The author is giving a life lesson - it was easy for the German youth to be duped into following the Nazis and how easy it is to do the same to today's youth though with different beliefs, philosophies, etc. You can add that they were also restricted to what books they were allowed to read.

You speak of the indoctrination and peer pressure of the children/teens growing up in Nazi Germany, and it is true. If there is one thing I learned through life, learning never stops and reading is a skill that allows you to learn. Welcome to the forum Jack, it is great to see a young man reading and actually coming to a forum like this. Plus many died at the hands of the British bombers and they suffered as much as the others in Europe did. What I like about the series is that is shows us that German teenagers were not too blame for the war, many hated the Nazi's, they could not even listen to jazz music, and were forced to join the HJ. Granpa Gunthire is the best character, he is a poacher and deals on the black market, he is the grandfather of the head Pirate and lets then use his shed as a base. It stuck with me for a while, it was horrific.īook 2 I just finished, that was the best one so far, one point you are laughing the next is scary and the next you almost cry. One scene was horrific what the Nazi's did to a woman and her baby. They find a 6 year old Jewish girl and have to hide her and try to get her to Switzerland.Īt one part they came across a concentration camp. One of the Pirates has an older brother is a strict HJ member. It's really funny at parts, they put Epsom Salts in the water tank at the Hitler Youth camp, ( It gives them the shits) they painted 'Edelweiss Pirates rule' and stuff like 'Hitler has a small dinky) on walls and on the Hitler Youth's car and plastered him in eggs. Although he was in the HJ, that was just a cover because he was actually the leader of the Edelweiss Pirates of Wurzburg. Then it switches to when he was a 14 year old boy.

They start off in current day, and the old man is telling his grandson about the Hitler Youth. Can you tell me though what the Edelweiss Pirates series is about? I'm a teacher so I'm impressed by your interest in reading. Larso wrote:Hi Jack, good on you and good on your mum too!

The Edelweiss Express by Mark A. Cooper