The Berlin Wall finally came down in 1989. Now readers can find out why it was built in the first place; and what it meant for Berliners living on either side of it. Here’s the fascinating story of a city divided.
In 1961, overnight, a concrete border went up, dividing the city of Berlin into two parts – East and West. The story of the Berlin Wall holds up a mirror to post-WWII politics and the Cold War Era when the United States and the USSR were enemies, always on the verge of war. The wall meant that no one from Communist East Berlin could travel to West Berlin, a free, democratic area. Of course, that didn’t stop thousands from trying to breech the wall – more than one hundred of them dying in the attempt. (One East Berliner actually ziplined to freedom!) Author Nico Medina explains the spy-vs-spy politics of the time as well as what has happened since the removal of one of the most divisive landmarks in modern history. 8-12 years
Flight for Freedom:
The Wetzel Family’s Daring Escape from East Germany
By Kristen Fulton, Illustrated by Torben Kuhlmann
An Inspiring True Story about One Family’s Escape from Behind the Berlin Wall!
Peter was born on the east side of Germany, the side that wasn’t free. He watches news programs rather than cartoons, and wears scratchy uniforms instead of blue jeans. His family endures long lines and early curfews. But Peter knows it won’t always be this way. Peter and his family have a secret. Late at night in their attic, they are piecing together a hot air balloon—and a plan. Can Peter and his family fly their way to freedom? This is the true story of one child, Peter Wetzel, and his family, as they risk their lives for the hope of freedom in a daring escape from East Germany via a handmade hot air balloon in 1979. 5-8 years Will be released on March 3, 2020
Cloud and Wallfish
By Anne Nesbet
One ordinary day, Noah’s parents tell him his name isn’t really Noah, his birthday isn’t really in March, and his new home is going to be East Berlin — on the other side of the Iron Curtain. East Germany seems the least likely place in the world for a kid from America with a lot of secrets of his own (and an Astonishing Stutter) to make a friend, but then Noah meets Cloud-Claudia, the lonely girl who lives one floor down. Noah and Cloud-Claudia have only a half-imaginary map and a shared fondness for codes and puzzles to guide them in a world where walls — and the Wall — are closing in. 10-14 years
Border Breakdown: The Fall of the Berlin Wall
By Molly Smith, Illustrated by David Opie
Transport back in time to the fall of the Berlin Wall! Children follow Lucy as one moment she is at the National Museum of American History examining pieces of the Berlin Wall, and the next moment, she travels in time to East Berlin during November 1989. Lucy encounters families torn apart, secret police and armed guards as well as the realization that freedom is not something to be taken for granted. Border Breakdown: The Fall of the Berlin Wall offers children an adventurous story that teaches them all about the historic fall and border crossing. A glossary and additional information about the fall of the Berlin Wall is also included to extend the learning fun. 7 and up
A Night Divided
By Jennifer A. Nielsen
With the rise of the Berlin Wall, Greta finds her family suddenly divided. She, her mother and brother Fritz live on the Eastern side controlled by the Soviets. Her father and middle brother who had gone west in search of work cannot return home. Greta knows it is dangerous to watch the wall, yet she can’t help herself. She sees the East German soldiers with their guns trained on their own citizens, as she, her family, her neighbors, are prisoners in their own city.
But one day on her way to school, she spots her father on a viewing platform on the western side pantomiming a peculiar dance. Greta concludes that her father wants her and her brother Fritz to tunnel beneath the wall, out of East Berlin. If they are caught, the consequences will be deadly. No one can be trusted. Will Greta and her family find their way to freedom? 8-12 years
The Other Side of the Wall
By Simon Schwartz
Simon Schwartz was born in 1982 in East Germany, at a time when the repressive Socialist Unity Party of Germany controlled the area. Shortly before Simon’s birth, his parents decided to leave their home in search of greater freedom on the other side of the Berlin Wall. But East German authorities did not allow the Schwartzes to leave for almost three years. In the meantime, Simon’s parents struggled with the costs of their decision: the loss of work, the attention of the East German secret police, and the fragmentation of their family.
In his debut graphic novel, Simon Schwartz tells the true story of his parents’ coming of age in East Germany, their rejection of the communist way of life, and the challenges of leaving that world behind. 12-18 years
The Berlin Wall: An Interactive Modern History Adventure
By Matt Doeden
After World War II, Germany splits into two countries the Communist German Democratic Republic in the east and the Federal Republic of Germany in the west. Its capital of Berlin is divided as well, but many people are leaving East Berlin for the freedom of the West. In 1961, East German leaders build a wall through the city to keep its people from escaping. Will you: Consider escaping from East Berlin soon after the wall is built? Serve as an East German guard at the wall? Join in the protests against the wall? Everything in this book happened to real people. And you choose what you do next. The choices you make could lead you to escape, imprisonment, or even death. 8-11 years
When the Wall Came Down:
The Berlin Wall and the Fall of Communism
By Serge Schumemann
This is history as only an eyewitness can tell it. In 1989, veteran journalist Serge Schmemann was in his hotel room when his assistant from East Germany burst in with some incredible news: the Berlin Wall was open. Serge jumped into the first cab he could find and raced to the wall in time to witness one of the great moments of European history.
Including articles from the archives of The New York Times, this gripping narrative tells the whole story, from the division of Germany after World War II, to life in the Communist East, to the massive protests that brought an end to the Eastern Bloc, and the fall of the Berlin Wall. 12 and up
The Fall of the Berlin Wall
By Patricia Levy
Thirty years ago, on November 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall came down. This historic event is described in detail, focusing not only on the day itself, but also what led to the wall being there in the first place. It looks at the history of the Wall, explaining why it was built, as well as looking at the implications of what happened in the wider context of 20th century history.
Real life accounts are included in moment-in-time boxes, acting as a freeze frame of people’s thoughts, emotions and experiences as those from West Germany were at last free to travel to the East and vice versa. 9-11 years
The book descriptions are primarily from the publishers.
If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and/or leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author
