With You There Is Light: Based on the True Story about Sophie Scholl and Fritz Hartnagel Paperback – March 3, 2017

My sister and I recently returned from visiting friends in Munich. While there, one of our friends took us to the University of Munich and we saw the White Rose Student Resistance Installation. While I had heard of the White Rose, I came home with a strong desire to know more. I found this book. In reading it, I felt very present with Sophie. I knew nothing about Fritz. This book, and the style of writing, gave me a very rounded portrait of these people. They became very real to me, very quickly.I teach and write poetry and have been reading Heinrich Heine and Rilke for some years. I’ve recently been reading more Novalis, Goethe, and exploring other German language poets. I feel very connected to Sophie as I think I’m reading some of the things she read. It’s hard to share just how connected I now feel. Learning about what she was reading certainly had something to do with that. I’m sure the use of her letters did, as well. Lehmann was able to portray a very human and personal story. It not only kept me reading, but made me feel that Sophie Scholl could easily have been my friend. Yes, Sophie is amazing, a hero, and an example; she’s also very real and approachable. To me, part of the beautiful message of Sophie’s story is that nearly anyone has the potential to be “a Sophie” and, also, that we never know when we might be called upon to be just that…It may not be as dramatic, but we all have opportunities, each day, to stand up and do the right thing.I teach at a community college. I’m always looking for good information to share with my students. I’m looking forward to finding ways to share about Sophie. I also write. I can see Sophie’s influence there, too, already. My sister and I have become involved in efforts to fight modern day slavery. I’ve also been learning more about present conditions in North Korea. I share these things with my students. I challenge them to think about what we can do. The story of the Sophie and the White Rose is so relevant and it continues to be a powerful way to introduce people to ideas about what resistance really means. This books does an amazing job of telling this story.Even though I knew what would happen to Sophie, I didn’t know what would happen to me in reading this book. I cried, laughed, and experienced Sophie’s life deeply. I want to thank Alexandra Lehmann for her effort to bring this beautiful story together. I imagine I am just beginning to see Sophie’s influence in my own story…

In Germany, Sophie Scholl is celebrated as one of the most influential people of the twentieth century. Yet, sadly, her courageous spirit is barely known to the English-speaking world. In 1942-43, as Hitler’s brutal political and military campaigns raged on, Sophie, just 21 years old, joined her brother, Hans, and several other Munich university students, to form the White Rose—a resistance group that published and disseminated a series of leaflets critical of Hitler and the Third Reich. In 1943, the core members of the group were arrested and executed for treason.These are the historical facts. What Alexandra Lehmann’s novel does is flesh out the people involved, focusing on Sophie and her sweetheart, Fritz Hartnagel. When their relationship begins, in 1937, Sophie is a lovely, independent girl of 16. Fritz is a 20 year-old cadet at a military academy, and goes on to become a communication’s officer in the German army. Their curious romance developed largely through their letters to each another. Unfortunate for them, but fortunate for us. For these documents, many of which are translated into English for the first time in the novel, reveal the intimate thoughts and feelings of these two young people, who were living in the nightmare world of National Socialism.Fritz describes to Sophie the horrible destruction and carnage he experiences, first in Holland and France, and later, in Russia. These accounts were certainly among the motivating factors in Sophie’s ultimate revolt against, and critical attack upon, National Socialism. On the other hand, Sophie’s descriptions of the stifling government control and paranoia of civilian life led Fritz to question his own commitment to the war and his participation in it. The author does a superb job showing both the love and the ambiguity of feelings each expresses to the other. Fritz loves Sophie, but fears for her safety in light of her growing hatred of Hitler’s Germany. Sophie loves the warrior, but deplores the war.The pacing of the book, from the pathos of Sophie’s experiences of the brutal Nazi terror of Kristallnacht, to Fritz’s seemingly hopeless rescue from the German defeat at Stalingrad, is done with extreme artistry and control. The author’s portrayals of places and events express a Flaubert-like richness. And her descriptions of the characters’ psychological and emotional insights convey to the reader a sense of real, thoroughly believable, flesh and blood people in extraordinary circumstances.Writing good historical fiction is a unique challenge. Overemphasizing the historical can make a book informative, but lacking in charm. Overstressing the fictional can make it charming, but fantastic. In this novel, Alexandra Lehmann has struck a masterful medium between history and fiction. From the book, you will learn much. And you will feel deeply. What more can we ask of historical fiction?Dr. Dennis Sweet

I enjoyed reading the book and it was good to finally learn after so many years who the "Geschwister Scholl" were that I had seen streets in just about every town named after when I used to live in Germany. I often wish some type of system would be implemented in historical novels whereby one could tell what is fact and what is fiction, maybe print the facts in bold or italics.

After searching for a good, historical narrative on the White Rose Resistance of Germany, I stumbled upon this book by Frau Lehmann. I was so surprised to find something so well researched and developed! I have read lots of literature and watched tons of films and documentaries on the subject, but I would definitely include this piece as a reputable resource for the White Rose. I was so impressed! Not only has it inspired my own research about this group, but it has given me the encouragement to start writing narratives of my own. I also would like to thank Frau Lehmann for her quick response when I emailed my enthusiasm for her book. To find out more, please visit [...] . This book was well worth my time and money well spent!

Such a sad but very inspiring story. Hard to imagine living under Nazi rule but through Sophie's eyes we learn the terror ..... & then feel the strong determination of one young German woman who has a strong belief in God and her country..

Even though we know the atrocities that the Nazi committed in WWII..., "With You There Is Light" Alexandra wrote a true story that made me look inside and be great full that we live in a free country. Well written and easy to understand, and mostly it will touch you inside.

It is very well written and held my attention through the whole book! I have recommended it to several friends.