A group of fun loving rebellious German teens calling themselves the Edelweiss Pirates, witnesses something so deplorably sickening they decide to take action when a six-year old Jewish girl is left orphaned. Torn between patriotism for the country they love and there own rights and freedoms they have to try and do the unthinkable, but with the Gestapo and Hitler Youth hot on their trail; is it too late?
A group of fun loving rebellious German teens calling themselves the Edelweiss Pirates, witnesses something so deplorably sickening they decide to take action when a six-year old Jewish girl is left orphaned. Torn between patriotism for the country they love and there own rights and freedoms they have to try and do the unthinkable, but with the Gestapo and Hitler Youth hot on their trail; is it too late?
Professional Reviews
Amazon Review 5 star
I had heard of the Swing Kids but not the Edelweiss Pirates until this book.. I loved it! Anyone interested in WWII should read it.
Goodreads 5 star
I am not sure what I expected, I am a fan of Mark A. Coopers books, I really enjoy the Jason Steed series and was hoping this would be the same.
It was good but completely different, I liked the story and the history, I hate the Nazi's even more now, but understand that not all Germans were bad after reading this. Some bits were funny some VERY sad, I liked teh action.
BUT.... Grandpa Gunthrie is one of the best characters in any book I have read about, he is so funny and has a big heart.
Goodreads 4.5 Stars
I gave this 4.5 stars, it's not quite a 5 but it's better than a 4.
The characters in this novel are spectacular, Cooper has a great imagination. His writing skills are basic, but perfect for the young Adult genre he writes for. He won't win a literacy award but he will win over thousands of young fans.
Edelweiss Pirates was a very brave and new format of novel. It takes us inside the minds of young German teens during WW2, the novel is quite adorable, some funny parts, some emotional scenes and one scene that is hard to read because of the subject matter, that said; Cooper delivers brilliantly for his young audience.
The Story:::
A Grandfather in the US is talking to his grandson. The grandfather was 14 during WW2 and part of the Edelweiss Pirates, he tells of his adventures and actions they took again the sworn enemies, The Hitler Youth. A great twist at the end of the novel and Cooper has left it open for a sequel. I hope that happens.
When I wrote ths book in 2000, I was concerned about children having access to the Internet and to chat rooms where "you can be anyone you want." Here we are many years later and the situation with children talking freely to stangers on the Internet
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