Help me remember the name of this book!

Right, this'll drive me crazy if I don't remember it. I'm trying to remember a book I read in year 11 English (2002). It was about the friendship of two boys at the beginning of Nazi Germany. The richer one was named Konrad Von something, and the other was a Jew. I think the narrator (the Jewish character) was sent to live in America. At the end he finds out Konrad was executed for trying to kill Hitler, or because he'd defected from the Nazis - something like that? Can anyone help?

Iirc, the characters became friends because they were both smart and philosophical, which is what made it so sad when Konrad left his friend behind to join the Nazi party. I'll add more if I remember more.


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Googled some keywords and got "The Song Before It Is Sung" by Justin Cartwright.

This is striking a major cord with me. It wasn't a long novel from memory. Thrashing about in the memory banks for you.

Hmmm, still can't quite think what it was, but you could try whatsthatbook dot com which has helped me locate a few long lost titles!

Oh. Ive read it. and Ive seen the movie. But I cant think what the name is.

Ooh, if there's a movie of this one I'd love to see it! But you're not thinking of the boy in the striped pyjamas, are you? It's not that, though that's another I like. I do love WW2 books so I've read heaps.

The narrator wasn't taken to any concentration camp. And I just remembered his dad was a doctor of some kind and his parents gassed themselves. It's fiction...


Sent from my iPhone so forgive the speelung misstacks ;)

I'm got this idea that there's a mention of 'white' or 'wolf' or 'eagle' in the name/imagery used

Definitely not that. This was really old. it showed them in calss and the Jewish boy got invited to the other boys house and it was huge, he was from a well off family.
he sees him at the theatre but the other boy is with his family and has to pretend he doesnt know him.
He goes back to the house when he is older and talks to the boys cousin ans says he played there as a child, and he ends up moving to America

ETA: actualy he might go to America nd come back as an older man to Germany and visits the house.

Reunion! I remembered the author's first name was Fred, and it popped up :D I was part wrong about the rich boy's name. It's not Konrad, it's Konradin.

Eta- Yep, Pandora, that's the same one :)

Sent from my iPhone so forgive the speelung misstacks ;)

Im pretty sure its the same one. I will have to look it up

Glad you found it! I'm pretty sure this is the one I read too.