In Cologne and the surrounding Rhine Valley of Germany, groups of working-class kids got together to fight the Nazis during the Third Reich. They called themselves the Edelweiss Pirates and moved from passive resistance by not participating in the system to active resistance by distributing anti-Nazi fliers, beating up Hitler Youth (yes, they were the original Nazi-punchers), painting graffiti on Nazi buildings, shooting a Gestapo officer, and even plotting to blow up the Gestapo headquarters in Cologne. 

Their status as a resistance group was not recognized until 2005, and because they were seen as anti-authoritarian wild kids—just punks rather than student protesters like other, more famous resistance groups — they've mostly been left out of the narrative of Nazi resistance groups in Germany. But their story is nonetheless compelling and unique: rebel kids —boys and girls — who loved music and dressing differently but who also did what is was right in the eyes of history. It has a beautiful arc: their actions follow the rise and increasing horrors of the Nazis and give an overview of the Third Reich and World War II. And it's tragic: just months before the end of the war, the Nazis wanted to show Germans and the world that they still had control, and so they hanged some of the kids from ad-hoc gallows in the street. 

The story remains incredibly timely, especially for young readers growing up in world of populist politics, violent partisanship, and increasingly naked racism. This book provides much needed historical context for young people who want to resist. 

Flowers in the Gutter is the first time the Edelweiss Pirates story has been told in English, and the excerpt comes from the first chapters of the book. 

Praise for Flowers in the Gutter (Dutton YR 2020): 

"An eye-opening account of tenacity that brings the efforts of young anti-Nazi activists vividly to life.“—Kirkus Reviews, starred review.

”[C]arefully and expertly researched. […] Readers will enjoy learning about these resistance groups in this truly new and unique addition to the YA World War II literary canon. A must-read.”—School Library Journal, starred review.

“The stories of these brave children need to be more well-known and further underscore just how much children and young adults have always led the way in political activism and resistance against evils. A deeply affecting book.”—Teen Librarian Toolbox

“[A] beacon of inspiration to today’s youth.”—Nerd Daily

“Supplemented by pictures and documents, Gaddy’s thorough research shines a light on a heroic group of Germans that often goes unmentioned.”—Booklist

A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year

After a chance encounter with an early 19th century diorama at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and an obsession to learn about the banjo’s earliest history, I felt compelled to write Well of Souls. After all my research, I learned that the early banjo played an integral role in religious rituals practiced widely by enslaved men and women of African descent--a connection scholars and authors had never made before. The banjo was not a folk instrument but a spiritual device: a well of souls. And so, what unfolded in front of me was an aspect of African American lives that has been hidden. When I sat down to actually write the book, I also wanted to make it compelling for audiences. I didn’t just want to lay out a history, I wanted to tell a story. No books about the banjo had taken a creative nonfiction approach centered on character and narrative.

I also realized that it doesn’t mean this history didn’t exist, it means it must be remembered, rebuilt, and reevaluated. This is why the banjo’s earliest history--its lost African American history--must be taken seriously. When we see how the banjo was a part of African diasporic music throughout the Americas, we begin to understand that all music of the Americas has part of the banjo within it. 

Well of Souls brings us an unknown side of our American cultural history, where the legacy of slavery, music, and religion collide. This story as a whole makes the landscape of the Americas around 1800 come alive with colors, lyrics, music, and dance. By exploring the lost history of the banjo, this book brings new meaning to American cultural history, places the lives of African Americans and their contributions to American culture at the center of the story, and highlights how spiritual practices like Vodou, Voodoo, and Winti remain alive in American popular culture.

“Nowhere is [the banjo] talked about as a ceremonial instrument, a spiritual instrument—until Kristina's painstaking years-long work to document this unbelievably important aspect… It was incredible. It was unexpected. It was so needed—especially now, in these contentious times--connections to the past that are joyous and beautiful and deep should be treasured. Such as this book." 
—Rhiannon Giddens, MacArthur Fellow and Grammy Award-winning musician

Published in 2022 by W.W. Norton, Well of Souls was named one of the best books of the year by The New Yorker and No Depression, and received wonderful praise: 

“Superb…Gaddy’s lively storytelling re-creates scenes from 17th-century Jamaica to 19th-century Washington, D.C., and beyond, illustrating not only the birth and development of the banjo but also its co-optation by white people.” -- Henry L. Carrigan Jr. , Bookpage

“A potent combination of research and storytelling…What emerges is an extraordinary narrative of African Americans' resistance to brutalisation and the myriad attempts to destroy, pervert, exoticise or appropriate their cultural practices.” - Steph Power , BBC Music

“Beguiling.… Ms. Gaddy successfully blends archival skills with imagination.” -- Economist

“So vividly does [Kristina R. Gaddy] write, and so enthusiastically does she convey her meaning, that many of the songs play unbidden in your mind, through the rhythm of her sentences, the lyric of her vocabulary. As much as Well Of Souls is a gripping, fascinating, story, it is also a beautifully written one…a novel in documentary’s clothing.” -- Dave Thompson, Goldmine

“Tracing the development of the banjo…this meticulous history also illuminates the difficulties of unearthing a story rooted in the experiences of the enslaved.” -- New Yorker