Adolf Hitler raised his arm in the Nazi salute. He stood before a sea of cheering people—his Aryan race—his beloved Germany. In his mind’s eye, he watched himself in such a stance, before the whole world bowing down to him in reverence. The globe was struck by the lightning quickness of Adolf Hitler’s ascent to power, his sudden possession of Western Europe. He united in ambition with Mussolini, fascist leader of Italy. Together they rose, to be countered by Democracy. In a brutal clash, a world war began, the triumphing side to determine whether earth would be plunged into oppression under mind-controlling fascists, or would revive in a “new birth of freedom”.

Germany rose rapidly, uniting with Italy and Japan in a common aim to conquer the world and bring it under the rule of their fascist regime. The Allies resolved to battle these forces that sought to bring the globe under submission. But World War II constituted more than a struggle for freedom and safety from subjugation. Light combated the darker forces that would undermine free will that would corrupt humanity with hatred and prejudice. At first the black stain threatened to blot every continent as the conflict leaned in the favor of the Axis powers. Through 6 long years of fighting, the bitter conflict ensued, devastating the earth, seizing lives by the millions. But the Allies clung onto hope, and light. They refused to be vanquished by megalomaniac men whose agenda was to purify the human race, whose goal was to spread their scarlet banners across the earth. World War II, unforgotten, remains so, for people remember it as the single war in history that devastated the earth in the extreme, mangling it, deforming it to near unrecognizability. Yet in the end, freedom’s song rang above all the rest of the chaos and insanity of those black years, when at last liberty’s beacon reappeared. The world drew in a breath of relief.
The Clouds Gather

In a blinding flash a forceful blow struck the earth, sending shock waves rippling across oceans, like an earthquake jarring every continent in the world. A diabolical hand covered in blood had reached out and pierced this planet, causing the air to ring an alarm that spread with cancer-like poison to every corner of the globe. The world will never forget the small, pallid man with dark, fervid eyes and the voice that rang out, screeching, shouting, hypnotic words of hatred, binding the German nation under his spell of black malevolence. By 1939 he held the majority of Western Europe in his palm, the scarlet stain of Nazism spreading from the countries bordering Russia to the French coast. He then set his eyes on the sturdy little island to the north, drawing up a plan called Operation Sea Lion, determined to draw Britain into his clutch as well. Throughout this time, Germany joined forces with Italy, under the rule of fascist dictator Il Duce; Benito Mussolini, and later on with the small but powerful Japan, the island empire on the Pacific Asian coast. As Churchill heartened the English people even under the terrifying Blitz by Germany, Japan’s belligerence towards the U.S. intensified. In December of 1941, Japan made her strike; a little harbor in Hawaii became her prey. Like kindling bursting into flame, sparks sprayed across the world, ignited into life by one man whose incredible hatred and manipulative powers shocked everyone then, and all posterity to come.

