Love to Read

EMIL
DETECTIVES
and
the

1929

Erich Kästner

A pacey pursuit of a dastardly thief by a group of German children

in the streets of Berlin, told with a degree of humour and sympathetic
social comment. An easy, quick read and although boys predominantly
feature, girls should enjoy the story too.
CONTENTS
Overview for teachers
Page
Context .. ................................................................................. 3
• About the author
• What’s the story about?
• Themes to look out for

Literary techniques. ........................................................... 4–9

Characters
• Emil Tischbein • The Detectives
• Mrs Tischbein • Pony
• Max Grundeis
Setting
• Neustadt and Berlin
Structure
Narrative techniques
Language
Special feature
• Perspective

Activities for children

Before reading ............................................................... 12–13

t

Ideas for getting started - Engaging with the world of the novel
• Willkommen in Berlin!
• Debate
• Pictures and objects
• Facts

During reading .................................................................. 14–18

t

Stopping places - Developing understanding of narrative and literary techniques

1 End of Chapter 2 The Police Keep Quiet
2 End of Chapter 6 Keeping Watch on a Tram
3 End of Chapter 9 The Detectives Assemble
4 End of Chapter 14 Saved by a Pinprick
5 The end of the novel

After reading . . ............................................................ 20–21

t

Create and imagine - Developing a personal response to the novel

• City life
• Press conference
• Detectives and villains
• Silent movie
• Bon Voyage!
I wonder who invented Sunday suits,’ he muttered.
‘Why?’ she asked him.
‘If I knew where he lived, I’d just about go out and
shoot him, that’s all.’
Overview
for
teachers
Context

About the author

A German author, Kästner was born in Dresden in 1899. He came from a working-class background
and weaved some of his early experience into his novels. His mother, like Emil’s in the novel,
trained as a hairdresser and was a dominant woman with whom he had a life-long close relationship.
He initially trained to be a teacher, but dropped out and a year later, in 1917, he was enlisted in the
German army, an experience that subsequently shaped his pacifist and anti-military views.

After the Second World War, Kästner studied at the University of Leipzig before moving to Berlin in
1927 where he began writing in earnest. He did not confine himself to writing children’s literature,
but also wrote poems and newspaper articles, all with a social comment. In 1929, Emil and the
Detectives was published to great acclaim. It was praised for its realism and was one of the first
detective novels for children.

Kästner saw and opposed the rise of Nazi power and though it was a dangerous time in Germany, he
refused to emigrate. Instead he remained with his mother, personally witnessed the burning of his
books by the Nazi regime and continued to write though his works had to be printed in Switzerland.
Heading to Munich at the end of the war so as to remain in ‘free’ Germany, he lived there for the
remainder of his life until his death in 1974.

What’s the story about?

Emil Tischbein is a polite young boy whose father is dead and whose domineering mother must work
as a hairdresser, fighting frequent bouts of illness, to make ends meet for both of them. With money
that she has conscientiously saved up, she sends Emil off to Berlin to stay with his aunt and grandma
for a while.

Despite taking all the precautions possible against losing the precious money (including pinning it
to the inside of his jacket pocket), Emil does not anticipate falling asleep on the train and having his
pocket picked by the accomplished crafty thief, Max Grundeis.

Distraught and morally indignant at his loss, he follows the thief through the strange streets of Berlin
instead of turning up at the pre-arranged meeting with his grandma and cousin - causing them a degree
of consternation. While watching Grundeis eat at a café he meets Gustav, a cheerful local boy who
is thrilled by Emil’s story and agrees to help him catch Grundeis. Gustav quickly assembles a large
group of friends, ‘the detectives’, who are authoritatively and swiftly organised by the ‘Professor’, a
boy who appears to be the leader.

They stake out the hotel Grundeis is staying in and the next morning, supported by a horde of a
hundred children, doggedly follow him to the bank where Grundeis attempts to deposit the money.
They foil his attempts of escape and it is at this point that Emil remembers the evidence that proves
the money is his - the pinpricks in the notes. Grundeis is arrested, though the story doesn’t end there.
Further luck is in store for Emil when it turns out Grundeis is a bank robber with a hefty reward
attached to his capture. As well as becoming rich, Emil makes headline news; however his only
thought is to treat his mother to an electric hairdryer and a warm coat.

