The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz

Ages 10 And Up, Grades 5 And Up

The true story of Fritz and Kurt Kleinmann, two brothers who experienced the atrocities of the Holocaust in very different ways. A moving, powerful middle grade adaptation of the adult bestselling narrative nonfiction book The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz.

Fritz Kleinmann was fourteen when the Nazis took over Vienna. Kurt, his little brother, was eight. Under Hitler’s brutal regime, their Austrian Jewish family of six was cruelly torn apart.Taken to Buchenwald concentration camp, Fritz and his papa, Gustav, faced hard labor and starvation. Meanwhile, Kurt made the difficult voyage, all alone, to the other side of the world—to America—to escape the war. When Papa was transferred to the infamous Auschwitz concentration camp, Fritz—desperate not to lose his beloved father—insisted he must go too. Together, they endured countless atrocities to survive.Jeremy Dronfield captures the heroic true stories of Fritz and Kurt, rendering their tales of bravery, love, hope, and survival through an authentic and accurate lens made possible by extensive research and the use of primary sources like Gustav’s diary and interviews with family members.

About the Author

Jeremy Dronfield is a biographer, historian, novelist, and former archaeologist. The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz: A True Story Retold for Young Readers is his first middle grade book. Jeremy grew up in Wales and now lives in Ely, Cambridgeshire, England. Visit his website at www.jeremydronfield.com.