I’m sneaking in one more post for Random Acts of Publicity Week. I thought this would be an easy post. Silly me. Pick just one book and give it a shout out? Not easy at all. I’ve read so many amazing books that I’ve loved. Even now, I’m tempted to give you a laundry list of the books I wanted to pick in order to sneak in a round about shout out. But I’ve decided that I WILL chose only one and I WILL have a really good reason for choosing it. I will also try to pick something deserving, but off my beaten path.
*wrings hands and sweats*
Nobody said Random Acts of Publicity are easy…oh, wait…they are easy. *head thunk* Since it’s a breeze, don’t forget you still have time to give your favorite book or even a deserving, under appreciated book a huge boost! You don’t even have to pick just one, I’m only making it hard on myself, in order to emphasize why this one, special book should be on your To-Read list.
Okay….*drum roll*…here it is…
THE BOY WHO DARED By: Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Just as the Nazis are rising to power, Helmuth Hübener, a German schoolboy, is caught up in all the swashbuckling bravado of his time. The handsome stormtrooper uniforms, the shiny jackboots and armbands, the rousing patriotism all serve to draw him into this bright new world full of promise and hope. In the beginning his patriotism is unwavering. But every day the rights of people all over Germany are diminishing. Jews are threatened and their businesses are being destroyed. The truth has been censored, and danger lurks everywhere. Anybody can turn on you. The world has turned upside down: Patriotism means denouncing others, love means hate, and speaking out means treason. How much longer can Helmuth keep silent? Told in flashback, Newbery Honor Book author Susan Campbell Bartoletti magnificently explores the life of a heroic German youth who dared to stand up against the Nazi regime.
*synopsis taken from Goodreads
“It’s a Tuesday. The executioner works on Tuesday.”
I just finished reading this book with my boys. It was a wonderful experience. My husband and I have talked to them often of the horrors of the Holocaust/Nazi Regime and in contrast, the beauty of the German people. Prior to having children, we both lived in Germany for four years. This gave us a chance to visit two different concentration camps and to also fall in love with Deutschland and it’s citizens. The dichotomy that exists between Germany’s past and present is also seen in this wonderfully written tale of historical fiction.
Susan Campbell Bartoletti does and amazing job of putting the reader in a moment that is too painful to watch, yet too important to ignore.
I hope you read this book. In my humble opinion, Helmuth Hubner has earned the right to have his story heard and his bravery remembered…
Any Random Acts of Publicity that you would like to share with me? Leave them in the comments section. :o)
Tags: Bravery, Nazi Germany, Random Acts of Publicity, Susan Campbell Bartoletti
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