Blitzkrieg

December 5, 2022
This immersive, high-stakes WWII spy novel centers protagonist Joseph “Katipo” St. George, a 12-year-old child of diplomat parents—a British father and New Zealander mother. In 1938 Berlin, Joe is familiar with the displays of the Hitler Youth (his best friend’s uncle is one of Hitler’s top aides) and encounters antisemitic violence. After the Gestapo takes his father, Joe’s mother facilitates escape for herself and for Joe, giving her son an assumed identity—and suggesting that there’s more to his parents than he previously realized. Joe is sent to safety on a New Zealand farm but stows away on a naval ship to London, depicted in a rousing 1941-set segment. There, the mystery around his mother’s London whereabouts leads to life alongside “Blitz rat” children and covert operations of his own. Falkner (The Project) intersperses plot-driven third-person chapters with first-person excerpts from the fictional protagonist’s memoirs. Though complications sometimes bog down the pacing en route to a cliffhanger ending, it’s a historically grounded novel of intrigue alongside familial and personal change. Protagonists cue as white. Ages 12–up.

December 1, 2022
A teen working for Britain's MI6 during World War II infiltrates the Hitler Youth. Joseph St. George is 12 on Nov. 9, 1938--Kristallnacht--when the Gestapo take his father away. Joe's family isn't Jewish, and he believes his New Zealander parents are diplomats. He's grown up in Berlin and, with his best friend, Klaus, nephew of Martin Bormann, Hitler's secretary, has witnessed both military parades and the persecution of neighborhood Jews. When he and his mother have to flee for their lives, Joe realizes there's more to her life than he knew--especially once she shoots a man. The story then flashes forward two years. Joe, who was sent to live with family on a sheep farm in New Zealand, stows away to London in search of his mother only to discover that the address she gave him doesn't exist. His attempts to find her lead to mayhem, death, and an interesting invitation from the British government. With a cracking pace and an interesting assortment of largely White characters (excepting Black British musician Ken "Snakehips" Johnson, a historical figure who makes a cameo appearance), it's a compelling trip presented through the eyes of a natural spy. The wartime details are spot-on. Joe's initial admiration for Hitler and willingness to target his Jewish neighbors are hard to read about but help show readers his growth from boy to man. Smart, satisfying, and leaving room for a sequel. (bibliography) (Historical fiction. 12-16)

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February 15, 2023
Grades 9-12 Joe St. George's world is turned upside down as he witnesses the rise of Nazi Germany. When his diplomat father is arrested and taken away, Joe and his mother are left alone and afraid. After receiving a cryptic message, they flee Germany but are separated as they narrowly avoid capture. In London, Joe searches for his mother while navigating the debris-filled streets and trying to avoid German spies. After Joe is recruited by MI5 for a perilous special mission that could help end the war, he must decide how far he will go to find his family. Falkner returns with another historical thriller set against the backdrop of WWII and inspired by actual events. Biography-like excerpts about Joe are found before several chapters, bringing the character to life. Readers will be pulled in by the action and adventure of Joe's missions, which also pack an emotional punch as he loses friends to the war. A sequel is hinted at by another dangerous mission that awaits Joe at the end.

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Starred review from October 13, 2023

Gr 7 Up-Growing up in Berlin as the son of diplomats from New Zealand, 12-year-old Joe St. George speaks fluent German, plays soccer, and longs to join the Hitler Youth. After his father is arrested by the Gestapo, Joe and his mother navigate a perilous escape to England. Joe is then sent to live with relatives in New Zealand. Hoping to reunite with his mother and join the war effort, Joe returns to London where he is recruited by MI6 for a dangerous mission in Paris under the code name Katipo. As Joe undergoes his spy training and parachutes into occupied France, he meets allies and foes along the way, from the orphaned "Blitz rats" of London to his childhood friend Klaus, all who help weave an authentic, suspenseful spy story. Told with intermittent first-person entries from Joe's adult memoirs, this fast-paced thriller is filled with World War II historical details that are seamlessly woven into the narrative and plot which leave room for sequel. VERDICT A must-have purchase for students who enjoy Alan Gratz's historical fiction and Neal Bascomb's narrative nonfiction.-Maile Steimer

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