First published in Great Britain by William Collins and Sons and Co. Ltd in 1971
This edition published by HarperCollins Childrenâs Books in 2017
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Text and illustrations copyright © Kerr-Kneale Productions Ltd 1971
Note from the author copyright © Judith Kerr 2008
Cover design © HarperCollins Publishers 2017
Cover illustration © Judith Kerr 2017
Judith Kerr asserts the moral right to be identified as the author and illustrator of this work
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Source ISBN: 9780007274772
Ebook Edition © 2017 ISBN: 9780007380466
Version: 2017-06-15
Anna was walking home from school with Elsbeth, a girl in her class. A lot of snow had fallen in Berlin that winter. It did not melt, so the street cleaners had swept it to the edge of the pavement, and there it had lain for weeks in sad, greying heaps. Now, in February, the snow had turned into slush and there were puddles everywhere. Anna and Elsbeth skipped over them in their lace-up boots.
They both wore thick coats and woollen caps which kept their ears warm, and Anna had a muffler as well. She was nine but small for her age and the ends of the muffler hung down almost to her knees. It also covered up her mouth and nose, so the only parts of her that showed were her green eyes and a tuft of dark hair. She had been hurrying because she wanted to buy some crayons at the paper shop and it was nearly time for lunch. But now she was so out of breath that she was glad when Elsbeth stopped to look at a large red poster.
âItâs another picture of that man,â said Elsbeth. âMy little sister saw one yesterday and thought it was Charlie Chaplin.â
Anna looked at the staring eyes, the grim expression. She said, âItâs not a bit like Charlie Chaplin except for the moustache.â
They spelled out the name under the photograph.
Adolf Hitler.
âHe wants everybody to vote for him in the elections and then heâs going to stop the Jews,â said Elsbeth. âDo you think heâs going to stop Rachel Lowenstein?â
âNobody can stop Rachel Lowenstein,â said Anna. âSheâs form captain. Perhaps heâll stop me. Iâm Jewish too.â
âYouâre not!â
âI am! My father was talking to us about it only last week. He said we were Jews and no matter what happened my brother and I must never forget it.â
âBut you donât go to a special church on Saturdays like Rachel Lowenstein.â
âThatâs because weâre not religious. We donât go to church at all.â
âI wish my father wasnât religious,â said Elsbeth. âWe have to go every Sunday and I get cramp in my seat.â She looked at Anna curiously. âI thought Jews were supposed to have bent noses, but your nose is quite ordinary. Has your brother got a bent nose?â
âNo,â said Anna. âThe only person in our house with a bent nose is Bertha the maid, and hers only got like that because she broke it falling off a tram.â
Elsbeth was getting annoyed. âWell then,â she said, âif you look the same as everyone else and you donât go to a special church, how do you know you are Jewish? How can you be sure?â
There was a pause.
âI suppose â¦â said Anna, âI suppose itâs because my mother and father are Jews, and I suppose their mothers and fathers were too. I never thought about it much until Papa started talking about it last week.â
âWell, I think itâs silly!â said Elsbeth. âItâs silly about Adolf Hitler and people being Jews and everything!â She started to run and Anna followed her.
They did not stop until they reached the paper shop. There was someone talking to the man at the counter and Annaâs heart sank as she recognised Fräulein Lambeck who lived nearby. Fräulein Lambeck was making a face like a sheep and saying, âTerrible times! Terrible times!â Each time she said âterrible timesâ she shook her head and her earrings wobbled.