Tonke Dragt - Das Geheimnis des siebten Weges

And then ? What what happened then ? Five minutes before end of school teacher Franz begins telling his pupils adventurous tales about warriors and swords, dark castles, shipwrecks and unoccupied island.
Difficult to believe that one day one of his tales is coming to reality ! Together with his pupils he becomes entangled in a secretive complot.

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Franz van der Steg teaches his new class for about three weeks, entertaining them daily with five minutes of adventurous tales about Franz, the red head. One day, when he's not really in the mood to tell tales he tells them that he's awaiting a secretive letter, not knowing from whom it will come and what it is about.
To his surprise he really receives a letter from Count Gradus Griesenstein who offers him a position as tutor for his nephew Gerd-Jan. To make the situation more mysterious for Fran,z who has never before heard the name Griesenstein, he meets members of the seven conspirators who claim he is the 7th member who is supposed to help and free Gerd-Jan from his uncle who keeps him inside the walls of the "Treppenhaus", their huge and more strangely mansion, full of stairs.

The centuries old prophecy tells that one day seven conspirators will help to find the hidden treasure that would free the descendant of Gregorious Griesenstein.

Franz soon discovers that uncle Gradus keeps Gerd-Jan in the house because he wants the treasure all for himself but Gradus never thought the prophecy might come true. Franz hair is red and the prophecy is quite green.

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I have been planning to read this book for a long, long time. Actually since the book was made into a small TV series in 1982 when I was a child myself. Ever since I sort of thought about it every now and then.
No wonder it sucked me in from the first page on. This is a beautiful novel for children around 10-100, mysterious and suspenseful.
The character Franz van der Steg seems to be a little bit off, trying to be stern with his pupils. I don't remember a teacher talking to me like Franz van der Steg does in the book but then, when the book was published I wasn't even born for another 10 years.

Unfortunately this great book, De zevensprong (orig. title), was never released in english but it sure should be.

Rating:

Paperback: 312 pages
Publisher: Beltz (March 20, 2002)
Language: German
ISBN-10: 340778063X
ISBN-13: 978-3407780638