Brothers in Valor

Compared to Anne Frank, Oscar Schindler or the White Rose, the story of young Helmuth Hübener is little known. There have been a few biographies written on him and the soon-to-be movie starring Haley Joel Osmont might shed some light on this heroic young man. Two well-known authors Susan Campbell Bartoletti and Michael Tunnel have written books on Hübener, only this time it is geared toward younger audiences. In "Brothers in Valor," Helmuth's story is told through the eyes of his best friend and partner in crime, Rudi. Together Helmuth, Rudi and Karl, create an illegal mystery solving club, listen to the forbidden BBC, write and distribute anti-Nazi leaflets and eventually are arrested and sentenced by the infamous People's Court. In the end, Rudi and Karl are sentenced to prison, but it is Helmuth who takes the fall and pays the ultimate price for their actions. While I considered "Brothers in Valor" a prolific bio-novel, I cannot recommend it without cautioning others. Young children and those easily traumatized should avoid it altogether. At some points it is down right graphic but entirely realistic; Rudi disagrees with his Hitler Youth leader and a group of boys torment him by shoe polishing his lower private parts. Once Rudi is arrested he is severely beaten and tortured. At the age when most teens wander away from God and church, Helmuth, Rudi and Karl are particularly religious. They belong to the Mormon church; the author nor the characters never promote the denomination and yet they firmly believe that God would not want them to take part in a movement that does not please Him. When the rest of the world considered what was evil good and their own parents succumbed to Nazi propaganda, three young men chose to do what was right rather than what was popular.

Fictionalized account of Helmuth Huebener's small resistance group in Nazi Germany. The book is written for middle school age readers and loses some of the intrinsic drama in the retelling. This book could be of some interest to young teens looking for evidence of humanity in war. Not surprisingly, it is not the best account of Huebener's personal sacrifice and courage in the face of Nazi oppression.

True story about three boys in Germany during WW2. They send out pamphlets to discredit Hitler's regime and are arrested by the secret police. The book tells about how they were treated in jail and what happened at their trial. It's a great book, but sad in the end.

Brothers in Valor by Michael O. Tunnell (Holiday House; 0-8234-1541-4) Hamburg, Germany, 1937. Rudi Ollenick, the narrator, and his best friends, Karl Schneider and Helmuth Guddat, German boys, are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints. The boys aren't sure how they can follow the teachings of their church, yet still be good German citizens, willing to follow the Führer. When the boys are forced to join Hitler's youth group, they learn about the ruthless and violent ways of the Nazis and begin to formulate a plan to spread the truth among the German people. The flyers they print and distribute put them in danger, but all three boys are willing to take the risk, even if it means they lose their lives. Tunnell, a BYU School of Education professor, has based his story on personal interviews, published biographies, and Nazi archival records, bringing to life the story of three heroes who had to decide on whose side they would stand.

Tunnell does a great job of bringing the reader into Germany at the time of Hitler in his book, Brothers in Valor. Emotions run high as three Mormon boys have to face their own feelings about Nazi treatment of people in their German town. All these boys know the consequences of going against Hitler. And still they do it. Details are grim and thought-provoking. The history is accurate and chilling. By the end of this book, the reader cares about all involved. Without ever saying it, Tunnell has the reader asking, "What would I do in this situation?" I think this is a timely book, especially after the events of Tues, Sept 11, 2001.