Blackness engulfed the world. Terror touched every continent. It all started with one man. Adolf Hitler was committed to restoring the centuries-old nation to its former glory and strength, and to expanding the Fatherland across the earthly realm. After the war, Germany plunged into panic and depression. The new German Republic, founded after Kaiser Wilhelm II had been usurped from his throne, became a symbol to the underground patriots of Germany’s failure. One of these young patriots, Adolf Hitler, who had served the Kaiser during the Great War, longed to restore Germany to her former glory, bent on vengeance in the name of the Fatherland. He staked his every conviction in the might of the German people—the “flawless” and “mighty” Aryan race—and determined that his Third Reich would last for a thousand years, during which he would conquer the rest of the world. Hitler blamed the Communists, Jews, and his weak countrymen who had knelt in defeat before the Allies. Hitler reared up, defiantly, founding his own party; the National German Worker’s Socialist Party, anti-communist and anti-Semitic. Hitler furiously threw himself into this work, and as the German Weimar Republic crumbled amongst the turmoil and depression of the country, the Nazi Party mounted in power. When in 1933, General Hindenburg, a weak, clouded-minded man, brought Adolf Hitler to the seat of Chancellor. Hitler soon ruled Germany in absolution. Before long, the nation bowed before this small man, as though hypnotized. Hitler rapidly rebuilt the military strength of Germany, as the Allies pretended to disregard this violation of the Versailles Treaty, which forbade the reconstruction of armed forces. By 1935, Germany had completely reinstated its might, and as one of Hitler’s men, Dr. Goebbels, declared, “Germany today, tomorrow the world!” (Leckie, 20) Meanwhile in Italy, a large man of iron force and determination, Benito Mussolini, seized control with his Fascist Party, his vision to restore the dominance of to the glory of old Rome. France stirred anxiously, but remained placid and docile, making no attempts to prevent what brewed in Germany and Italy. The U.S., now practicing “isolationism”, paid no attention to the European affairs. In 1929, when the Stock Market crashed, America only cared to escape the economic failure that left millions homeless and jobless. England also, remained apathetic to her neighbor’s actions. However, in 1936, Hitler violated still another of the agreements in the Treaty of Versailles by invading the Rhineland, the first of his startling lightning strikes in World War II. He next conquered Czechoslovakia, and added it to his growing dominion. Mussolini, meanwhile, invaded Ethiopia and Albania. Hitler struck again, this time Austria, in 1938. The Allies gasped, now apprehensive. The president of the United States, Franklin Roosevelt, demanded that Hitler cease this invasion at once, desperate to prevent another war. Contemptuously, Hitler did not even respond. He turned instead to Russia, and signed an agreement with Stalin for the division of Poland between them. In 1939, the German air force swept into Poland, weakening the defenses, and afterwards, the army under the Swastika pressed across the border. In a heartbeat Poland had fallen. Now the world held its breath, dreading what would happen next. Only two days later, Britain and France mobilized their troops. The second World conflict had opened with a thunderous roar, starting in Germany and echoing across the seas, even reaching “isolated” America. The German dictator targeted Sweden and Norway, and in spite of Allied resistance, hammered his way in and secured the two countries. Following this, he turned his eyes to Holland, Belgium, and France. In but a few weeks’ time, he held Western Europe in his palm, and sent the vanquished British and French fleeing across the English Channel just in time to escape annihilation by the German air force. But this only spelled the beginning of Hitler’s mania for Aryan domination of the world.

Subsequently, Der Fuehrer set his sights on the Isle of Britain, which he considered a weak, imperious nation. But, as Germany would learn, the British would not be cowed as quickly as the other vanquished nations. Without a doubt, Hitler soon knew, he could not invade the land of the British without the British fighting back. Initially, he thrust before the “Sea Lion” a bullying threat to “stay out of it [Germany’s European takeover]. Britain flung up her head. Stand by placidly and allow this brutish aggressor to seize the world, to terrorize England’s neighbors and allies? Mercy, no! Remembering the destruction and ghastly price of World War I, Great Britain stanchly resolved to persist, to oppose this insane terrorizer of the modern world, this aggressive threat to mankind’s future. Posterity depended upon it. Whatever suffering would ensue, courage became the crux of hope. The Battle of Britain began—the opening of what would become a long, brutal struggle of the British people, as their island became the target of German harassment. These valiant island folk, who braced themselves for the onslaught, never wavered before the calculations that an estimated 50,000 would perish in the days, months and years to come. The new prime minister of Britain, Winston Churchill, emboldened the people with his patriotism and optimistic words:
“We shall go on to the end. We shall defend our island whatever the cost may be. We shall fight on the beaches; we shall fight in the streets; we shall fight in the hills. We shall never surrender.” [164 Miers and Sutton]

The Battle of Britain initiated as dogfights of the German Luftwaffe and the Royal Air Force. Beginning on August 15, it ended in failure on the part of the Nazis, the head of the Luftwaffe, Marshal Goering, appalled by his forces’ defeat. His over-confidence had led him to believe his fierce Luftwaffe would devastate the R.A.F., but he had supposed wrongly. The British would “go on to the end” and they would “never surrender.” Goering, vexed, resolved to pierce “the heart of Britain” [52 Leckie]—London. He started by aiming for the industrial centers across the island, before proceeding with his plan to terrorize the British people. They evacuated the crowded cities, slipped away into the country and quieter towns, barricaded London with massive balloons to serve as an air blockade. For three long months, day by day, night by night, London underwent a fusillade of bombs. Streets emptied, the bomb sirens wailed, their haunting sound filling the old city. These Banshee-like alarms in the Heart of Britain seemed to signal the opening of a devastating, ghastly war that would envelope the globe, and the long fight against fear and evil by the people of every continent.


