In 1936, the Nazis are little more than loud, brutish bores to fifteen-year old Stephan Neuman, the son of a wealthy and influential Jewish family and a budding playwright whose playground extends from Viennas streets to its intricate underground tunnels. Stephans best friend and companion is the brilliant ofie-Helene, a Christian girl whose mother edits a progressive, anti-Nazi newspaper. But the two adolescents carefree innocence is shattered when the Nazis take control.