Rise of the Spider
Children confront the challenges of history – a book review by Dr Anne Sarzin
From the moment you read the author’s dedication: ‘To the memory of the four Bavarian police officers who died trying to stop Hitler’s first attempt to take over the country in the Beer Hall Putsch, 1923’, you know this is a children’s book with a difference.
Michael Spradlin’s Rise of the Spider—a history story written for children aged eight to twelve years, with definite appeal for older readers—focuses on the events between the first and second world wars, the defeat of Germany, the Treaty of Versailles and its consequences, the rise of Hitler to power, the pervasive allure of Nazi ideology for an impoverished nation, the brutality of storm troopers and, especially, the magnetic appeal of the Hitler Youth for those without the prospect of jobs or careers .
This engrossing narrative is told in the first person by twelve-year-old Rolf, who lives in a small Bavarian town with his 15-year-old brother, Romer, and their widowed father, a compassionate humanist, who owns a toy factory in Nuremberg that is on the brink of ruin. As the Hitler Youth takes root in their town, Romer joins the organisation, despite his father’s strident opposition. Conflicts erupt and fragment the harmony of their family life, all of which Rolf observes and processes thoughtfully.
The sense of an imminent tragedy on a catastrophic scale pervades the story. These tumultuous events, including the Nuremberg rally, are viewed through Rolf’s sensitive lens, aided by the insights of his friend Ansel, whose father is an enlightened journalist opposed to the Nazis. Rolf and Ansel confront the changes and debate the events, achieving a surprising degree of moral clarity, as well as an understanding of the nature of evil seeping through their country. They are exposed to a series of disturbing episodes that encapsulate the violent antisemitism tolerated and, indeed, welcomed by their townsfolk, who ascribe their economic hardships and other reversals of fortune to the Jews.
The author threads documentary evidence of these events throughout the story, for example, quoting Hitler’s belief from Mein Kampf that, ‘The great masses of people will more easily fall victims to a big lie than to a small one’. This fusion of historical fact with a riveting fictional narrative ensures a rewarding and informative experience for the young reader.
In the author’s notes, Spradlin reflects on the research he undertook, including visits to the places in Bavaria featured in his book. ‘How could so beautiful a place become the breeding ground for so much vile hatred and evil?’ he asks. ‘Was there something innate in this place that was responsible for the rise of the Nazi Party and Adolf Hitler? If so, was it cultural, tribal, or something else?’
Spradlin expresses his bewilderment, ‘how quickly the Nazis gained favor and grew their party with such an evil doctrine is hard to fathom. And every German citizen who did not support the party, who spoke and demonstrated against it, was left to swallow the words “it can’t happen here”.
The book’s title, Rise of the Spider, is a clever inversion of Nazi propaganda that caricatured and dehumanised Jews as vermin spreading disease. Rolf meets a member of the Hitler Youth whose gangly arms and legs suggest a venomous spider, which inspires in him both fear and loathing. This thoughtful book, which forms part of Spradlin’s series, ‘The Web of the Spider’, also includes a useful historical timeline and a glossary.
For parents and teachers and young readers, the book presents an engaging way of studying a complex period of history. It also provides readers with multiple opportunities for constructive discussions.
Rise of the Spider
Michael Spradlin
Margaret K. Elderry Books
Simon & Schuster 2024