In the meantime, as Hitler’s black force spread across Western Europe, the Far East faced the might of a little island off the coast of East Asia. Japan, under the rule of Emperor Hirohito—resolved to rule half the world as befit his hypothetical divine nature—focused on annexing every Pacific atoll and Asian country. Having already invaded Chinese Manchuria reaching the inland of the “Land of the Dragon”, the once reclusive Japan prepared to carry on with her plan of conquest. However, the United States of America stood in the way. That young nation with her Pacific fleet currently residing at Oahu, Hawaii, posed a significant threat to Japan’s intent to capture the islands of the Pacific. Japan readied to push aside this neutral giant of a nation, and proceeded with its scheme. In November of 1941, Japanese naval carriers, torpedo bombers, fighter planes and a whole artillery which the empire had built up so quietly over the past years, set out from their native shores towards Hawaii—their precise destination: Pearl Harbor. Even as Japanese diplomats appealed to President Franklin Roosevelt to approve their invasion of China, the die was cast. The decision of the two head Japanese admirals had been sealed beforehand, and America’s refusal to sanction the invasion of inland China increased the mounting feelings of hostility and aggression of the Japanese towards the peaceful U.S.A. Early at 7:55 am on December 7, Japanese Fleet Admiral Yamamoto telegraphed a message to Admiral Nagumo, leader of operation Pearl Harbor. “Climb Mount Nittake” [68 Leckie] he commanded; code for “Attack!” Undeniably, the notorious act of treachery that followed would leave its imprint on the annals of world history. In half-an-hour the massive, powerful force of the United States Pacific Fleet became flaming, smoking chaos, mangling nearly every one of the magnificent battleships. Three thousand perished. The Japanese breached American neutrality. From the islands of Hawaii to the eastern Tidewater states, shock and fury swept across the nation in a thunderous roar. After 23 years of isolationism, citizens of the United States found themselves facing a blatant, belligerent challenge, thrust there by the small but avaricious Japan, who reached eagerly for power of the Pacific and Far East. On December 8, America took up the sword. President Roosevelt declared to the nation:
“Yesterday, December 7th, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan. The United States was at peace with that nation . . . and was still in conversation with the government and its emperor looking toward the maintenance of peace in the Pacific . . . As commander in chief of the army and navy, I have directed that all measures be taken for our defense.” [23,24 Panchyk]


Smoldering sparks kindled the globe into a furnace of hostility and tension. The Allies gathered once again as a united force against Germany and those who sought to undermine liberty. Germany and Italy formed the Rome-Berlin Axis, later to be joined by Japan, who was caught up in the beginning drama on the Pacific front. In the meantime, Germany set her sights on Great Britain, aiming to bring the stanch country to her knees after spreading her power to the majority of Western Europe. Hitler drew the attention of the world to his trail of conquest. Slyly, Japan made the sudden strike on Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor, thus fully jarring awake the stirring giant of the U.S.A. As the theatre of World War II drew back its crimson curtains, the world held its breath as the drama unfolded in the largest conflict in human history. When Japan roused America to a fever pitch of indignation and shock at the treacherous attack on Pearl Harbor turned the tables against the Germans. It was this event that would lead to the final climax and the destruction of Hitler’s hate-themed regime. Meanwhile, the tempestuous clouds that foreboded the coming onslaught of global-wide war enveloped every continent and sea—a war that would not only involve a desperate struggle for democracy’s survival, but an endeavor to contend against growing evil, the seeds planted by Germany’s Hitler.
Night’s end

The war raged, in a desperate struggle to make the world “safer for democracy”. Years passed, people died in the destruction of this world-wide conflict. At first it seemed as though darkness would triumph. Gradually, however, the tides turned. It began with the attack on Pearl Harbor and continued with the battles across the sandy plains of North Africa, the Allies driving with all their willpower, towards the planned destination. Italy, where Mussolini reigned, was the southern key to Europe, where the Allies could strike at the heart of the Axis trio. From the north; Normandy, France, American General Eisenhower and British General Montgomery designed the “big push”—D-day, when they would cut towards Germany. Hitler did not expect defeat. He confidently boasted of his power and sure victory. But he did not prepare for the worst, when his blackness would flee before the piercing light that would vanquish his malicious regime. Japan, too obstinate to admit that the Americans had the upper hand, after that long, bitter struggle through the Pacific islands, would pay for her tenacity. Light has and always will prevail, and the Axis powers failure to believe it cost them downfall and ruin.

