Ensnared in the Wolf’s Lair by Ann Bausum - ESSENTIAL

Ensnared in the Wolf’s Lair: Inside the 1944 Plot to Kill Hitler and the Ghost Children of His Revenge by Ann Bausum, 144 pages. National Geographic. 2021. $20. 

Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content PG; Violence: PG 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - ESSENTIAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH 

In 1944, some of Hitler’s generals, believing that Hitler was endangering his own people and alarmed at the atrocities being committed, resolved to kill him. Code named Valkyrie, a bomb went off in the Wolf’s Lair, but did not kill Hitler. Enraged, Hitler rounded up not only the conspirators but their families as well. Within weeks, the Gestapo had taken as many as 200 relatives from their home, separating adults and children. 

 Though I had heard about Valkyrie, I had no idea that Hitler’s revenge was so intense he wanted entire families wiped out including giving young children new names and identities. Bausum delivers a well-researched book on a little-known topic. Pictures and primary source documents make this an informative and gripping read. 

 Michelle in the Middle