Monday, January 12, 2009

Review in Two: The Boy Who Dared

At 17, Helmuth Heubener* has been branded a traitor and sentenced to death for daring to tell the truth that the Nazis seek to keep hidden. Told in a series of flashbacks, this work of historical fiction by author Susan Campbell Bartoletti revisits the story of one of the Hitler Youth profiled in her award-winning previous work.

This one was on at least one Mock Printz list, and I think it was a very moving account with definite potential, but I might think it more appropriate for the Newbery. Amazon lists it as being for ages 9-12, but I think that's off. I don't think I'd put this in the hands of anyone below middle school. It's also a good hi/lo book for high school, without the gruesome, gritty details of most other WWII/Holocaust books.

* His last name is actually Hubener (with an umlaut over the u), but since I don't know how to insert special characters, I did the English alternative of 'eu' - Thank you 6 years of German.

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