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Jan 02, 2012

Cara rated it:

This story resonates so much because it's based on a true account of a young man named Helmuth during World War II. He is a patriotic German and can see why Hitler could be good for the country. Just like many others he gets sweeped up with the hysteria of a new hope for the broken down Germany. Slowly but surely though he comes to see what the whole regime is really about.

The book flips perspectives from the present to memories Helmuth has leading up to why he is in jail. The voice More...

2 comments like (5 people liked it)

Aug 10, 2010

Valerie rated it:

Been planning to read this for a while and finally did. It is set in Hamburg, Germany during WWII. This book shows that not every German citizen was for the war even though it allowed more jobs and a better economy and some did not know what was going on because of all the laws restricting outside information. We see all of this through a boy, called Helumth.

Helmuth was a real boy growing up in WWII. And it not that the author made Helmuth such a believable character, he actually see More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 04, 2009

Art rated it:

What does “Fahrenheit 451”, “The Gulag Archipelago”, “1984”, and
“The Hiding Place” or perhaps you have heard of these people: Anne Frank,
Corrie Ten Boom, Dietrich Bonnehoffer, and Martin Niemoeller have in common w/”The Boy Who Dared”. These books and people, all deal with the
Theme of good people in controlling societies or government taking a
stand against evil. Ms. Bartoletti brings to life the true story of a young Hitler youth who dared to take a stand against t More...

2 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jun 20, 2008

Fluxbrarian rated it:

Helmuth, a member of Hitler Youth who disagreed with Nazi politics and policies, wrote and distributed pamphlets calling for resistance. For this he is imprisoned and executed, and the story is told in flashback from his prison cell. Helmuth is an incredible character – believable as an ordinary boy who grows and learns, takes responsibility, and draws upon his conscience to act in the face of evil. Helmuth’s remarkable act of courage will hopefully inspire readers to stand up for their beliefs More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Nov 28, 2011

Stacey rated it:

I am very thankful to this author for bringing this hero out in the open. I know some people say they are tired of books about WWII but I think there could never be enough..millions of innocent people and heros lost their lives and I want to read all of their storys ..they need to be heard. Helmuth is my new hero at only 17 he stood up and did something to help the innocent. The only thing I dont like is when shes talking about him being scared to die while he was waiting in his cell I think she More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 01, 2009

Elena rated it:

This young adult book is excellent. It is a fictional story about a true person, Helmuth Huebener, who "is a boy who dared to speak out for the truth." It was so interesting, because the perspective is of a young German boy who knows in his heart of hearts that what the Nazi party does is wrong, and that people must be told the truth, despite the risk. Part of what is so fascinating/terrifying is the hold that the Nazis had on everything-even those who felt they were wrong would More...

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Mar 09, 2009

Robin-Taine rated it:

I don't read much YA, but this book caught my eye. It is a novelization of a true story. Raised in Nazi Germany, having even joined the Hitler Youth, the story opens with 17 year old Helmuth awakening the day 264 of his prison sentence. He has been imprisoned for his "unpatriotic" activities. WWII literature has entranced me for many years, and knowing this story was based on a true one (the author interviewed the real Helmuth's brother and a surviving friend, as well as researched More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Feb 05, 2012

Echadwickj rated it:

Helmuth is a German LDS youth growing up with gospel doctrines and personal ideals conflicting throughout his adolescence. He is torn between "being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring and sustaining the law" (12th Article of Faith), and resisting the evil influences that plague his country, wishing desperately to help free himself and his fellow Germans from the tyrannical bonds of the Nazi's. This is the first book I have read (besides stories More...

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Jan 08, 2012

Krisha Lea rated it:

The Boy Who Dared is a historical fiction novel based on the true story of Helmuth Hubener, a young german boy trying to make sense of the changing world around him. Although Helmuth has to join the Hitler Youth since it is a requirement, some of the ideals of Hitler and the Fatherland do not sit well with him. He loves his country, but as more and more restrictions are placed on the German citizens and he sees his rights being taken away, he starts to question whether Hitler really wants p More...

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Dec 06, 2011

Sarah rated it:

This is a pretty amazing book! Follow the based-on-a-true story about a Latter-day Saint boy, Helmuth Hubner, living in Germany during World War II. This boy, who disagrees with the views of the Fuhrer, dares to take on the Nazi regime and inform the German people about what is really going on outside of Germany. His story is compelling and very interesting.

