What is the author's style in Friedrich by Hans Peter Richter?

Friedrich originally appeared in German as Damals war es Friedrich. The English translation by Edite Kroll is smooth, dramatic and idiomatic. The novel appears aimed at teenaged readers, but nothing in its themes or treatment puts it below adult readers. By a series of scenes, Richter uses his narrator's direct observation, learned exposition by teachers and thugs, and by a rabbi's pious parable to help readers feel what is was like to be a German or a Jew in Germany before and during the Nazi era. It is a spare novel, including almost nothing superfluous or out of place.