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by Monika Schröder

Monika_Schröder Literature_and_Fiction English

Literature & Fiction

Author:

Monika Schröder
ISBN:

1590787013
ISBN13:

978-1590787014
Genre:

For children
Publisher:

Front Street, Incorporated (November 1, 2009)
Pages:

168 pages
Subcategory:

Literature & Fiction
Language:

English
FB2 format

1159 kb
ePUB format

1845 kb
DJVU format

1889 kb
Rating:

4.5
Votes:

358
Formats:

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The dog in the wood, Monika Schröder.

In recent years, several books about the experiences of my parents’ generation of war children have been published in Germany. In the early 1990s, after Germany’s reunification, when traveling to the East became easier, my father and I visited Schwartz and interviewed eyewitnesses about the Russians’ arrival.

In the distance Fritz heard again the droning of engines. The front was coming closer, and the east wind blew the noise of cannons, tanks, and gunfire toward their farm. The Russians would be there soon.

Covering a time period not trodden by authors yet, first-time author Monika Schröder sets her book in East Germany as WWII ends and the Russians begin their occupation

Jan 30, 2012 Alex Baugh rated it it was amazing. Shelves: world-war-2. The Dog in the Wood is a realistic look at what happened at the end of World War II to one family, told through the eyes of a child. Covering a time period not trodden by authors yet, first-time author Monika Schröder sets her book in East Germany as WWII ends and the Russians begin their occupation. The Dog in the Wood is written about a boy, Fritz, who lives with his mother, sister, and father's parents (his father died in the war) on a farm as he copes with the tremendous amount of uncertainty, upheaval, and loss that being occupied brings.

To read this book, upload an EPUB or FB2 file to Bookmate.

When the Russians come, where do you go? It is the end of April, 1945 in a small village in eastern Germany. The front is coming closer and ten-year-old Fritz knows that the Soviet Army’s invasion of his family’s home can be only a few days away. Grandpa Karl, a Nazi sympathizer, takes Fritz into the forest that surrounds the family farm to show him a secret. Under a tall pine tree, Grandpa Karl has dug a pit and covered it with branches. To read this book, upload an EPUB or FB2 file to Bookmate.

9 January 2010 ·. Related videos. PagesPublic figureAuthorMonika SchröderVideosTHE DOG IN THE WOOD - book trailer. Here is the trailer for SARASWATI'S WAY: Monika Schröder. Related PagesSee all. The Paisleys of New Delhi, India. 155 followers · Musician/band.

Local German supporters of the Bolshevik regime seize the Friedrich farm in the name of Communism, forcing Fritz's family to flee to the distant house of his grandmother, Oma Clara. Life there for Fritz is horrible, made even worse when Communists arrest his mother and Lech, the Polish farmhand who has tended the Friedrich land, for hiding weapons.

When the Russians come, where do you go? Fritz loves his vegetable garden. His tomatoes are delicious, he's attentive to the asparagus, and he remembers how to keep slugs off the strawberries.

Genre: Historical prose, Children's prose, On War. Read a fragment illustrations. The garden was at the south end of the farm, behind the barn, overlooking the pond and the family’s forest in the distance. Fritz imagined the Russians coming through the forest. Annotation: Monika Schröder THE DOG IN THE WOOD Für meinen Vater 1 In the distance Fritz heard again the droning of engines. Would they arrive in tanks? Would there be air raids?

When the Russians come, where do you go? Fritz loves his vegetable garden. His tomatoes are delicious, he's attentive to the asparagus, and he remembers how to keep slugs off the strawberries. But his tranquil life on the family farm is about to endthe Russians are near, Hitler has died, and known Nazi sympathizers like the Friedrich family brace for the Bolsheviks to take over their town. Local German supporters of the Bolshevik regime seize the Friedrich farm in the name of Communism, forcing Fritz's family to flee to the distant house of his grandmother, Oma Clara. Life there for Fritz is horrible, made even worse when Communists arrest his mother and Lech, the Polish farmhand who has tended the Friedrich land, for hiding weapons. Though there is no evidence to support the accusation, Gertrude and Lech are taken away, and Fritz commits to finding where they are imprisoned. Despite the boy's heroic efforts, the story ends with one of the war's ambiguities: that Lech and Gertrude may not return home.Heavy footsteps sounded on the tiles in the hallway. Then three soldiers entered the living room. They all wore torn green jackets with small red flags sewn onto their sleeves. They shouted in Russian. Fritz held Mama's hand and tried to stay as close to her as possible on the sofa. One of the soldiers broke the glass of the sideboard with the butt of his rifle, took out the bottle of brandy, drank from it, and passed it to the others. They rummaged through the china cabinet, throwing the plates on the floor. . . . Mama held his hand with a firm grip. Suddenly, one soldier pointed his rifle at them. "No!" Mama screamed. Fritz held his breath. "Stojat!" Lech stepped toward the middle of the room, holding his arms up. FROM THE BOOK

Cashoutmaster

The Dog in the Wood is a middle-grade book about a ten-year-old named Fritz. He lives in eastern Germany in April 1945. His Grandpa is a Nazi sympathizer, but his mother and older sister just want to run their farm without being bothered by Nazis or Russians. As the novel begins, it is announced that Hitler is dead, and the Russian soldiers will soon be arriving and invading.