Themes to look out for

• Generosity • Moral choice • Sacrifice • Teamwork

3
 Literary techniques

Presentation of character is
achieved through
• What the character says
• What the character does
• What other characters say about them
• How other characters react to them
• How they are described in the narrative

Characters
Emil Tischbein
Emil is a ‘good boy’ (though he has to try hard) who does as he’s told and worries what his
domineering mother might think or say about him. But he is also irreverent, painting a comic red
nose on a municipal statue of a Duke, an action which causes him much anxiety. He is brave and
honourable and understands the value of money - since he has so little of it himself. He insists on
paying back those who have lent him money and refuses to ‘steal back’ the money Grundeis stole
from him - in his eyes stealing is stealing no matter what. He is utterly devoted to his mother and
upon receiving the reward for the capture of Grundeis, his first thought is how he can treat her and
make her life more comfortable.

Mrs Tischbein
Comedy and poignancy define this character. She is organised, overbearing, continually instructing
Emil what to say and do and goes on and on...and on. However, her widow status brings with it a
difficult financial situation, forcing her to work hard for survival so much so that she suffers from
frequent bouts of illness. Emil is completely devoted to her, recognising the hardship of her life and
the sacrifices she makes for him.

Max Grundeis
Though dressed respectably enough, Grundeis is a thief who strikes a chord of unease in Emil from
the beginning, making the reader wary of him too. He is a slick and suave villain who attempts
to befriend Emil with the tempting offer of chocolate and fantastical stories of Berlin designed to
appeal to a child’s imagination...and then he robs him and later slaps a child in the face to boot. He
is pure pretence, has no real feelings for children and at the end of the novel he is revealed to be a
bank robber.

4
The Detectives
The detectives are a cheerful, though argumentative bunch of local children who help Emil foil
Grundeis and get his money back. Led by the Professor, a bespectacled figure who speaks with
authority, they add an energy to the novel as they cunningly organise themselves. They show how
teamwork can succeed. Gustav gains access to the hotel Grundeis is staying at by posing as a lift-boy.
At the same time Little Tuesday, who so desperately wanted to be a part of the action, submits to
staying at home next to the telephone - a sacrificial act applauded by one and all at the end of the novel.

Pony
Emil’s show-off cousin with a bike is no shrinking violet, but for all her gusto and zeal she is not
allowed to join in on the action because she is a girl and ‘nice girls’ go to bed early. She is not a
stereotypical female in personality and clearly enjoys being part of the action - when she’s permitted.

5
Setting The setting can
• Be a backdrop to the action
• Reflect characters’ experiences
• Symbolise ideas the author wishes to convey
• Have its own culture and values
• Cause conflict and distress

Neustadt and Berlin

The settings in Emil and the Detectives are realistic even though the parochial village of Neustadt
is fictional. Emil’s experiences in Neustadt are limited, reflecting his innocent anxious state where
his biggest fear is staining his suit or being caught for the red nose he painted on the town’s statue
of a duke. The sense of restriction is used again in the railway carriage - an apt setting for the theft
since it is a confined, claustrophobic space offering no apparent escape for Emil from the man who
makes him feel uneasy. However, when he discovers his money has been stolen - he literally and
symbolically wakes up to his environment. Finding himself in Berlin, a braver Emil emerges, spurred
on by moral outrage. The city is initially disorientating for Emil - stranger and larger than anything he
has previously known - exacerbating his bewilderment, yet not diminishing his resolve. With the kind
help of others he manages to find his way around, lose his anxieties and get his money back. In Berlin
he comes of age - even gaining the courage to admit to his misdemeanor in Neustadt.

6
Structure
Structure is the order or pattern in which a novel
is put together and should
• Maintain the interest of the reader
• Move the action from one episode to the next
• Arouse a reader’s interest in character or situation
• Create a moment of crisis
• Create expectation or surprise

Emil and the Detectives is not a ‘whodunnit’ in the traditional detective genre, but is instead a pursuit
where the heroes are all realistically portrayed children. Not only is the plot exciting, but there are a
few structural quirks thrown in for good measure. There are shifts in narrative perspective including
a Freudian nightmare sequence portraying all of Emil’s subconscious and conscious worries. There
is an example of ‘form within form’ (Emil’s note) which adds to the authenticity of Emil’s voice.
Usually a detective story ends with the capture of the criminal, but in this case the story continues
as Emil gets a reward, is interviewed by journalists and becomes front-page news. He sends for his
mother and the finale is a family discussion on the moral of the story - although this is a satirical dig
from the writer against the trend for didactic children’s literature.

