《Flowers in the Gutter》 By K.R. Gaddy is a documentary novel based on the true story of the Edelweiss Pirates, teenagers who resisted the Nazis. This book is based on three teenagers, Fritz, Gertrud, and Jean, living during the Second World War when Hitler came to power. All three of them joined the group of the Edelweiss Pirates to rebel against the Nazis.  

Below are my notebook pages that show further understanding of my book.  

In Lesson 1, we explored hidden figures in the book and how the author might hint at central ideas, social issues, and themes. The first two pages show my thoughts at the start of the book about what the author is trying to tell the reader and how the author is giving hints to help the reader understand the book further. The first two central ideas I came upon with my book club group were that a corrupted government/society would force young people to rebel and that even teenagers did not have freedom in Nazi Germany. 

To answer the questions in my notebook: 

1. When Jean’s house was bombed, what did she do to deserve this?  

– To answer that question, it is not whether he deserved it or not; it is just that during the time of WWII, bombs dropped on houses often happened. 

2. When Jean’s family fell apart, how and why did it fall apart when Hitler came to power? 

– To answer that question, Jean’s family fell apart when Hitler came to power because Jean’s father was an official in the Communist Party and was taken away. Jean’s mother struggled to support both children, so he and his older brother were sent to separate places. 

In Lesson 9, we explored complex causes and effects in the book, how they affect the story, and what the characters do about it. The page below shows the causes and effects of Jean’s life. From Jean’s separated family on page 26, “that would never be put back together again.” One of the causes I found in the book is when Jean’s hatred of Hitler and the Nazis started when on page 33, it was mentioned that “Hitler had come to power promising employment and a better life, but his family hadn’t experienced that.” This quote shows that Jean dislikes Hitler for lying and ruining his family. This page relates to one of the central ideas mentioned at the beginning of the blog, which was that even teenagers did not have freedom in Nazi Germany. This further explains Jean’s life and the events going on inside.

When I got further into the book, I learned more about Gertrud and her perspective towards Hitler and the Nazis. In the two pages below, I have written down many important quotes and explained why they are important to Gertrud’s life. Gertrud is the only female character among the three teenagers mentioned at the start of the blog. She has a family story similar to Jean’s but also slightly different. I wrote the quote on page 91: “We have to do something,” in the middle of the page because when Gertrud’s father was arrested for being a Communist, she noticed that she seemed less and less of him, and she did not like how the Nazis were touching and harming every part of her life. It got to her when, on page 97, Pater, the man Gertrud’s father knew from Esterwegen, came to her house and announced that Gertrud’s father was dead. This relates to one of the central ideas mentioned at the start of the blog, which was that a corrupted government/society would force young people to rebel.

That’s the end of my blog. Thank you for reading.