Syvia is the protagonist and narrator of Yellow Star. She is four-and-a-half years old when the novel begins, at the beginning of the war in 1939, and almost 10 when it finishes, at the liberation of the Lodz Ghetto in January of 1945. Syvia is initially characterized as a typical four-year-old. She loves her new yellow jacket, she loves to play with her cousins and friends, and she loves playing with dolls. She also admires her older sister, Dora. These details characterize Syvia as a carefree, loving, and playful child.

Tragically, Syvia’s normal life is thrown into chaos and stress when her family is forcibly relocated to the Lodz Ghetto. The unusual and stressful turn that Syvia’s life takes is characterized by the loss of childish possessions and experiences; Syvia’s doll carriage is chopped up for firewood, characterizing the family’s desperation for fuel in the freezing winter months, and her doll is sold for money to buy food, as the family comes close to starvation numerous times. Later, both of Syvia’s best friends in the ghetto—Itka and Hava—are killed. Hava disappears on the streets of the ghetto, presumably killed by a Nazi soldier, and Itka is deported to a death camp, where she and her family are murdered.