PLOT SUMMARY

This book tells the story of how the youth of Hitler’s Germany were recruited, enlisted, and indoctrinated into the Hitler Jugend. Follow their stories and see what it was like from their point of view and find out what happened to them after the war was over.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

In this book, Bartoletti upholds her reputation of award-winning writing by telling the story of how the children of Hitler’s Germany were enlisted into the Hitler Jugend with compassion and grace. The author clearly states in the foreword that this is the story of the youth, not of Hitler. Learn how the youth were drawn in by the propaganda what they felt through their own words and pictures. Bartoletti uses knowledgeable sources, quotes from the youth and their writings, and first-hand stories to tell the narrative from 1932-1945. Pictures on every page help put a face to the youth and their story.

See what became of the young people featured in the book in the “endword,” and follow the timeline of the Hitler Youth. Bartoletti tells what inspired her research into the topic and how she chose the photographs featured throughout the book in the Author’s Note. If students are interested in finding more information, there is a lengthy bibliography organized by topic. The index helps students find information by topic, as well.

REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

Awards: Newbery Honor Book, YALSA Best Book for Young Adults, Booklist Editors’ Choice, Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book, Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year, Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year, School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, Winner 2005 Parents’ Choice Gold Seal Award

*KIRKUS: *starred review* “Nonfiction writing at its best. Essential for WWII collections as well as teaching units on conformity, peer pressure and resistance.” 

*BOOKLIST: *starred review* “Bartoletti draws on oral histories, diaries, letters, and her own extensive interviews with Holocaust survivors, Hitler Youth, resisters, and bystanders to tell the history from the viewpoints of people who were there.”

CONNECTIONS

*Have students research the politics of Europe during World War II

*Other books by Susan Campbell Bartoletti:

Campbell, S.C. THE BOY WHO DARED. Scholastic Press. 2018. ISBN 978-0439680141

Campbell, S.C. TERRIBLE TYPHOID MARY: A True Story of the Deadliest Cook in America. Clarion Books. 2015. ISBN 978-0544313675