Finally the crucial time had come—the Allies would either falter, or the Axis would crumble. Japan knew that the tide would turn favorably in her favor. Of course, the Sleeping Giant had been roused, but Japan had never been beaten, and the emperor did not doubt for a moment that the might and power of Japan’s military could ever be destroyed. Therefore, this proud and confident empire reeled in shock when an American lieutenant, James Doolittle, led the famed Doolittle raid, flouting Japan’s cockiness. Swooping over Japan, they sent down flashing bombs. The raid did not advance the Allies particularly, but it did strike one for the United States. Japan would never mock or demean American fighting ability again. Japan had not the glory and might to counter the young, dauntless U.S.A. Rapidly America built up her navy till she became a potent rival to the Japanese. Tension on the Pacific front mounted. As the battles on the ocean ensued, it became apparent that a long struggle lay ahead. The U.S. managed to strike Japan’s navy and pride hard at the Battle of Coral Sea, essentially the first battle fought on this front. Miers and Sutton, authors of America Through Four Wars, marvels that this battle was the first to be fought with the opponents out of each other’s sight. In but twenty-four hours the second melee, the pivotal Battle of Midway, took place, for here, the Japan suffered her first real defeat. However, Japan had an advantage—on a good number of the Pacific islands they had naval and air bases. It became the goal of the U.S. to seize these, and advance towards the Japanese mainland. But the struggle towards that goal proved arduous and difficult. Unforgettably Guadalcanal became the site of tribulation, of heroism and perseverance. American paid dearly for the eventual triumph at this large island located near the Philippines. It was only the first step towards eventual victory in the Pacific. Meanwhile, in Africa, the Allies pressed into wilds of the northern region, against the German. The Germans, who had begun to waver, found themselves suddenly on the defensive, as Allied troops poured into North Africa. Hitler’s Operation Barbarossa severely weakened the forces on this desert front, and even the brilliant strategist, Rommel, “Desert Fox”, had left his troops to combat with the intrepid Australians and determined British. U.S. general “Ike” Eisenhower joined the British leader, Montgomery, as they drove back the Axis soldiers, in a gradual advance towards Italy. Italy, they had determined, would be the gateway into Europe, and from there they would take on the root of evil hand to hand. At last the Allies reached the Mediterranean. In a whirlwind of victory they swept through Sicily and climbed up the boot-leg of Italy, towards the Alps. The beginning of the end had come into sight, although the struggle ahead would be long. Roosevelt declared to the Italian people, upon the Allied invasion of their poor, desiccated nation:
“The time has now come for you, the Italian people, to consult your own self-respect and your own interests and your own desire for a restoration of national dignity, security, and peace. The time has come for you to decide whether Italians shall die for Mussolini and Hitler—or live for Italy, and for civilization.” (Leckie, 110)

Mussolini was uprooted from his tyrant’s seat, and the true king of Italy took his place. At last, the Axis of Evil would be razed.

The day had come! D-day, marked on the Allied calendars, would determine the outcome of the war. Flowing into the Italian peninsula, the Allies centered their new focus on the northern coast of France, Normandy, where they would strike. Cleverly, they made sure the Germans heard about a fictitious invasion on a different site up the coast, thus diverting the Axis attention, and giving the Allies the opportunity to take them by surprise. The largest military force which ever gathered readied to launch in Southern England, the leading generals Eisenhower and Montgomery. Yanks, Canadians, and Englishmen united together, readying for the day that would be forever remembered in history—
“ ‘The might host was tense as a coiled spring,’ General Eisenhower said. ‘And indeed, that is exactly what it was—a great human spring, coiled for the moment when its energy should be released and it would vault the English Channel in the greatest amphibious assault ever attempted.’ ” (Leckie, 142)