I love this book! I listened to it in an mp3 format and felt like I was in a room watching this boy. I love his story, but I'm k More...

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Sep 05, 2011

Heather rated it:

Although Helmuth Hubener, a German teen during World War II, has to join the Hitler Youth since it is a requirement, some of the ideals of Hitler and the Fatherland do not sit well with him. He loves his country, but as more and more restrictions are placed on the German citizens and he sees his rights being taken away, he starts to question whether Hitler really wants peace as advertised when he was running for office. Hitler also proclaimed that Germans were not allowed to listen to any non- More...

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Sep 03, 2011

Candace rated it:

This was an easy read, being that it is a young adult book. I thought it was interesting to be able to read about the point of view of a German that was not for the Nazi government. I liked how there wasn't too much detail that was given about the events especially the more gruesome ones. I have read a lot of literature and been through a class exclusively about the Holocaust, so I have an understanding of what the author was holding back. Which is good. This gives young readers a chance to know More...

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Aug 01, 2011

Amy rated it:

Helmuth Hubener was a real boy growing up in Nazi Germany. This book tells his story. Helmuth was smart - he didn't buy into Nazi hatred and bullying. For a while, he takes his mother's advice and protects himself by remaining silent. After he graduates from school, he is working in an office where he discovers a cache of banned books. He clandestinely reads "Spirit and Action" by Heinrich Mann, which finally moves Helmuth to say something about his beliefs. He starts illegally l More...

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Jun 05, 2011

Karen rated it:

This is the fictionalized story of Helmuth Hubener's last day in a German prison camp. Helmuth tells the story in flashbacks through his final day: he was a German school boy who was drawn to the Nazi's fancy uniforms and patriotic speeches. He gradually came to realize that the Nazis were slowly chipping away at every freedom the German people had, and that they were a group that ultimately ruled by fear, not by law. Helmuth's brother sneaks home a powerful French shortband radio, which has More...

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Apr 15, 2011

Debbie rated it:

This is a fictional account of a real person, Helmuth Hubener, a teenager who dared to challenge the information shared (or not shared) by the Nazi government and died for his courageous actions.

Although it well-researched, which included talking to Helmuth's older brother and the two friends that were tried in court with him, it's a dramatization and the author has been able to put her own spin on things. For this reason, it felt very heavy-handed in the morality, but rightfully More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 24, 2011

Mindee rated it:

The book is a historical biography based on the real life of a German Youth named Helmuth Hübener, a German teenager executed for his resistance to the Nazis. The author imagines his story as he sits in prison awaiting execution in 1942 and remembers his childhood in Hamburg during Hitler’s rise to power. Beaten and tortured to name his friends, he remembers how he started off an ardent Nazi and then began to question his patriotism, secretly listened to BBC radio broadcasts, and finally dared t More...

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Dec 27, 2010

Marlee rated it:

If you like an intriguing, captivating, and motivating book, well then this is the right one for you. The Boy Who Dared is a story about a young boy named Helmuth. He lives in Germany during World War 2 and witnesses the Nazi's rising to power. But when Hitler becomes the Chancellor of Germany and makes all new laws Helmuth is infuriated. He needs to go around ‘worshipping’ a man he doesn’t believe in. His anger and frustration lead him to do many critical and life threatening things.
I thi More...

2 comments like

Dec 14, 2010

Barky rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Nov 07, 2010

Suzan rated it:

An excellent young adult novel based on the true story of Helmuth Hubener, a German teenage boy who dared to tell the truth, a young man who would not keep silent. The book helps you to understand how Hitler came to power and why people accepted and adored him. Though not in depth, it also gives the reader a glimpse of how the Jews were treated...the hatared people had for them, their homes, businesses, and synagogues ransacked and destroyed, made to wear a yellow star of David, rounded up and More...

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Oct 07, 2010

Eileen rated it:

The Boy Who Dared is based on the life of Helmuth Hubener. Helmuth grew up in Hamburg, Germany in the years preceeding and during World War II. Readers immediately learn that seventeen year old Helmuth is serving day 264 of a death sentence for committing high treason. As Helmuth reflects on his life and what brought him to this point, readers learn about his remarkable courage, loyalty, and faith. Helmuth grew up in a patriotic family and even participated in the Hitler Youth organization. More...

