The Boy Who Dared

By: Susan Campbell Bartoletti

• Country / Culture: Germany• Reason for Selecting Book: It caught my eye

because books about Germany and WWII interest me.

• Setting: Germany / 1940’s

Main Characters• Helmuth:

– main character– at first likes Hitler, then starts to question things– gets in trouble and sent to jail to be executed

• Mutti:– mom of Helmuth– gets pulled into the whole Nazi idea when she dates a

man named Hugo– works hard and cares for her children

• Opa:– grandfather of Helmuth– very against Hitler– worries of what Hitler will make Germany

Main Characters Cont.• Oma:

– grandmother of Helmuth– very against Hitler– worries what Hitler will turn Germany into

• Gerhard:– one of Helmuth’s big brothers– very intelligent for his age– got drafted into the Nazi army even though he was

not a true Nazi himself• Karl:

– close friend of Helmuth– believed in the same things as Helmuth did– helped Helmuth with exposing the Nazi’s and Hitler of

their lies

• When Hitler came into power everyone worshiped him. They thought his thoughts and ideas would cure Germany of its problems.

• People waited around their radios until the announcement was made about who was the new ruler of Germany.

• After Hitler came into power, young boys of all ages joined a group called Hitler Youth.

• Since Helmuth went against the words of Hitler and challenged the believes during WWII about the Nazi’s, he was placed into a prison.

• Throughout the book it is stated how Hitler forbid all books that went against his word and the beliefs of the Nazi party.

Helmuth constantly asked himself questions like, “Why can the Nazi’s do that?” and “How is this fair?”. In this song by Switchfoot it talks about living for more then what you are. We listen and just do what other tells us without thinking for ourselves. We don’t always look at what’s right and wrong, instead just listen to the people above us and who have more power. These lyrics show that we have lost ourselves by doing this, “We were meant to live for so much more. Have we lost ourselves? Somewhere we live inside.” During WWII, people just listened to what Hitler told them to do without truly thinking. Even though some of them questioned his requests, they still did whatever he wanted because of his power. They literally lost themselves in the words of Hitler instead of thinking for themselves.

“Meant To Live” by Switchfoot

Fumbling his confidence And wondering why the world has passed him by Hoping that he's bent for more than arguments And failed attempts to fly, fly

We were meant to live for so much more Have we lost ourselves? Somewhere we live inside Somewhere we live inside We were meant to live for so much more Have we lost ourselves? Somewhere we live inside

Dreaming about ProvidenceAnd whether mice or men have second tries Maybe we've been livin with our eyes half open Maybe we're bent and broken, broken

We were meant to live for so much more Have we lost ourselves? Somewhere we live inside Somewhere we live inside We were meant to live for so much more Have we lost ourselves? Somewhere we live inside

We want more than this world's got to offer We want more than this world's got to offer We want more than the wars of our fathers And everything inside screams for second life, yeah

We were meant to live for so much more Have we lost ourselves? We were meant to live for so much more Have we lost ourselves? We were meant to live for so much more Have we lost ourselves? We were meant to live We were meant to live

“Away From The Sun” by 3 Doors Down

It's down to this I've got to make this life make sense Can anyone tell what I've done I miss the life I miss the colors of the world Can anyone tell where I am

'Cause now again I've found myself So far down, away from the sun That shines into the darkest place I'm so far down, away from the sun again Away from the sun again

I'm over this I'm tired of living in the dark Can anyone see me down here The feeling's gone There's nothing left to lift me up Back into the world I know

And now again I've found myself So far down, away from the sun That shines into the darkest place I'm so far down, away from the sun That shines to light the way for me To find my way back into the arms That care about the ones like me I'm so far down, away from the sun again

It's down to this I've got to make this life make sense And now I can't tell what I've done

And now again I've found myself So far down, away from the sun That shines to light the way for me

'Cause now again I've found myself So far down, away from the sun That shines into the darkest place I'm so far down, away from the sun That shines to light the way for meTo find my way back into the arms That care about the ones like me I'm so far down, away from the sun again

Oh no...Yeah...I'm gone...

While in prison, waiting for his execution, Helmuth describes many things. He says how he misses the outside world, the sun, the green grass and the air. Cooped up inside the cell, with just a small window, he forgot what it was like in the real world. Helmuth would be let out for a little bit to walk around outside during his stay in prison. These lyrics are an example of someone who can’t remember the way the world is because they are lost, “I miss the colors of the world. Can anyone tell where I am.” When he was let outside he was blinded by the sun because his eyes weren’t used to it. Helmuth would think about how he never realized the grass was so green and the sky so blue. Be secluded from the world for so long made him forget about the world outside of his cell.

ArtifactThroughout my book, Helmuth talks about the

concentration camps during WWII. My grandpa’s uncle, Archie MacIntyre T/SGT, was part of the 492nd B.G. that fought in the war against Hitler’s Nazi Germany. He and his group of men were known as, The Ten Little Indians. While fighting the war, Archie was captured and held in a concentration camp. His experiences were similar to the ones Helmuth was told about by Brother Worbs. Brother Worbs explained the camps by saying,“…starvation rations, the guards, the punishments, how he was stripped naked, forced to stand outside, knee deep in snow, how the guards poured water on his hands, let them freeze, and then hit his hands with a club” (133). Archie was one of the lucky ones who stayed alive and was rescued at the end of the war. He came home thin and unhealthy, but still head strong and determined. Archie MacIntyre is still alive to this day, however, he will never forget about his experience he went through during WWII.

ThemeWhen reading this book, I was inspired and learned

several things. Helmuth showed many characteristics that most kids would not have. The boldness of Helmuth, a mere boy, was very moving. His courage is shown is this quote, ‘“Arresting people for their beliefs is a crime,” Helmuth says out loud. “Taking away our freedoms is a crime”’ (103). For a boy his age, saying such things was very brave of him. Another saying in the book that got me thinking was, “A warm calmness fills him, and he knows that he has lived a life that stood for something” (154). Even though he was about to be executed, Helmuth thought about things positively. He looked at his death in a good way because he stood up for what he believed in. Helmuth was not about to die with his head held low. He was proud of what he had done and he would make sure he would leave this world without any regrets.