When javier arrived at his first meet, his coach jogged toward him breathlessly. he alerted javier that swimmers were already lining up for his first event, the fifty-meter freestyle. the coach ushered him to the clerk of the course, signed him in, and got him seated with the other swimmers in his heat. javier tugged on his cap and nervously tapped his feet. soon the group was asked to proceed to the starting blocks. javier glanced left and right, and the starter’s signal sounded. before he knew it, he was reaching for the wall in his final stretch, with all of his competitors behind him. with relief, he confirmed that his time was the fastest.

he is honest with congress and america about the difficulty of the war ahead.

son.

rudy is the nazi ideal, unfortunately for the nazis his ideal comes in the form of jesse the complete opposite of those who embrace the idea of white supremacy. over the course of the novel, rudy learns that he wants nothing to do with the hitler youth, and because of this his parents are forced to make a bargain; rudy's father is forced into the military, so that his son can remain home.   both liesel and hans influence that young man that rudy becomes. following han's example, rudy puts aside his own hunger to risk his life so that the jewish prisoners might have bread to eat.