WAR GAMES: A NOVEL OF 1936 BERLIN

WAR GAMES by Alan Gratz

Thirteen-year-old gymnast, Evie Harris, is on her way to compete in the Olympics in Berlin. This could be the answer her family has been desperately waiting for. Known as "Oakies," Evie's family has been living out of their car since they lost their land and belongings in the Oklahoma Dust Bowl. Joining the mass exodus of people that left Oklahoma and moved to California, they're on the hunt for a new start. With this unbelievable opportunity, Evie could help her family get their feet on the ground again, but only if she brings home the gold.

Arriving in Berlin, Evie is amazed at the beauty and perfection that surrounds her and the other participants in the Olympic Village. That is until she gets outside the borders of the Village and finds a different story. People are living in a state of fear and terror, but why? It all seems to come down to a man named Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Now Evie is being asked to help out in a very, risky plot that could have serious consequences if she's caught. A plot that may force her to choose between the people of Germany and her family.

HEADS UP- There are a couple of profanities. Also the book includes the persecution of the Jewish people, but it also mentions the other groups that Hitler tried to eradicate: disabled, homosexuals, Black, and Romani. One of the secondary characters in the story is homosexual and his partner has been taken to a concentration camp. There are not a lot of details on their relationship, but it is mentioned.