Contents
Chapter 27 - A Short History of the Jewish Fist Fighter
Overview
The chapter traces Max Vandenburg’s path from street fighter to fugitive, highlighting his bond with Walter Kugler and the mounting persecution that forces Max into hiding. Kristallnacht triggers his escape, a debt to Erik Vandenburg links him to Hans Hubermann, and Max finally arrives on Himmel Street to seek refuge.
Summary
Max Vandenburg’s childhood in Stuttgart is marked by poverty, loss, and a growing love of fistfighting. After his uncle’s quiet death, thirteen-year-old Max vows to face death with a fight. He hones his aggression in street bouts that channel fear and energy into forward motion.
As a teen, Max’s fiercest rival is Walter Kugler. Max wins their fifth fight but ultimately loses the series. Their grudging rivalry turns into friendship. By 1935, the Nuremberg Laws cost Max his job and any semblance of equality.
During Kristallnacht in 1938, a Nazi in uniform—Walter—arrives at Max’s family apartment and extracts Max under the pretense of arrest. Max’s family forces him to go; his mother slips him a paper with Hans Hubermann’s name and address. Guilt-stricken, Max flees while his family remains behind.
Max hides for two years in a storeroom secured by Walter. When word comes that Max’s family is gone, he endures by uncrumpling himself each day. Walter contacts Hans Hubermann, who honors an old debt to Max’s father: he sends money, a map to Molching, and later a copy of Mein Kampf with a key taped inside.
When Walter is ordered to Poland, Max must move. He travels to Molching and enters 33 Himmel Street, where Hans greets him and offers coffee in the dark. As Rosa approaches, the three are isolated by secrecy; only Rosa speaks, marking Max’s fraught arrival and the start of his concealment with the Hubermanns.
Who Appears
- Max VandenburgJewish former street fighter; escapes during Kristallnacht, hides two years, and seeks refuge with the Hubermanns.
- Walter KuglerMax’s onetime rival turned friend; in Nazi uniform, extracts Max and arranges help via Hans.
- Hans HubermannHonors a WWI debt to Erik Vandenburg; sends aid, a map, and a key; welcomes Max to 33 Himmel Street.
- Rosa HubermannHans’s wife; arrives as Max reaches their kitchen, breaking the tense silence.
- Max’s motherForces Max to leave; gives him Hans Hubermann’s address as a last hope.
- IsaacMax’s older cousin and early sparring partner; opens the door during Kristallnacht.
- Wenzel GruberMax’s first childhood opponent; sparks Max’s taste for fighting.