Narrative techniques
Told in the third person, the narrator is a knowing and mirthful storyteller who refuses to overtly
moralise. He follows Emil’s point of view and moral perspective and is sympathetic to Emil and
his circumstances. He sometimes interrupts the story to offer explanations and possible motives for
a character’s behaviour, as well as putting events and situations into context, all of which enhances
the reader’s understanding, encouraging a sympathetic, though unpatronising, relationship with the
characters.

7
Language
One technique used by Kästner to show both the Professor’s and Mrs Tischbein’s authority is to
include lots of imperative verbs in their dialogue. Almost every sentence they utter begins with one!
Mrs Tischbein’s domineering traits are gently mocked even further when, in Chapter 2, she continues
to give out her endless instructions highlighted by the repetition of ‘And don’t...’: ‘“And don’t you go
talking to other people as you do to me,” she replied. “And don’t throw your rubbish on the floor of the
carriage either, when you’ve eaten your sandwiches. And for heaven’s sake, don’t lose that money.”’

The novel has been praised for its sense of realism. One of the ways this is achieved is through the
description of the setting; the use of proper nouns for the streets in Berlin gives a sense of authenticity:
‘While Emil was being carried...along Kaiser Avenue on the number 177 tram, his grandmother and his
cousin Pony were waiting for him at Friedrich Street Station’ (Chapter 7) and the language of business
and noise: ‘Motor cars rushed past with horns honking and screeching brakes...while other cars came
swooping up behind them...So this was Berlin!’ (Chapter 6).

Since the novel’s style is to explain and enlighten, the use of hyphens appear quite frequently, for
example in Chapter 2, ‘Mrs Tischbein went to the booking office for his ticket - third class of course
- and got a platform ticket herself. Then they went over to the right platform - there were four at
Neustadt - to wait for the Berlin train...’ Although these details are apparently innocuous they do add a
level of insight into the characters and their situation: their status, lack of money and anxiety at getting
things right.

It is a dialogue-driven novel; plot and motive is revealed through character discussions and observations
and we learn a lot about character because of their dialogue. Emil’s mother and the Professor have
paragraphs of dialogue compared to a sentence or two afforded to the other characters - this shows how
they govern those around them. Pony’s dialogue generally includes an exclamation mark to highlight
her forthrightness.

8
Special feature
Perspective

Perspective is the scene as viewed

through the eyes/mind of the
chosen character

Though we see the majority of the story from Emil’s perspective, the narrative now and again briefly
shows the story from another character’s perspective; bringing with it a contrast in ideas, thoughts,
feelings and motives and adding an extra insight into their character and another dimension to our
involvement in the story.

At the end of Chapter 2 we are presented with Emil’s mother’s thoughts. After she has tearfully
waved off her son, her mind immediately turns to the hairdressing commitments she has, comedically
showing that she may not miss Emil very much or that she does not have the financial luxury to
wallow in her sadness.

Next, Chapter 7 shows Emil’s grandma and cousin’s perspective of the story as they wait for him at
Friedrich Street Station. This perspective heightens the sense of anxiety and drama since the reader
now sees the effect Emil’s non-appearance is having on others. It also adds a sense of frustration
for the reader as we know exactly where he is, but, unlike pantomime, we cannot inform the other
characters.

Finally, at the beginning of Chapter 13, for the purposes of dramatic irony, we see the story from
Grundeis’ perspective and his disgusted bewilderment at ‘quite a crowd of boys’ that are congregating
around the hotel entrance - waiting for him!

9
Activities
for
children
 Before reading

Ideas for getting started

Engaging with the world of the novel

Willkommen
in Berlin!
Find out about Berlin in the late 1920s and early 1930s.
What did it look like? What was life like for people?
Find out about transport options at this time and collect pictures to
illustrate your findings. How is travel different now? Learn some basic
German phrases that would be useful for a tourist in Berlin.
com
tterstock.
niov / Shu
IgorGolov

12
 Debate
How important is money?
Have you ever put someone’s needs before your own?
Is it ever right to steal? Would it be right to steal from a thief?
What are the benefits of teamwork and cooperation?
How important is it to be polite?

