Defying the Nazis

Gr 7 Up–German Captain Wilm Hosenfeld is most known for helping to save the life of Wladyslaw Szpilman, an extraordinary Polish pianist (subject of the movie The Pianist), who survived the Holocaust partly because of Hosenfeld’s actions. Vinke compiled this work largely from Hosenfeld’s private letters and journals, which revealed a man who, despite joining the Nazi party, was ashamed of his nation, had doubts about the German outcome of the war, and was unable to comprehend the reasoning behind genocide and carnage. While Hosenfeld was stationed in Warsaw, Poland, he helped Jewish and non-Jewish Polish citizens survive and evade capture. When his unit surrendered to the Soviets, Hosenfeld was held in a POW camp where he died in captivity. The book, translated from the original German, details a number of significant milestones in Hosenfeld’s life and depicts him honestly.