Elsie's War: A Story of Courage in Nazi Germany [Paperback]

Frank Dabba Smith (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up

A follow-up to My Secret Camera, this photographic testimony for children is the inspiring story of Elsie Kuhn-Leitz, a member of the wealthy "Leica camera" family, who risked everything in order to help those who were being persecuted by the Nazis during World War II. The Gestapo found out about Elsie's activities, then she was torn from her children and imprisoned in dreadful conditions. The book tells a story of courage and self-sacrifice in a time of great adversity, illustrated with period documents and photographs from the Leica archives and from Elsie's own family collection. This remarkable photo-essay sensitively introduces the Holocaust to young readers.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6–In spare text accompanied by full-page black-and-white photos, Smith narrates this story of Elsie Kühn-Leitz, a young mother who, following the lead of her humanitarian father, helped to make life easier for hundreds of Ukrainian women who were sent by the German government to work as forced laborers in her family's business. When the Nazi government took power in 1933, Elsie's father, Dr. Ernst Leitz II, owner of the Leitz optical works in Wetzlar, Germany and developer of the Leica camera, began hiring young Jews as apprentices in his firm. Later, he arranged their passages to America. During World War II, the government forced him to supply optical equipment to the military. In 1943, Elsie was imprisoned for helping a Jewish woman attempt an escape to Switzerland. An influential family friend negotiated payment of a large ransom that secured her release. A two-page afterword mentions Elsie's support of Dr. Albert Schweitzer's activities in Africa and her efforts to help Chancellor Konrad Adenauer to promote Germany's reconciliation with other nations after the war. This brief account of a family's dedication to humanity will be best understood by children who are first given some basic information about the Nazi regime.–Susan Scheps, Shaker Heights Public Library, OH
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 2-5. An accessible first book about the Holocaust for young readers, this spare biography of a young German woman, Elsie Kuhn-Letz, imprisoned by the Nazis for her resistance, will also move older students, who can use it as a springboard to find out more. Smith never sentimentalizes or minimizes the facts (in the camps "conditions were unspeakable and millions were murdered") as he tells the story. Elsie's father owned the Leitz camera factory in Wetzlar, near Frankfurt, and he gave many Jews work and helped them leave the country. For trying to rescue a Jewish woman, Elsie was imprisoned by the Gestapo, but she was saved from deportation to the camps because her father paid a huge ransom. The handsome, spacious design combines the quiet, spare text with large black-and-white photos that show, among other scenes, a Nazi rally and the prison where Elsie was held. There are also moving close-ups, including a picture of Elsie with her two young children. When children are ready, adults can go from this book to more detailed histories and personal accounts. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Frances Lincoln Children's Books (December 27, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1845070062
• ISBN-13: 978-1845070069
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 8.8 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,766,682 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #54 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Teens > History & Historical Fiction > Holocaust
  • #63 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > History & Historical Fiction > Holocaust
  • #83 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Ethnic & National > Jewish

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring, August 21, 2011

By 

kora - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Elsie's War: A Story of Courage in Nazi Germany (Paperback)

Frank Dabba Smith tells an inspiring story, geared primarily to the young reader. he reminds us, that there were also many courageous Germans, who defied Hitler in WWII

5.0 out of 5 stars A Story of Bravery & Courage, September 28, 2010

By 

R. A. Frauenglas "Brooklyn Bum" (St. Louis, MO) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Elsie's War (Hardcover)

This children's book is the first telling, in English, of a little known story of daring & courage during the darkest days of Nazism. The Leitz family owned the Leitz optical works & camera factory in Wetzlar, Germany, which manufactured the world famous & often coveted Leica camera. They produced the world's first successful 35mm camera. What is little known is the family's successful attempt to help many Jewish employees escape the clutches of Nazism by posting them overseas. Elsie Kuhn was the daughter of Dr. Ernst Leitz II, who was the owner of the optical works & factory. She helped in her father's actions & also helped improve the day-to-day living conditions of the 800 Ukrainian women sent to the factory as forced laborers. This book is about the time Elsie personally tried to facilitate the escape to Switzerland of a Jewish woman from Wetzlar. The woman was betrayed & Elsie was imprisoned by the Nazis. She was eventually saved & not sent to almost certain death in the Ravensbrück concentration camp, because a massive ransom was paid for her release. This is a wonderful tale of courage & bravery & sacrifice in the face of danger, torture & death. Elsie was not apathetic. Elsie took part in the struggle against Nazism. This book is written to interest children & not frighten them.