Pictures and objects

Preview the illustrations from the novel and discuss what they suggest
about the characters, situations, settings and story. Which character, in
your opinion, is the likeliest to be a thief? Give reasons for your answer.
Look at pictures of Berlin from the 1920s and 1930s. What can you
deduce about the city from the photographs? How do you think you
would feel arriving there on your own?

Facts
Where is Berlin? Find it on a map.
How far away is Berlin from where you live?
Find out ten facts about the author, Erich Kästner.
Use the facts like a detective and decide what sort
of person you think he was.

13
 During reading

Stopping places

1
Developing understanding of narrative and literary techniques

Read to the end of Chapter 2

The Police Keep Quiet
Focus on...
• Initial impressions of Emil, his mother and
their relationship
• Narrative style

Things to discuss
Character: What kind of figure is Mrs Tischbein, Emil’s mother? In what ways is she
presented? How about Emil? How would you describe his relationship with his mother?
Who has the most speech in this section? What does this suggest about the characters?
In Chapter 1, the writer tells the reader that Mrs Tischbein’s ‘thoughts were elsewhere’
while they were eating their last meal together. What might she have been thinking
about? Why didn’t the writer tell you what she was thinking?

Narrator: How would you describe the narrator’s relationship with the reader?

Language: The mother uses lots of imperative verbs when addressing Emil. What does
this reveal about her character and her relationship with her son? Is she a typical mother?

Prediction: What do you think will happen in the next chapter?

You could...
Look at the words spoken by Emil and his mother and discuss the ways their speech
differs, for example, who talks the most? What do the differences suggest about each
character?

14
2
Read to the end of Chapter 6
Keeping Watch on a Tram
Focus on...
• Presentation of Grundeis
• Further impressions of Emil and his situation
• Presentation of Berlin

Things to discuss
Character: Explore the ways Grundeis is presented. Do you believe he is the
thief? Why or why not?
The writer reveals a lot about Emil’s inner thoughts and his thought processes
in Chapter 5. What do they add to your understanding of Emil? What were your
responses to his concerns? Do his hopeless thoughts have any grounding? Did
he make the right choice? What choice would you have made? What advice
would you give him at this moment?

Setting: The theft takes place in a railway compartment. Discuss how the setting
affects the atmosphere in this scene.
How is Berlin presented? How does its presentation influence the way you feel
about Emil’s situation?
How do you imagine Berlin?

Structure: We, the reader, never see the theft. Why do you think the writer
decided not to show it? How do you imagine it happened?
What do you think the point of the wild nightmare was? What does the nightmare
reveal about Emil?

Prediction: What do you think is going to happen to Emil now? What would
you like to see happen next?

Ideas: In Chapter 3, Emil thinks that the other passengers ‘...looked honest
enough, and not in the least like thieves...’. Have you ever made assumptions
about someone from their appearance? How true was it?

You could...
Look at the verbs used to describe the way Emil moves after leaving the train.
What do they suggest about how he feels?

15
3 Read to the end of Chapter 9
The Detectives Assemble
Focus on...
• Change in narrative point of view
• Use of ‘letter form’ within ‘novel form’

Things to discuss
Character: How would you describe Emil’s cousin, Pony? Do you like her?

Narrative: In Chapter 7, the narrative point of view changes from Emil to that
of his grandma and cousin Pony. Why do you think the author did this and at
this point in the story?

Structure: In Chapter 9, Emil sends a note to his grandma to reassure her he

is safe. Why does the writer use the form of a letter at this point in the novel?
How might his grandma react when she receives the note? Why do you think
Emil didn’t reveal anything?

Prediction: The ‘detectives’ appear very well-organised thanks to the

Professor. Will it work? Can you foresee any pitfalls?

You could...
Look at the bullet points for Structure listed below. To what extent does this
part of the novel do this? Give reasons for your opinion and find out what
others in the class think.

Structure is the order or pattern in which a novel is put together. It should:

• maintain the interest of the reader
• move the action from one episode to the next
• arouse a reader’s interest in character or situation
• create a moment of crisis
• create expectation or surprise

16
4 Read to the end of Chapter 14
Saved by a Pinprick
Focus on...
• Humour in climatic scene
• Presentation of ‘the detectives’

Things to discuss
Humour: What did you find humorous in this section? How was the
humour created?
How do you imagine the scene in the bank? What were the different people
wearing? What were the expressions on their faces? How did you imagine
the bank itself?

Narrative point of view: In the first paragraph of Chapter 13, we are

presented with the viewpoint of Mr Grundeis. For what purpose has the
writer done this?

