Graphic Novel on Historical Event: The Other Side of the Wall by Simon Schwartz

 

Graphic Novel I Chose:

The Other Side of the Wall by Simon Schwartz

Copyright information: Simon Schwartz & Avant-Verlag 2009

Summary of the Book: 

This graphic novel is actually a true story based off of the author's parents' experiences in Germany in the 80's and 90's. The author, Simon Schwartz, was born during the Cold War, when there was a wall built between East and West Berlin. Although the story doesn't flow chronologically, you still get a sense of everything the parents went to and the author explains the situations pretty well. The parents were trying their best to  leave East Germany and go to West Germany, where there was more freedom, but they first had to apply with the authorities. Many of their close friends had been rejected (the authorities claimed that they had secret communication with the West, which was prohibited), so they were very scared.

I also learned so much about what life was like during this time of war in Germany. For example, before I didn't know what the different political parties were, such as the DDR (Deutsche Demokratische Republik). 

Information about the Berlin Wall:

What was the Berlin wall?

From 1961 to 1989, the Berlin wall was a barrier that separated East and West Germany. The reasoning for why this wall was built in the first place was because too many (around 2.5 million) people fled East Germany to go to West Germany because they didn't want to live in a communist country. They thought that once they were in West Germany, they would have more freedom to travel elsewhere, or just settle. After that many people left East Germany, it really threatened to destroy the economic viability of the East German State. As a response to that, the government built the wall originally out of barbed wire, and then replaced them with concrete. 

Facts about the Berlin Wall: 

• The wall itself rose around 11 to 15 feet high and stretched 96 miles in length.
• Along the wall, there were thousands of land mines, hundreds of dog runs, trap wire activated machine guns, and many watchtowers. 
• More than 100 people have tried to cross the border, but have died.  

Citations: 

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Berlin Wall". Encyclopedia Britannica, 25 Oct. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Berlin-Wall. Accessed 9 November 2023.

Member, Acton Staff. “5 Facts about the Berlin Wall.” Acton Institute, 9 Nov. 2023 https://www.acton.org/publications/transatlantic/2019/11/08/5-facts-about-berlin wall#:~:text=The%20Berlin%20Wall%20ran%2096,machine%20guns%20activated%20by%20tripwires.

A description of an assignment for a certain class:

I decided to create an assignment about the Berlin Wall for a Socials 10 class. I remember being in Socials 10 and learning a lot about different countries during World War 1 and 2 but didn't dive deep into the history of the Berlin Wall. 

Read a book set in a country that has had conflict over being divided (Ex. North/South Korea, East/West Germany, American Civil War) and write a diary excerpt as if you were the main character. 

Questions to answer in your diary entry:

• What did daily life look like during that time?
• How did the conflict affect civilians?
• What were the two sides and what was the conflict about?
• Was there any freedom of movement? If so, to what extent?

The assessment will be assessed using the criteria in the student handout:

socialstudenthandout.docx

Other picture books/ graphic novels around the same topic/ theme:

Kinderland: A Childhood in East Berlin by Mawil

Borders by Thomas King

Pyongyang by Guy Delisle

The Wall by Eve Bunting