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Gentle books to introduce Hitler/WWII to curious 8 year old boy?


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Guest webgrl22

I have an 8 year old boy who has started to ask questions about Germans and whether they are good or bad. He is reading a book called Scout that is apparently, based around the WWII time period. I don't think it addresses it explicitly though. Anyway, just wanted to know if there are any suggestions for gentle literature suggestions for this time period. Thanks.

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Number The Stars by Lois Lowry is pretty gentle. I don't know if I'd read it for an 8yo, tho. YMMV. I was reluctant to start the whole Holocaust stuff, so I delayed until this year. NtS is about a family that takes in a little Jewish girl, and later helps her and her family get out of Denmark. It's really about the Danish Resistance. A couple characters do die, but it's in the epilogue. You could read it in a couple of hours or less, and get the gist to see if you like it.

 

I may get slammed for this, but dd likes to watch Hogan's Heros. I'm okay with it, but she's 11 and understands the difference between what evil was done and this fictionalization. They make the Germans seem like buffoons, and give an unrealistic idea of the POW camps, for sure--and I do have a problem with that. OTOH, it introduces some history in a less-scary way and familiarizes dd with the whole set-up. Of course, the Holocaust should be scary.

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There is a great book by Jean Little called From Anna about a 9-year-old girl who emigrates from Germany to Canada in the 1930s. The book starts in Germany and has encounters with Nazis, parents talking about Hitler, etc.

 

Although the bulk of the book is about Anna's experience in Canada, I think the first part would be good glancing introduction to Hitler.

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I think Daniel's Story is suppose to be good.

 

You might look for the Holocaust museums book store and see what they suggest for children too.

 

You might also just look to see what is available at your library. I just checked out a simple picture book about a family who escaped out of Germany via Russia to Japan to china.

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I agree with Number the Stars, and I think that it would be fine for an 8yo.

 

"A New Coat for Anna" is a picture book that takes place in Europe in the aftermath or toward the end of a modern war. The story is upbeat, and the pictures show war damage, but without comment. I used that to discuss war with DD when she was very young.

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Twenty and Ten is excellent and age-appropriate. It reads as a bit of an adventure story, and clever, brave children have a central role. It's been years since we read it, but I remember my kids being on the edge of their seats. It had just enough excitement and suspense, without being overly disturbing.

 

Number the Stars is also good but usually read in the middle grades; I'd pre-read. I would definitely wait on Daniel's Story.

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I have an 8 year old boy who has started to ask questions about Germans and whether they are good or bad.

 

Please keep in mind when he asks questions like this that not ALL Germans agreed with what was happening at the time. It was only SOME Germans who were "bad".

 

My Great-Grandfather (and Grandmother) were living in Germany at the time. The Nazi's visted them and tried to get my G-Grandfather to join their party. He refused and they killed him.

 

My Grandmother was 12 years old at the time. Later on she married a Polish Jew who had been sent to one of the camps with his entire family. He was the only member to survive -he saw his family die in the gas chambers. He never blamed my Grandmother for anything just because she was German - he understood she had/wanted no part in what happenned.

 

When I was in high school I read a book called 'I am David'. There is also a movie of the same name based on this book. I really liked it and as far as I remember it should be ok for an 8 yo. You might want to screen it first though -in case I've forgotten something. Also 'When Hitler Stole the Pink Rabbit" - I haven't read this one but it's supposed to be a classic.

Edited by sewingmama
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