Overview

Ten-year-old Fritz's tranquil life on the family farm is about to end--the Russians are near, Hitler has died, and known Nazi sympathizers like the Friedrich family brace for the Bolsheviks to take over their town -- in this historical novel for middle-grade readers. When the Russians come, where do you go? Fritz loves his vegetable garden. His tomatoes are delicious, he's attentive to the asparagus, and he remembers how to keep slugs off the strawberries. But his tranquil life on the family farm is about to end-the Russians are near, Hitler has died, and known Nazi sympathizers like the Friedrich family brace for the Bolsheviks to take over their town. Local German supporters of the Bolshevik regime seize the Friedrich farm in the name of Communism, forcing Fritz's family to flee to the distant house of his grandmother, Oma Clara. Life there for Fritz is horrible, made even worse when Communists arrest his mother and Lech, the Polish farmhand who has tended the Friedrich land, for hiding weapons. Though there is no evidence to support the accusation, Gertrude and Lech are taken away, and Fritz commits to finding where they are imprisoned. Despite the boy's heroic efforts, the story ends with one of the war's ambiguities- that Lech and Gertrude may not return home.

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9781684372775

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Reviews

The action in this important addition to WWII literature will grab readers, and Schroder's story is an excellent, authentic portrait of children in war. --Booklist * While a wealth of children's books set during World War II focus on the Holocaust, Schroder brings some of Germany's other young victims to light in her exceptional debut novel. . . . Resonates with candor and eloquence. (author's note) --Kirkus Reviews, starred review An asset to most collections. . . . A powerful, inspiring read.--School Library Journal[A] well-crafted debut. --Publishers Weekly

The action in this important addition to WWII literature will grab readers, and Schroder's story is an excellent, authentic portrait of children in war. --Booklist * While a wealth of children's books set during World War II focus on the Holocaust, Schroder brings some of Germany's other young victims to light in her exceptional debut novel. . . . Resonates with candor and eloquence. (author's note) --Kirkus Reviews, starred review An asset to most collections. . . . A powerful, inspiring read. --School Library Journal [A] well-crafted debut. --Publishers Weekly

Author Information

Monika Schroder grew up in Germany and lived there for the first thirty years of her life. She studied history at the Ruhr University in Bochum and worked in the German parliament before becoming an elementary-school teacher. She has taught in international schools in Egypt, Chile, and Oman and is currently the elementary-school librarian at the American Embassy School in New Delhi, India. This is her first novel.

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