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Jun 29, 2010

Glenda rated it:

Adolf Hitler is in power. He promises to bring peace to Europe, food to every table, and jobs for all. Helmuth Hübener admits that it sounds good; but, it seems that more of the peoples’ freedoms are being taken away every day. First there is a curfew. Then listening to foreign radio stations is forbidden. Jewish owned shops are destroyed and all non-German books are burned in the name of preserving the "Fatherland". No one can talk freely for fear of imprisonment or worse. When Helmu More...

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May 29, 2010

Kim rated it:

I enjoyed this book very much. Bartoletti is a Newberry Award winning author. She also wrote "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow". This is along the same lines but specifically is about a particular youth named Helmuth Hubener. Bartoletti was moved by his amazing story and heroic actions and wanted to flesh it out into a fictional form. She did a beautiful job of it told in flashback form.

I was surprised to learn that Hitler had a great admiration of the American More...

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Apr 20, 2010

Jacky rated it:

From this book, i learnt about germany and hitler. Up until now, i really didnt know what hitler ever did. But know i have a great understanding of how hitler was insane and unfair. The books starts of with helmuath in a cell waiting for excution. Slowly, through memoirys the reader is able to find out how he got there. He was a good boy thinking he would fight for germany. He also supported the rise of hitler. As his brother gives him a radio, that supplies him with Bbc, something that is bann More...

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Mar 12, 2010

Jmkern rated it:

Summary: This book is about a young boy named Helmuth Hubner who wrote pamphlets about Hitler and posted them all around.

Passage(page 154, para 4-6)
"August 4, 1942. Helmuth leaves for Berlin. a guard handcuffs him, leads to a green prisoner transport van.
Helmuth climbs inside and his heart leaps as he sees Carl and Rudi sitting there. Gerhard Duwer too. Each boy is handcuffed to a guard, and so all Helmuth can do is smile, and smile he does. they grin at one ano More...

2 comments like

Mar 06, 2010

Megan rated it:

Helmuth Hubener is a young man growing up in Nazi Germany. He feels very patriotic towards his country. The people of Germany are suffering from poverty after WW I. Hitler and his political party are promising jobs and financial security. At first things improve for Helmuth and his family. There are more jobs and food available.
Then Helmuth begins to notice the changes around him. The Jews are being treated unfairly and the truth is being censored. Helmuth decides to speak up a More...

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Oct 14, 2009

Corinne rated it:

Helmuth is a pretty typical youth in Germany. He works hard at school. He has a great love for his country. He agrees with everyone around him that Germany was unfairly treated at the end of The Great War and he can see the potential that lies in the Nazi party to bring his beloved country back to greatness. One thing does separate him, though: he's a Mormon, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. And as he grows older and as the Nazis rise in power, he begins to see a conf More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 12, 2009

Cindy rated it:

Helmuth Hubener sits in his prison cell awaiting a death sentence, he reflects back on his life as his rebellious choices that lead up to his imprisonment. It was the end of WWI and Helmuth was a teenager in Germany, a country that has be emotionally and economically devastated by war. The country is feeling defeated, people are out of work and many feel that all is lost. The Third Reich steps in with promises of a much brighter future. Helmuth enters the Hitler’s Youth program and is at onc More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Jun 07, 2009

Ningerbil rated it:

This was every bit as good as I anticipated. Bartoletti takes one of the stories from her "Hitler Youth: Living in Hitler's Shadow" and expands on it. Young Helmuth Hubener had been considered an ideal young Nazi. He was smart, handsome and his mother's new husband, Helmuth's stepfather, was a ranking official with the Nazi party. But Helmuth grew discouraged and disgusted by the changes and loss of freedom he witnessed in the name of "patriotism." So, with the help of two ot More...

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Jul 02, 2011

Susan rated it:

This is a retelling of the last day of Helmuth Hubner's life before he is executed for crimes against the Nazi state, with flashbacks that retell the rest of his story. I've read other WWII books, even one by Helmuth's friend that referenced this story, but didn't know so much detail. Granted, it's told as fiction, because the author was fleshing out the facts in an attempt to understand the feelings and experiences of those involved.

The author did quite well incorporating Helmuth's LD More...

1 comment like

Oct 14, 2010

Richardhd96 rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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