The End and the Beginning by K.J. Holdom

In the final throes of World War II, fourteen-year-old Max flees a Hitler Youth Camp in a desperate attempt to go home to his family.  He is joined by his best friend Hans, and together they embark on a perilous journey trying to return to Saarland, a narrow strip of land between the French and German lines. Danger lurks constantly between starving to death, or being killed by a bullet, or being captured and executed for desertion, despite their tender age. As well as wanting to be reunited with his family, Max is desperate to tell his mother the truth about his godfather’s murder.

Meanwhile, his mother, Marguertie, is forced to work as a secretary for a fanatical Nazi officer, someone from her past with sinister intentions, and she is torn between trying to protect her daughter and learn about the whereabouts of her son, and desperate to know what has become of her husband.

There is so much to contemplate in this extraordinary novel. It brings to life the injustice of an entire generation of children raised on Hitler’s propaganda and the terrible consequences on their lives due to the Nazi control over their young and impressionable lives. It also tells the story of a family that is neither entirely French nor entirely German, who find themselves in an impossible situation during this conflict.

The End and the Beginning is stunning, moving, and unforgettable – and all the more powerful as this novel is based on a true story.

Reviewer: Karen McMillan

Simon & Schuster