Posed great discussion questionsgreta tells a fascinating story of perseverance, bravery. Jennifer lives in northern utah with her husband, their three children, and a perpetually muddy dog. He ran a hand through his hair, then kicked at the wall. Apr 24, 2018 a night divided joins the scholastic gold line, which features awardwinning and beloved novels. A night divided kate simses serves up a vivid, utterly believable portrayal of a family separated by the newly erected berlin wall. Nielsen is an excellent addition to any intermediate or middle school library. I awoke to sirens screaming throughout my city of east berlin. With the rise of the berlin wall, twelveyearold gerta finds her family divided overnight. Although this story is set in the 1960s, it still manages to come across as a very timely piece historical fiction novel featuring a twelve year old girl trying to escape to the west. Nielsen does a fantastic job with drawing the readers into this ghastly point in history. Shes a serious thinker who carefully weighs the consequences of her choices and frequently evaluates whether the lies she has told or the times shes stolen things can be justified for a greater good. Young gerta wakes up to see that the berlin wall has been built overnight, dividing not only her city but her family. The book is told by gerta, who struggles under the oppressiveness of the gdr while attempting to dig a tunnel to the other side with hopes to unite her divided family.
Gerta s father travels to the other side of the city with their middle son, but his timing is bad and he can never return. In the beginning of the book a night divided, gerta was physically described as a twelve year old girl with blond hair. This book is about twelve year old gerta who when she was eight, her father and older brother went to west germany to find a new home and job. A night divided in the book a night divided,written by jennifer a. This book has so many awesome moments when u hold ur breath, and dont even realize it lol, i recommend this book to all pplz. A night divided scholastic gold king county library. For instance, at the beginning of the book gerta sees her father and brother who were separated from the rest of her family realizes that she.
Plot summary an ilacbc children s choices reading list selection, a night divided, by jennifer a. She, her mother, and her brother fritz live on the eastern side, controlled by the soviets. One night, peter decided to hide in a friends car when they were going to legally cross the border. Anna is gertas best friend, and fritz and annas brother peter are also friends. Did the mom,gerta and fritz ever get over to the west. Will gerta and her family find their way to freedom. A night divided 4 stars 1424 a night divided by jennifer a. These quotes help to tell nielsons story of twelveyearold gerta who lives in postworld war ii east berlin, a story that makes accessible to middleschoolers the history of the cold war. May 14, 2018 with the rise of the berlin wall, twelveyearold gerta finds her family divided overnight. Unfortunately, peter was caught when the stasi searched the car and he was shot on the spot. An excellent description of communist east germany and in particular east berlin as the wall goes up dividing a family.
A night divided scholastic gold paperback the twig. Mark of the thief, rise of the wolf, and wrath of the storm. Our country is germany one country that should be reunited. Four years later, gerta sees her father on a viewing platform. The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your. Sep 01, 2015 from new york times bestselling author jennifer a.
Her body was athletic and fit although, by the end of the book she had become really skinny almost as if she had been starving. But when i looked out, my heart slammed into my throat. A night divided scholastic gold paperback watermark. Gerta, her brother fritz, and their mother wake up one morning to find a fence separating them from west berlin but more tragically, from their father and other. This one takes place early in the story, when gerta wakes up, having heard sounds out on the street. They meant to return home the day the berlin wall went up. When the berlin wall went up, gerta, her mother, and her brother fritz are trapped on the eastern side where they were living, while her father, and her other brother dominic are in the westfour years later, now twelve, gerta sees her father on a viewing platform on the western side and realizes he wants her to risk her life trying to tunnel to. Nielsen, gerta and her family2brothers oldest dominic younger brother fritz,mom,and dad live in berlin,germany there city was at war with the other side of the city. We belong to ourselves and i have never betrayed that. The novel explores the effects of repressive government on intimate relationships as the main character, gerta.
Gerta said the problems run through most of the length of your tunnel. Gerta knows it is dangerous to watch the wall, to think forbidden thoughts of. With the rise of the berlin wall, gerta finds her family suddenly divided. August, 1961 was known in berlin as barbed wire sunday, the day that a fence divided gerta. An ilacbc childrens choices reading list selection, a night divided, by jennifer a. When the berlin wall went up, gerta, her mother, and her brother fritz are trapped on the eastern side where they. A night divided was the first historical fiction i read on the subject and i must say ms. But fritz thought mama had made some good points last night. Jan 10, 2019 through the story, readers can relate to gerta, but also to the real people who also experienced this. Gerta and her brother, fritz, had to find a way out of east berlin and into west berlin without the stasis, the secret police, knowing. Her father and oldest brother dominic decided to go to the other side of the city to look for jobs and places to live. Terrific this is a great historical fiction for readers of age 12 to about 100. Welcome,you are looking at books for reading, the a night divided, you will able to read or download in pdf or epub books and notice some of author may have lock the live reading for some of country.
