"Knud Pedersen and the Churchill Club"
I knew the Danes resisted Hitler and its German occupation but had no clue that its strong resistance began with a group of ninth grade boys!
Knud Pedersen, his brother Jens and a group of boys are disgusted at their country's lack of resistance against the German occupation. Unlike Norway, the government decided not to fight against the Nazis so to spare the lives of the people. The boys admired Norway and Britain's will to fight. As a group they stole Nazi's weapons, smashed signs and used arson to fight against the German occupation. When Knud and Jens move with their family to Aalborg, they start another group called the Churchill Club which involved riskier tasks. Eventually they are arrested and jailed. Their arrest and trail breaks the Danes out of their slumber and gives them the courage to fight against the Germans.
When this book was written, Knud was still alive. First hand narrations are frequent throughout the entire book.
*Highly recommend.
Warning/points to discuss: young boys smoking, violence, Knud is told not draw naked women in a notepad provided to him when he was in prison-he defiantly fills it with naked women and hangs them in cell
Pair this book with:
Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
Surviving Hitler: A Boy in the Nazi Death Camps by Andrea Warren
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
For a similar theme-- Breaking Stalin's Nose by Eugene Yelchin
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