Loyal To A Degree, Children To A Degree, Trust To A Degree, Partners To A Degree - Boxed Set

A young boy in Nazi Germany is forced to become a man well before his time or perish. As 14-year-old Karl Veth listens to the German special OKW report, the news he has feared and anticipated becomes a reality. Russian tanks have broken through the German defense lines east of the KLV evacuation camp in Poland where he and 120 other German boys are living. The time has come to leave the camp and return to Berlin.
Once back in Berlin, Karl is reunited with his good friend and fellow Hitler Jugend member, Harold. The two boys are close and share a common bond - they are both "subway rats." They earned the nickname because of the time they spent playing in and exploring the subway tunnels under Berlin when they were younger.
SS leaders learn that Karl is a subway rat and take advantage of his knowledge by ordering him to act as a guide for SS demolition commandos in the tunnels. The SS cannot be trusted and Karl walks a fine line between life and death as he follows orders while working on a secret plan with Harold. The fall of Berlin is imminent and it's only a matter of time before the Russians take over the city.
As a member of the Hitler Youth growing up, Karl has been taught that loyalty to the Fatherland comes first, yet he is fighting for a cause he does not understand. In the final days before Berlin falls, Karl finds himself hungry, scared, and completely disillusioned with the war. He also realizes that he can only afford to be loyal to a degree as he is forced to make a crucial decision - live or die.
Children To A Degree
Karl Veth, the oldest of three children, was born in Berlin, Germany in 1930. By the time he was old enough to start school and begin his education, Hitler had already established a firm death-grip on the country. Children were fed a steady diet of Nazi propaganda and were often encouraged to turn on their family and friends but contrary to popular belief, not all of them bought into it.
German law mandates that all children must become members of the Hitler Youth and at the age of 10, Karl enters the Jungvolk, the junior branch of the Hitler Youth. He must wade through the propaganda and everything he is taught to decide for himself what is right and what it wrong.
Trust To A Degree
On May 3, 1945, and after being kicked awake by Soviet soldiers early in the morning and put under arrest. After being transported to an interrogation center and brought before a Russian political Kommissar, Karl soon learns once again he is going to be used by a high-ranking official due to his unique knowledge of the Berlin subway system. He must agree to help the Kommissar or risk being shipped off to the Russian labor camps along with the rest of the German prisoners.

Karl and Harold work with the Kommissar and successfully complete their missions, hoping to be released they’re done. The final mission ends with a twist and Karl is once again forced to make a life or death decision. This time, however, the life hanging in the balance is not his own, but that of someone very close to him.
Partners To A Degree
World War II comes to an end for Germany and Karl and his friend, Harold, narrowly survive the fall of Berlin. They have agreed to work with a Political Kommissar who is continually surprised by their ingenuity and resourcefulness. He develops a fondness for the boys and offers to adopt them and take them back to Russia. Hoping to be reunited with their families, they refuse the Kommissar’s offer. Unfortunately, only one boy’s dream of seeing his family again will come true.

Their lives and while Karl and Harold have each suffered the loss of loved ones – one has lost more than the other. One boy will struggle to put his life back on track and the other will embark on a path of revenge - fueled by grief and anger at the lies that caused his loss and the destruction of his homeland.