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The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz: A True Story Retold for Young Readers
This powerful, moving middle grade adaptation of the adult international bestselling narrative nonfiction book The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz shines a light on the true story of two brothers who experienced the atrocities of the Holocaust in very different ways.
Fritz Kleinmann was fourteen when the Nazis took over Vienna. Kurt, his little brother, was eight. Under Hitler’s brutal regime, their Austrian-Jewish family of six was cruelly torn apart.
Taken to Buchenwald concentration camp, Fritz and his Papa, Gustav, underwent hard labor and starvation. Meanwhile, Kurt made the difficult voyage, all alone, to America, to escape the war.
When Papa was ordered to the infamous Auschwitz concentration camp, Fritz—desperate not to lose his beloved father—insisted he must go too. Together, they endured countless atrocities to survive.
Jeremy Dronfield authentically and accurately captures this family tale of bravery, love, hope, and survival with the help of extensive research and primary sources like Gustav’s diary and interviews with family members.
Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.
Fritz Kleinmann was fourteen when the Nazis took over Vienna. Kurt, his little brother, was eight. Under Hitler’s brutal regime, their Austrian-Jewish family of six was cruelly torn apart.
Taken to Buchenwald concentration camp, Fritz and his Papa, Gustav, underwent hard labor and starvation. Meanwhile, Kurt made the difficult voyage, all alone, to America, to escape the war.
When Papa was ordered to the infamous Auschwitz concentration camp, Fritz—desperate not to lose his beloved father—insisted he must go too. Together, they endured countless atrocities to survive.
Jeremy Dronfield authentically and accurately captures this family tale of bravery, love, hope, and survival with the help of extensive research and primary sources like Gustav’s diary and interviews with family members.
Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.
381 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 17, 2023
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 3, 2025
This memoir is a young adult version of the adult memoir. This memoir mainly follows Fritz and his father into the concentration camps of Buchenwald and Monowitz (one camp in Auschwitz). At Buchenwald, Fritz and his father survive by learning construction skills that were invaluable. Fritz is assisted by the supervisor who trains him as a bricklayer. His father is very adaptable and he changes jobs on a regular basis to fit the best jobs being offered each day in the trades. Fritz was able to prove himself useful in the camps and he was able to impress the German officers with his skills. The construction crews had better treatment than some of the others who were felling trees in the forests or moving large stones in a quarry. There were several German civilians working in the construction trades who also assisted them by bringing them food and news from the outside world. Fritz and his father were part of the resistance in the camp and their social connections helped them to survive. During a movement of prisoners by train, Fritz escapes. Unfortunately, he is caught and questioned by the local police. He is held in the jail cell for several weeks and he regains his strength. Eventually, they bring him to a Mauthausen-Gusen where he was forced to work on a labor crew. He continued to hope that his father had surviced the train transport to another camp and that they will be reunited. Fritz was in bad shape physically when the American's liberated the camp due to the hard labor conditions.
One of the siblings, Kurt, was able to obtain a visa and move to the USA. He was taken in by a family and he became just like an American boy who attended school and enjoyed the outdoors with his new family. Kurt's story is interwoven throughout the text to show the differences in the lives of the two Kleinmann boys.
This family had split up before the war. The separation of the family was a difficult decision at the time but it provided safety for Edith and Kurt. One sister, Edith, who had gone to work in England as a maid survived the war by staying in England. A younger brother, Kurt was sent to America to live with strangers. Kurt survived and continued to live in the USA. The other family members (mother, younger sister) did not return after the war. In the end, Papa and Fritz were reunited in Vienna. Fritz and his father created a new life for themselves in Vienna after they had recovered.
The last segment of the book provides details about the events in the family's life after the war. There is also a timeline of events from the family's life and some major historical events before, during and after the war. The author's notes explain why the decision was made to adapt the book for a young adult audience. There is also a bibliography with extensive references for the chapters.
I appreciated the adapted version of this book because it sticks to the facts and it provides a more approachable text for the young adult reader. The events are accurate and the author Jeremy Dronfeld clearly completed extensive research to verify facts. Some events might seem fantastical such as the train escape, the length of capture in the local jail, the lack of records at Mauthausen. These are actual events and the memoirs of Fritz and the notes at the camps, and by his father confirm these events. The author notes that there was a tremendous amount of disorder when the camps were being disbanded and the transports and marches were happening as the Soviets and the Americans were approaching the camps.
Fritz Kleinmann's story is a fascinating one which reveals common historical events and themes. It also places an emphasis on the concept of hope and family connection as ideas that helped him to survive in the camps. I would recommend this book if you are interested in a young man's survival story. It is an easy read and provides details about life in the camps that is unique to this young man and his father.
One of the siblings, Kurt, was able to obtain a visa and move to the USA. He was taken in by a family and he became just like an American boy who attended school and enjoyed the outdoors with his new family. Kurt's story is interwoven throughout the text to show the differences in the lives of the two Kleinmann boys.
This family had split up before the war. The separation of the family was a difficult decision at the time but it provided safety for Edith and Kurt. One sister, Edith, who had gone to work in England as a maid survived the war by staying in England. A younger brother, Kurt was sent to America to live with strangers. Kurt survived and continued to live in the USA. The other family members (mother, younger sister) did not return after the war. In the end, Papa and Fritz were reunited in Vienna. Fritz and his father created a new life for themselves in Vienna after they had recovered.
The last segment of the book provides details about the events in the family's life after the war. There is also a timeline of events from the family's life and some major historical events before, during and after the war. The author's notes explain why the decision was made to adapt the book for a young adult audience. There is also a bibliography with extensive references for the chapters.
I appreciated the adapted version of this book because it sticks to the facts and it provides a more approachable text for the young adult reader. The events are accurate and the author Jeremy Dronfeld clearly completed extensive research to verify facts. Some events might seem fantastical such as the train escape, the length of capture in the local jail, the lack of records at Mauthausen. These are actual events and the memoirs of Fritz and the notes at the camps, and by his father confirm these events. The author notes that there was a tremendous amount of disorder when the camps were being disbanded and the transports and marches were happening as the Soviets and the Americans were approaching the camps.
Fritz Kleinmann's story is a fascinating one which reveals common historical events and themes. It also places an emphasis on the concept of hope and family connection as ideas that helped him to survive in the camps. I would recommend this book if you are interested in a young man's survival story. It is an easy read and provides details about life in the camps that is unique to this young man and his father.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 8, 2026
Read this book! It is an amazing story and yet such a tragic one. This book tells the heart wrenching story of the Klienmenn family before, during, and after the Holocaust. This book opened my eyes to just how awful it was for the ordinary people in concentration camps. Dronfield presents all the information he gathered in such a captivating way, it was impossible to put down. I really felt like I was watching the family as their lives were disrupted. Read this book to hear the real stories of real people who survived such tragedy. (5/5)
November 17, 2025
I had saved this book as “to read” when I saw it in a used bookstore and when I got it from the library I was excited! I did not realize I had chosen the version for young readers so it was definitely very elementary for me lol. But I figured I would finish it since it was based on a true story. I wouldn’t read the young reader’s version again but I would be interested in the full adult version.
April 4, 2024
Thoroughly researched and written so that kids can feel an immediacy with the characters and events, this is excellent Holocaust literature. I read a lot of Holocaust books and this is a stand-out. Highly recommended, especially now in our troubling political time.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews