Hitler's Daughter

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of religious discrimination, antisemitism, graphic violence, and emotional abuse.

In Hitler’s Daughter, storytelling is an influential mechanism for confronting difficult realities, examining identity, and understanding the world. The story-within-a-story, told by Anna, begins as a game. She originally introduced “The Game” to help her younger friend, Tracey, feel comfortable when starting school. But this story is different. Her character—Hitler’s daughter, Heidi—becomes the lens through which both characters explore complex moral questions. For Mark especially, Anna’s story is transformative, and Heidi’s transformation mirrors his own. At first, he feels uneasy about this type of story: “It did seem different somehow to make up stuff about a real person. But there was no way he could put his feeling into words” (8). But soon, the story consumes him, and he begins to experience it as though it were real: “Mark settled back on the seat. It always took a while for Anna to settle in to a story. But it was pretty good when she did. She always added details so you sort of saw the story in your mind” (9).

As the story progresses, Anna becomes increasingly involved in the story.