At midnight of June 6, 1944, the “greatest amphibious assault” began. Each man moved, his breath bated, every moment crucial as they cautiously traversed the English Channel. Eighteen-thousand paratroopers began the invasion, an overwhelming force headed landward. Astounded Germans hesitated, almost incredulous, before firing in defense of this coast they had claimed. The next sweep of Allied soldiers arrived as the infantry on boats of every kind, disembarked and pressed onto the beaches designated to the national regiments—Omaha and Utah beaches the sections of seashore for the Americans, the Juno beach the “Canucks’ ” battleground, and the Gold and Sword beaches upon which the British would advance. While D-day was a major climax of World War II and victory for the Allies, many historians call this day the “Soldiers’ battle”. The Allies won D-day because of the individual heroism and courageous action of each man. Their bravery won them the struggle, for it was them, not their nation’s leaders, who drove the Nazis into hasty retreat, and eventually stormed through France, to cross into Germany. Hitler, vehemently confident and c***-sure that his Aryan land could not be defeated as an invincible realm, must have been bewildered when he heard that the Allies had invaded France, and marched towards Germany. D-day turned the tables against Adolf Hitler and sorely wounded his pride.

At long last, the Allies had reached the “Holy Soil”, had struck at the heart of the ghastly beast which had spread its wings over the face of the earth. In a final stand, in a last attempt for victory, Hitler pressed his men into battle with the Allies, but they were driven back across the Rhine, the Allies in triumphant pursuit. From the east, Stalin’s armies advanced. Simultaneously, with the Americans and British to the west, and Russians to the east, Germany was surrounded. As the Nazis hurried into Germany, they burnt bridges in an effort to keep Allies from crossing easily. However, they forgot to burn one, and within a day, thousands of Allied soldiers had filtered across the Rhine and stood on German land. From there, the Germans fought a losing battle. Mussolini’s fascist government had collapsed in Italy, and the once dignified dictator fled to the hills, where he was eventually assassinated, to the joy of the Italian people. They had been freed at last from the chains of fascism and tyranny. Moreover, as the Allies rushed through Germany, they came across the bleak, macabre nightmare of the concentration camps, where six million had perished at the hands of evil. The survivors in these camps who still clung onto the last shreds of life were liberated from that ghastly existence, and with indignant vengeance the Allies charged towards the heart of Germany: Berlin. Leaving his people to face the terror of the city under attack, Hitler hid away in underground bunkers, where he tenaciously continued to command his troops as if he still had the upper hand, as though Germany still was the same powerful military power as it had once been. Now, however, it had become chaotic disarray, his closest generals, Goering and Himmler betraying him in fear of what would surely come as the Allies closed in. Hitler ordered their arrest and suicide, though Goering, who avoided suicide, would later be tried for criminal acts at the infamous Nuremburg Trials and sentenced to execution. When the bombs from American and British planes shook Hitler’s underground stronghold, he realized at last that he had been defeated. But he refused to be caught, to be humiliated by arrest. The vilest murderer in history took himself and his wife into a private room, where he shot himself, and his wife took poison. Hitler’s life now ended—this man who declared that “he would dictate to all Europe and the world.” (Miers and Sutton, 188) His minister of propaganda, Goebbels, poisoned his wife and children, and then had SS soldiers shoot him. The chief of the German navy, Admiral Doenitz, who had been appointed as the new head of the military before his death, surrendered to the Allies shortly afterwards. V - E Day (“Victory-in-Europe” day), May 7, 1945 had at last arrived. The beast had at last fallen, the black stain no longer expanded. Light triumphed over darkness. As Europe gasped for breath after the long and terrifying storm, America still remained alert. The empire on the Pacific, Japan, had yet to be defeated.

