Die schwarzen Brüder (English: The Black Brothers) is the best-known story of German-Swiss writers Lisa Tetzner and Kurt Held.

The book was published in two volumes between 1940 and 1941, and tells the story of Giorgio, a boy from Sonogno in the Verzasca Valley in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.

Tetzner had read of a ferry disaster drowning some thirty chimney sweep boys (Italian Spazzacamini) who were sold to the City of Milan in the middle of the 19th century.

Rossi's deathly-sick daughter, Nicoletta helps Giorgio greatly, sharing her food and calming her mother.

While working in a clogged chimney and breaking loose blocks of soot in the smoke of a fire still burning, he almost dies.

Giorgio is hunted by the Milan police, but the boys make their way to the neighboring Swiss border town of Lake Lugano.