Review of HITLER YOUTH by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bartoletti, Susan Campbell. HITLER YOUTH. 2005. New York: Scholastic. ISBN 0439862736

2. PLOT SUMMARY

The book begins with a brief biography of twelve youths whose story is featured in the book. Although the book is not about Hitler, it focuses on how his shrewd manipulation of Germany’s children led to some dying for his cause and some turning their backs on their families. His organization of the Hitler Youth started out as organized fun activities, but as Germany needed soldiers, many of the Hitler Youth were sent to battle. Ultimately, many youths realized that they were being manipulated by Hitler’s propaganda and they ultimately became traitors for the other side. Most of the children realized that Hitler was lying to the people of Germany and that people were losing their individual rights. Some Hitler Youths chose to die at the hands of the SS, rather than carry out orders that they knew were wrong. The one story that I found the most shocking was that of Elizabeth Vetter, who turned in her own parents after they scolded her for participating in the Hitler Youth. In the conclusion, the author presents an Epilogue which briefly tells what happened to each of the young people in the book that survived the war.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

This book is for older readers, grades 6-12. The stories are fascinating, yet hard to believe. Most older children could possibly relate to being excited about the hope that new leader can invoke in its citizens. Especially, one who makes idle promises when their country is hurting. The book is one of the few I’ve read that is from the perspective of German children who were not persecuted by Hitler. These innocent children were damaged by him in another way. They are forced to live with the choices they made as children.

This book is great for students because it reads more like a story, than a work of nonfiction. The book is thoroughly researched and documented. The book contains a Table of Contents. It has a brief Biography of the twelve featured young people from the book. It has a Foreword and an Introduction. The chapters follow the timeline of Hitler’s rise to power until the war’s end, and also what happened to Hitler’s followers after the war. It also contains an Epilogue which tells about what happened in the future of the surviving characters.

The author also gives a Timeline of the war. She also includes an
Author’s note about her research and thoughts on writing the book. She also discusses the black and white photographs used, which make a wonderful accompaniment to the text. She includes Quote Sources, as well as a five page Bibliography. She also gives Acknowledgments to those who helped her in her research. The book also includes an Index for quick reference. The book is well researched and includes many ways to check the book’s accuracy.

The only negative aspect I could find was that a glossary of terms would be helpful since many of these terms might be unfamiliar to the book’s audience. I also thought including a map showing where the book takes place, might be helpful for students.

4. REVIEW EXCERPTS

Review SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “Starred Review. Grade 5-8–Hitler's plans for the future of Germany relied significantly on its young people, and this excellent history shows how he attempted to carry out his mission with the establishment of the Hitler Youth, or Hitlerjugend, in 1926. With a focus on the years between 1933 and the end of the war in 1945, Bartoletti explains the roles that millions of boys and girls unwittingly played in the horrors of the Third Reich. The book is structured around 12 young individuals and their experiences, which clearly demonstrate how they were victims of leaders who took advantage of their innocence and enthusiasm for evil means. Their stories evolve from patriotic devotion to Hitler and zeal to join, to doubt, confusion, and disillusion. (An epilogue adds a powerful what-became-of-them relevance.) The large period photographs are a primary component and they include Nazi propaganda showing happy and healthy teens as well as the reality of concentration camps and young people with large guns. The final chapter superbly summarizes the weighty significance of this part of the 20th century and challenges young readers to prevent history from repeating itself. Bartoletti lets many of the subjects' words, emotions, and deeds speak for themselves, bringing them together clearly to tell this story unlike anyone else has.”

Review BOOKLIST: “*Starred Review* Gr. 7-10. What was it like to be a teenager in Germany under Hitler? 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. Most of the accounts and photos bring close the experiences of those who followed Hitler and fought for the Nazis, revealing why they joined, how Hitler used them, what it was like. Henry Mentelmann, for example, talks about Kristallnacht, when Hitler Youth and Storm Troopers wrecked Jewish homes and stores, and remembers thinking that the victims deserved what they got. The stirring photos tell more of the story. One particularly moving picture shows young Germans undergoing de-Nazification by watching images of people in the camps. The handsome book design, with black-and-white historical photos on every double-page spread, will draw in readers and help spark deep discussion, which will extend beyond the Holocaust curriculum. The extensive back matter is a part of the gripping narrative.


5. CONNECTIONS

Students could read excerpts from other books about this time. Such as, one from the perspective of Jewish children that survived the concentration camps, or were forced to go into hiding. They could also read about the way Hitler treated the handicapped children of Germany. They could discuss and compare their lives and how different it would be to be Jewish in Germany at that time. There are also many excellent documentaries about survivors, many who were children during the war. Viewing one of those films would make a good follow-up activity.

Show students how life and death was as simple as one person pointing people to the left or right. Start by telling students with blue shirts to go to the left and students with any other color go to the right. This shows them that there was no reasoning in the decisions made in the camps. Most students just can’t believe that this could happen. Then, they could talk about how they felt being sent to die because of the color of their shirt. You could also discuss the guilt one would feel to be sent to the line that lived, when all your family members were chosen to die.

After reading the book, you could read a fictional book about this time. THE BOY IN THE STRIPPED PAJAMAS by John Boynes would be good because it shows two boy that befriend each other, but live in totally different worlds. One boy is the son of a Nazi officer and the other is a Jewish boy in the concentration camp. This gives the perspective of both sides and would make a good companion piece to HITLER YOUTH. There was also a movie made about this story.