Explain why/how a particular event occurred

Event: Max Vandenburg is sent to Himmel Street to live with the Hubermanns
The story flashes back to World War 1, when Hans was a 22-year old soldier fighting in
France. He befriended a German Jew, Erik Vandenburg who played the accordion. Erik
had taught Hans to play. One morning, Erik volunteered Hans for the task of writing
letters for the captain and the rest of the men in his platoon were sent to battle. All of the
men were killed, including Erik. Feeling he owed Erik his life, Hans carried Eriks
accordion for the duration of the war, then tracked down Eriks family, a widow and
yound son to return the instrument when the war was over. Eriks widow told him he
could keep the accordion and Hans told her that if she ever needed anything, she should
look him up. Later, Hitler rose to power and began persecuting Jews. Hans remembered
his Jewish friend and how hed saved Hans life. Hans was on the waiting list to join the
Nazi Party as he had applied to join earlier. The reason for this was that he had lost his
business earlier on because of his sympathy for Jews and after relenting, he applied to
join the party. Hans had once broken the Nazi headquarters window with his fist as a
result of witnessing men throwing bricks into the window of a Jewish clothing shop and
had said that he could no longer join the party and so was put on the waiting list. He was
left alone and not forced to to confront his conscience, unitl a man stopped him in the
street and asked if he would keep his promise to help the Vandenburg family.
Back in the present, Max who is Eriks son and now 24, is let in to the Hubermanns
house. The story flashes back again to tell the past of Max Vandenburg. Like Liesel, he
grew up unafraid to use his own fists and fought regularly with whoever would take him
on. He frequently fought a boy named Walter Kugler and over time, they became close
friends. On the night of November 9, 1939, Nazi soldiers stormed the streets of Germany,
breaking windows and and looting Jewish businesses in a nationwide attack. Walter,
dressed in a Nazi uniform, arrived at Maxs house and told him he had to leave
immediately to escape arrest. Max said goodbye to his family and follwed Walter to an
empty storeroom where where he would hide for the next two years until Walter brought
him the copy of the Mein Kampf with the false identity card, the map, and the key to
Hans Hubermanns house.