My Friend the Enemy by Dan Smith takes place during World War II. British Peter and his best friend Kim witness a German plane crash and they see a parachute. The two of them decide to sneak out past the curfew that is set because of the man in the parachute that the soldiers saw, but could not find. When they are exploring the plane crash, they come across the German. He is severely injured and Peter and Kim decide to hide him and take care of him because they are afraid the British soldiers will kill him if they find him. Kim, Peter, and the German man Erik become friends and Erik adores both Peter and Kim. Erik is only 19, the same age as Kim’s brother who is also fighting in the war. Peter’s father is fighting in the war, and one day he and his mom receive a telegram that Peter’s father was killed. Peter is devastated and begins to take out his anger on Erik, but Kim stops him. Some of the other boys in town begin to bully Peter and Kim and when Erik hears them being bullied right out of his hiding spot, he comes to help them because Kim got knocked down by one of the bullies and becomes unconscious after she hit her head on a rock. Erik rushes Kim to the doctor, risking his own life. In the end, the British soldiers do not harm Erik and they thank him for helping Kim. This book teaches children to get to know someone before deciding whether they are good or bad. One man’s enemy is another man’s friend.