Max / by Sarah Cohen-Scali ; translated from the French by Penny Hueston.

Meet Max-it's 1936, Bavaria, and he's still a foetus inside his blonde, blue-eyed mother. Utterly indoctrinated in the Nazi ideology, he will address you, tell you his story until 1945-his destiny as an exceptional being, the prototype of the 'Lebensborn' (Fountains of Youth) program, designed to produce perfect specimens of the Aryan race to regenerate the Reich. When Max meets Lukas, a young Polish boy who resembles him but who rebels against the Nazi system, cracks starts to appear in Max's convictions...

Max is compulsive reading. Against all your instincts to despise what Max tells you, about his childish cruelty, his attempts to eliminate any aspect of weakness in order to become a tough Hitler youth, you will find yourself somehow understanding him, becoming attached to this orphan who personifies the evil that people are capable of inflicting on children in times of war.

Max is a fascinating, confronting historical fable. A little-known aspect of the World War II is brought to life through two striking characters whose paths cross tragically. In the words of Sarah Cohen-Scali to her readers: 'I hope that, as I did, you will be able to feel indulgent towards Max's flaws, and that you will love him, defend him, and adopt this orphan of evil...'