Carefully but swiftly, leading scientific geniuses gathered together to construct a weapon of mass destruction. Albert Einstein heading this mastermind group of brilliant intellects, who had been driven from Germany and Europe due to political differences with Hitler’s regime. These geniuses were creating a nuclear missile that would have the force to wipe out a whole population. They raced against time, and against the German scientists overseas, who were attempting the same project. The U.S. won that race. Harry S. Truman remarked years later, “The atom bomb was no ‘great decision.’ It was merely another powerful weapon in the arsenal of righteousness. The dropping of the bombs stopped the war, saved millions of lives.” (Axelrod, 261) After the decisive battles of Iwo and Okinawa, when President Roosevelt died quietly in South Carolina (April 12, 1945) and left the executive seat to Truman, came the moment for which the world held its breath. Having already defeated Germany and Italy, their leaders vanquished, the Allies had pressed a beaten Japan against the wall. Japan stubbornly refused to surrender. As the Allies tried to reason with Japan, and knowing that in American arsenals waited that horribly destructive bomb, Stalin began to bristle. Allies feared that Russia would declare war on Japan, and seize this Pacific empire, thus broadening Russia’s land-power. The Allies had no other choice but to break Japan, and make her realize that it was folly to hold out, with her navy destroyed, and her army now resorting to suicide attacks. The time had come at last for the atomic bomb. August 6, 1945, a B-29 plane, named the Enola Gray, flew over Hiroshima, and dropped “Little Boy”, which flattened the city in seconds. Seventy-eight-thousand perished in this first blast, from which exploded in the air a massive mushroom-like cloud, billowing in the scorching air. Three days later a larger bomb dropped from the sky, razing Nagasaki. Stunned, Japan could not believe what had happened. The end had arrived. Emperor Hirohito silenced the last protests against surrender with the words:
“We demand that you will agree to it. We see only one way left for Japan to save herself. That is the reason we have made this determination to endure the unendurable and suffer the insufferable.” (Leckie, 184)

After six long, ghastly years, this nightmare of darkness had ended. V - J Day, Aug 14, 1945, Victory in Japan, had arrived. At the cost of 30 million lives and the mercenary expense of more than half a trillion dollars, this war drew out until at last it ended with a fantastic blast, the end of a world ‘safe for democracy’, and the beginning of the nuclear age.

With a dramatic roll of thunder, World War II reached its climax, and then the falling action began. After six long years of gallant fighting on the part of the Allies, they triumphed over Germany, Italy, and Japan. The Allies pushed through Africa, driving back Hitler’s men, and reached Italy, bounding into that oppressed nation which embraced them with open arms. Mussolini was dethroned, and he fled from his vengeful former subjects and the Allies, who had forced their way in. When D-Day arrived, the Allies twisted around and flew in from the French coast, and began rushing towards the root of the blackness—Germany. In despair, a furious Hitler committed suicide, determined to not face the humiliation of defeat.

Adolf Hitler staggered. He collapsed. Abruptly he found himself facing a blinding brilliancy, the sight of his enemies, coming upon him at a fatal speed. In terror this small man trembled, but he could not escape. He could not stand before this bright flare. The shadow vanished before it, the blackness, and the depravity. Hitler put a gun to his head, pulled the trigger. He could not live. For the light had reached his dark lair, and flooded his realm. The millions who had venerated him and his allies could only surrender. They could not oppress freedom’s gleam, which would always shine in the heavens. No one could extinguish it.

On V - E Day, Germany laid down her arms alongside Italy’s. Now, came the dealings with Japan. Stubborn little Japan, that Island Empire of the Pacific, held out though defeated. Hiroshima and Nagasaki vanished in a spectacular blaze. Millions perished, adding to the many lives already taken by the destruction of war. But at long last, with Japan bowing in defeat, in the grave of Germany and Italy, the black stain had been stopped in its spread and disappeared. Most significantly, evil had been routed, righteousness at last prevailing finally. The Axis of Evil collapsed; fading in its own gruesome twilight, the freedom’s light flooding over the world once again.

Tyranny could not stand. Britain, America and their allies fought valiantly, refused to waver in their gallant stand against evil. Should they have faltered in their struggle, then it would have taken root. In a flash the world could have been poisoned by this cancer, this diabolical fury. World War II devastated the earth, left its crimson mark in the annals of world history. It introduced nuclear warfare, it left millions dead. It touched every individual. Hitler, so confident in his invincible power, did not expect the tide to turn. When the indefatigable Japan continued to wrangle with U.S. troops in the Pacific islands, she only set herself up for the final measure that America would take as the death stroke. In short, the Axis faltered after the high of egotism. They plummeted into ruin at the end of World War II. At long last the battle for righteousness had been won by democracy, fascism’s attempt at takeover had shattered.

Works cited:
Axelrod, Alan. The Idiot’s Guide to the 20th Century. New York: Macmillan Inc., 1999.
Leckie, Robert. The Story of World War II. New York: Random House, 1964.
Miers, Earl Schenck and Felix Sutton. America during Four Wars. New York: Grosset and Dunlap, 1965.
Panchyk, Richard. World War II for Kids. Chicago, Illinois: Chicago Review Press, 2002.