By Maya Viswanathan
The Prisoner of Night and Fog is a book about a girl named Gretchen Muller. She is growing up in Munich, Germany in the late 1930s, just before World War two. Many years ago, her father sacrificed his life to protect Adolf Hitler, and ever since, Hitler has been a close family friend to Gretchen and her family. Gretchen admires Hitler very much and completely trusts him, until she meets a Jewish reporter that reveals that the story of her father’s death is not exactly the way it was told to her. Suddenly Gretchen begins to question Hitler and his beliefs and she sets out to solve the mystery of what really happened to her father.
This book is historical fiction but it is also a mystery. I like that, because a lot of people think that historical fiction is boring. However, when there is a mystery, that makes the plot more interesting. You always want to know what is going to happen next. Also, because it is historical fiction, you can learn a lot about the Nazis and Germany at the time. I personally like both mysteries and historical fiction, so I like reading a combination of the two. When I read historical fiction, I can imagine a different time in history. I get to see what it was like to live in a different time. Mysteries are fun and I am always wondering and guessing what the detective will discover.
Another thing I find interesting about the book is that it is about a Nazi. I think that a lot of books set at the time before World War two are about people who are against the Nazis, not a book about a Nazi. I think it is interesting to read about the Nazis’ point of view. Gretchen didn’t realize all the terrible things that Hitler wanted to do until late in the book. She wasn’t a bad girl but she was brainwashed by Hitler and the other Nazis. Even after she realized that he was bad, she continued to defend him out of habit. It was interesting to see how much being a Nazi affected her life.
The Prisoner of Night and Fog is nominated for Golden Jaguar this year. It is a great book and there is something in it for everyone. Adventure, friendship, and interesting historical facts. Do you want to find out what Munich was like in the 1930s? Do you want to learn more about Hitler and the Nazis? Do you want to discover the truth about Gretchen’s father? Read this exciting and hard to put down book to learn all these things and more.