You could...
Consider the descriptions of ‘the detectives’. Write down the names of the
main detectives and make notes about how they are presented and what this
suggests about their characters. Draw pictures to show how you imagine
they would look if you were illustrating the novel.

17
5 Read to the end of the novel
Focus on...
• How the novel ends
• Your response to the novel as a whole

Things to discuss
Character: The writer was sympathetic towards Emil and his mother’s
situation. Do you agree with this statement? What evidence can you find
that supports your opinion?
Which character interested you most?
Who was your favourite detective and why?
Which detective do you consider yourself to be most like in temperament?
What do you think Emil has learnt from his experiences? Has he changed
from the beginning of the novel? If so, how?

Language: There are lots of similes used in the novel. Choose a simile you
liked and say why. What did the simile suggest about the thing it was being
compared to?

Themes: Do you think there were any themes in the novel? If so, what
were they?

Structure: Detective stories normally end with the capture of the criminal.
In this novel, the story continues afterwards. What does this add or take
away from your enjoyment of the novel? How would you have ended the
story if you had been the author?
This story is about following the children as they capture the criminal rather
than finding out who the criminal is. Consider the plots of other detective
stories you know. What structure do they follow?

Story: Was this novel a typical detective story? In what way? In what way
was it atypical?

18
 After reading

Create & imagine

Developing a personal response to the novel

City life
Kästner’s descriptions in the novel bring the city of Berlin to life.
Think of a place you know well and describe it - bringing it ‘alive’
with descriptions of sounds, movement, place names, people,
animals and buildings. Incorporate your ideas into a poem or piece
of original writing.

Press conference
Stage a press conference with reporters and photographers. Prepare
questions to interview Emil and find out the details of his story. Write
up a report for the front page with a suitable headline and include
quotations from the other detectives or Emil’s family.

20
 Detectives and villains
There are many examples of detectives and villains in film, television,
theatre and literature. Invent your own detective and villain, explaining
what the pair look like, what their backgrounds are, their motives and any
personal quirks. You could go on to think about scenarios in which the
two meet. Discuss ideas with a partner and then improvise a scene. Take
this idea further and write outlines for a television series, a play or a story
showing how their stories and characters develop.

Silent movie
Working in small groups, mime a section of the story.
Remember to use lots of gesture as no words are
allowed! Invite another group to guess which part of
the story you are re-enacting.

Bon voyage!
Write a list of advice for children travelling for the
first time on their own. The tips could include safety
advice when using public transport or ideas for travel
games to pass the time.

21
Memorable quotes
‘Oh he’ll like Berlin, I’m sure of that,’ declared Mrs Wirth from the
depths of the wash basin. ‘It’s just made for children.’

Some people were always lamenting the good old days, as though
nothing was as good as it used to be – even the air which, according
to them, used to be much cleaner. But you didn’t have to believe them.
They were not lying exactly, nor telling the truth. Generally they were
just discontented, and thought anything was better than what they had
got at the moment.

‘Have you ever been to Berlin before?’ Mr Grundeis asked.

‘No,’ said Emil.
‘You’re in for some some surprises then. Ever seen buildings a
hundred storeys high? No, I thought as much. But you will in Berlin.
They’ve had to fasten the roofs to the sky so that they won’t blow away.’

He took it out and stuck it right through the envelope and the three
notes, and pinned them to the pocket through the lining of his jacket.
‘ There,’ he thought, ‘nothing can possibly happen to it now,’ and he
went back to the compartment.

There was in fact no one in the whole train but himself and a man
wearing a bowler hat made of chocolate. Emil saw him break a piece
off the brim and eat it.
‘It’s shown me,’ said his mother, ‘that children
shouldn’t be allowed to travel alone.’
‘Nonsense,’ said Grandma gruffly.
‘You’re wrong there, quite wrong.’
 ‘If Mrs Tischbein had known the amazing adventures her
son Emil would have in Berlin, she’d never have let him
go. A classic and influential story, ‘Emil and the Detectives’
remains an enthralling read.’
Goodreads

‘A ground-breaking book in many ways. It is probably the

first of the child-detective books. One of the first books for
children that gives us a rounded, unpatronizing picture of a
child in a single-parent family of very little means. It is also
one of the first books for children which treats the city as a
place of excitement and worth.’
Michael Rosen, Author

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