maudlin and overly sentimental, at least in American literature. I hope this isn't true of Viola Ardone's book.