The author notes that the novel is fiction, but the background for the story is based on research and eye-witness accounts. Because this is a middle-grade book, the author admits that the way the soldiers acted was toned down a bit (though there are hints at darker things occurring). She also notes, “Although the Germans who were adults during the Third Reich can be blamed for supporting a racist, violent, insane regime that brought on a destructive war of epic proportions, children were pawn in the events. They had to learn to live on despite their loss, grief, and fear.”

And this is exactly what Fritz does. He lives through the farm being taken, his home being invaded, and even his mother and hired help being arrested for false crimes. He shows bravery and conflicting emotions that would be expected of a child living through this time—when all he really wants to do is garden in peace… and be a kid!

I enjoyed how the author wove in symbols and images to help show Fritz’s development as the story progresses. Although the topic is grim, it was an enjoyable read in that it really helped to illustrate the difficulties of civilians trying to live during such a time. The content is slightly disturbing for young readers, but it’s also an important part of history.

Cointrius

A fast-pacing and well-written book about the complicated ways that adults mess up children's lives. A Dog in the Wood sheds light on the Soviet occupation of East Germany beginning in 1945. I congratulate Monika Schroder on her moving first novel. Although I finished the book a week ago, I am still haunted by the hole in the woods and its meaning for Fritz and his family. I hope to read many more titles by this accomplished author.

Kiaile

This first novel by Monika Schroder (she has since written several more, including BE LIGHT LIKE A BIRD) picks a place and time in history that I don't know much about: 1945, in a German town about to be overrun by Russians, at the end of WW2. Fritz (age 10) just wants to see his tomato plants grow. His pro-Hitler grandfather is determined to fight the Russians until the bitter end, while his mother and most neighbors are tired of the war and can see Germany's defeat is unavoidable. When the Russians do enter the village, they bring upheaval, and Fritz and his extended family must adjust.

Schroder includes one incident (well handled, but still shocking) that makes me suggest this book for readers about 12 and up. There are any number of excellent books set around the time of World War 2, but few (that I am aware of) about Germans displaced by the Russian advance. Schroder writes multifaceted and interesting characters, and places the reader in the middle of a tumultuous time. The story doesn't tie things up nearly, but I found it an engaging read. Easy to recommend for mature 6th graders, or 7th or 8th grade fans of historical fiction.

About me: I'm a middle school/high school librarian
How I got this book: from the library

Gardataur

The Dog in the Wood is a fictional story set in Germany, just as World War II was coming to its horrific end. It's inspired by the life of the author's father and by her 1989 visit to the village of his birth. "I interviewed several eyewitnesses of the Soviets' arrival and occupation," Schroder writes in her author's note. "Most of their stories were more gruesome than the one I tell in the book." Her book tells a depressingly sad story about nine-year-old Fritz, a boy who lives with his mother, sister and grandparents on a rural German farm. His grandfather is a staunch Nazi supporter and when he realizes the Nazis have lost the war, he and his wife commit suicide in the barn. Fritz's life is thrown into chaos when the Soviets arrive. They move into his home, steal the cows, and dispossess the family of their farm. The narrative relays the many disappointments Fritz endures as he leaves the home and garden he loves and moves in with relatives. Just when he thinks life can get no worse, the Soviets accuse his mother of breaking the law and they march her away at gunpoint. Schroder's story is written for a 10-to-14-year-old audience but it's a difficult book for a young teen to digest. There is just no light at the end of the tunnel. Poor Fritz's misery only increases as the book progresses. Although a riveting read, the book is also an upsetting one and leaves the reader hanging at the end, with no firm sense of resolution. The reader does come away enlightened about the aftermath of the war and how difficult it was for ordinary Germans, but clearly it's a good thing Schroder spared us the gruesome, real-life stories she described in her author's note. Perhaps this story is better told in non-fiction, and geared towards adult readers who are more mature when it comes to handling the subject of war and the hardships it inflicted. Lauren Kramer

Kamick

The Dog in The Wood is a heartbreaking tale. The main character goes through so much heartache. He has to endure one sad thing after another. Set during World War II in East Germany. The characters have to
overcome so many horrible events in their lives. This is an interesting story. Similar stories have been written about the events that transpired during World War II. However, I have never heard things told from a young
child's point of view. It is hard to believe that one family could go through so much. I did like the many
different settings of the story. I like the way the characters interact with each other. Not all of them were the
"good guys". They were believable though. Although there is a lot of sadness in this story, there are also
some good things too. Intertwined with the sadness is love, friendship, loyalty, perseverance and so
much more. It seems a lot for people to have gone through. It's a very sad and touching story.

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