A night divided is set in 1961 east berlin, which is under the control of the soviet union. A night divided by jennifer a nielsen read by kate simses. A map showing the boundaries of the berlin wall and the sectors into which the city was divided by the victors of world war ii. One day gerda has a normal life, the next half of her family is separated by a wall. A night divided book summary the book a night divided by jennifer a. Gerta is a headstrong, intelligent, brave 12yearold who risks her future and her life to defend her family and attempt escape. A night divided book hennepin county library bibliocommons. Nielson, implies in her book that if theres a will, theres a way.
Includes exclusive bonus content with the rise of the berlin wall, gerta finds her family suddenly divided. A night divided with the rise of the berlin wall, twelveyearold gerta finds her family suddenly divided. Set in east berlin, when the berlin wall was built, this book will take you into the past. Gerta, the main character in the book, a night divided by jennifer a. Nielsen weaves in the geopolitical factors that led to the creation of the berlin wall and shows why people had divided loyalties to germany, russia, their own city, and even. Her father and middle brother, who had gone west in search of work, cannot return home. Project by joey burch a night divided by jennifer a. She has an older brother fritz, a brother dominic, her father papa and her mother frau lowe. I love how books like this inspire my students to find nonfiction books websitesarticles about the same topic. The book s two main characters, gerta and fritz, hope to escape from east berlin to west berlin.
Nielsen comes a stunning thriller about a girl who must escape to freedom after the berlin wall divides her family between east and west. Young gerta, her mother, and her older brother, fritz, are trapped by the constant scrutiny of the east german border police, while her father and younger brother are unable to return from the west. A night divided by jennifer a nielsen 9780545682428. When the berlin wall went up, gerta, her mother, and her brother fritz are trapped on the eastern side where they were living, while her father, and her other brother dominic are in the west. One night, gerta is headed home after carrying countless buckets up a ladder to dump all the dirt that fritz digs out of the tunnel in in the basement. She develops this notion by creating characters that are determined to resolve their problem at all costs. Nielsen is an astonishing book that changes rapidly, but in a good way. Nielsen, dramatizes the experiences of the division of germany after wwii and tells a tale of family separation from a childs perspective. A night divided joins the scholastic gold line, which features awardwinning and beloved novels. A night divided will release in about one month, so its time to begin sharing some of my favorite quotes from the book. I highly, highly recommend this book for all readers, full stop. It is a story of individual heroism and family devotion.
Seriously, one of the best books read thus far this year. Gertas voice is strong and mature for a 12 year old girl as her circumstances force her to grow up before her time. Gerta knows it is dangerous to watch the wall, to think forbidden thoughts of freedom, yet she cant help herself. Terms in this set 45 who is the main character of the book a night divided. Nielsen, begins with a normal family living in east berlin.
When her family is abruptly divided by the rise of the berlin wall, 12yearold gerta harbors forbidden thoughts about freedom and reuniting with her loved ones before a coded message from her father inspires a daring plan. She, her mother, and her brother fritz live on the eastern side. This tunnel has taken every ounce of courage we have. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Her father and middle brother, who had gone west in search of work, cannot. With thousands of childrens books, audiobooks, and videos, there is no limit to what children can learn and explore. She also wrote the new york times bestselling mark of the thief trilogy. Other families have escaped through tunnels, he said. Before this all happened, fritz knew about it and told gerta one night.
Jennifer nielsen usually writes fantasy, but a night divided is historical fiction based in berlin when the berlin wall went up, trapping germans in east berlin, beholden to the russians. She was also described as having round eyes, with a warm brown tone. With the rise of the berlin wall, twelveyearold gerta finds her family suddenly divided. When the berlin wall went up, gerta, her mother, and her brother fritz are trapped on the eastern side where they were living, while her father, and her other brother dominic are in the westfour years later, now twelve, gerta sees her father on a viewing platform on the western side and realizes he wants her to risk her life trying to tunnel. Autoplay when autoplay is enabled, a suggested video will automatically play next. She was thinking flexibly, observed fifth grader lila marinace. Distinct supporting characters each react differently to russian rule and demonstrate the harrowing choices people made to survive, encouraging readers to consider what they would have done if fate and history had cast them into the story. Gerta is a sassy, determined heroine with realistic fears and frustrationslike her longing for a banana. A night divided is fastpaced and simply written, and it moves the complex story along in an engaging way without getting bogged down in the history.
Mama had been a beautiful woman once, but that was years ago. Background near the end of world war ii, the west and soviet union had already agreed to divide the city of berlin, which was the capital of the third reich and also its cultural capital. Her father and brother dominic went looking for work on the west side of the city and now they cannot return home. Truly, it is in the darkness that one finds the light. Students at waterville elementary school are gathered around a classroom table, deep in discussion about the characters in a night divided, especially the books main character 12yearold gerta, who lives in east berlin. The book is told by gerta, who struggles under the oppressiveness of the gdr while attempting to dig a tunnel to the other side with hopes to unite her divided. In, a night divided, the new york times bestselling author, jennifer a. One night the father decides they should move to the west because of a bad feeling hes having about east germanys government. She spots a pulley in an abandoned construction site and decides that she is going to steal it the next night, and she does. Book six of the infinity ring series, behind enemy lines. Nielsen is a must read for fans of the authors previous works, middle grade historical fiction, and an interest in the berlin wall.
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