White Rose

February 1, 2019
Sophie Scholl was a young German student who wanted to see the end of Hitler and the Nazi regime. She gave her life for that cause.As children, Sophie and her brother Hans were enthusiastic members of Hitler Youth organizations. But as the Nazis' chokehold increased and the roundups and arrests of dissenters and Jews escalated, they became determined to resist. After conscription into the National Labor Service, Hans, Sophie, and trusted university friends formed the secret White Rose resistance group. Hans began to compose treasonable leaflets, promoting an uprising against Hitler. Sophie helped get the leaflets out to influential people as well as to other university students. Their work attracted the attention of Nazi sympathizers, who informed the Gestapo of suspicious activities--and they were ultimately caught by a university custodian. Intensive interrogation and imprisonment, followed by a sham trial led by a fanatical judge, led to the sentence of death by guillotine. Organized in repeated sections that move forward and backward in time, readers hear Sophie's thoughts in brief, pointed, free-verse poems in direct, compelling language. Other poems give voice to individuals such as her boyfriend, Fritz, who served in the German army, and the Gestapo interrogator, adding to readers' understanding of the inevitability of the outcome and the tragic futility of their sacrifice. Real events made deeply personal in an intense, bone-chilling reading experience. (dramatis personae, glossary, author's note, sources) (Verse historical fiction. 12-adult)

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January 28, 2019
Based on historical participants in the nonviolent White Rose resistance movement against Hitler, the events in Wilson’s debut unfold in Germany between 1935 and 1943. Sophie Scholl, a non-Jewish German who is 14 in 1935, narrates in candid and absorbing present-tense free verse. One of five siblings, Sophie enjoys a carefree life with family and friends until Hitler begins imposing labor service decrees and arresting teenagers—including her beloved older brother, Hans—for disloyalty to the government. As Hitler’s attacks on the Jewish population and military actions abroad snowball, Sophie is also forced into labor service and grows desperate to act against the injustice. Wilson traces the growing rage and rebellion that drive her into collaboration with Hans and university students to publish and distribute leaflets of resistance to the German public—an offense punishable by death. Occasional entries by a Gestapo investigator pursuing the group create mounting tension, even though the book’s opening scene reveals the outcome of his mission: Sophie’s capture and subsequent trial. Illuminating back matter on the real-life Sophie and the White Rose movement adds additional context to this strong addition to the canon of WWII fiction for young readers. Ages 12–up. Agent: Roseanne Wells, Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency.

Starred review from March 1, 2019

Gr 7 Up-Sophie Scholl was a teen living in Germany as Hitler rose to power; this historical novel in verse is based on her life. As is expected of many young Germans at the time, Sophie joins Nazi youth groups. Over time, as she pays more attention to what is happening around her and learns of the slaughter of the Jewish population, she grows to despise the regime. She realizes being angry isn't enough and being silent makes her complicit. Fully understanding the risks, Sophie turns her outrage into activism. She joins the White Rose resistance, helping to create and distribute leaflets calling out the horrors of the regime. She and other members of the White Rose are caught, interrogated, tried, and, eventually, executed. This difficult, inspiring story is told effectively in verse; the language is spare but powerful. Many pieces of this narrative-demonizing a population, standing silently as people are mistreated, fighting against harmful policies-are timely and relevant. The back matter includes information about key players, a glossary, a list of primary and secondary sources in both English and German, and a helpful author's note giving more context to Sophie's story. VERDICT This tale based on the real life of a young activist, supported by extensive back matter, belongs in all collections serving young teens.-Carla Riemer, Claremont Middle School, Oakland, CA

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from June 1, 2019
Grades 7-12 *Starred Review* German university student Sophie Scholl of the White Rose resistance movement was murdered by the Nazis on February 22, 1943. She and her brother Hans were guillotined for the crime of creating and distributing leaflets that encouraged people to consider what the Third Reich was doing to European Jews and to oppose Hitler. Wilson's highly effective novel in verse travels back and forth between the time of Sophie's youth ( Before ) and her final days, from her arrest to her death ( The End ). Clearly labeled and well-structured, the two chronologies are interwoven and paced out so that Sophie's growth into a freethinker, encouraged by her brave and loving family, is shown over time. Even as her execution approaches, we see how her strong character and beliefs led Sophie to sacrifice herself. Wilson also addresses Sophie's complicated relationship with her boyfriend, Fritz, noting her ambivalence towards being in a relationship at all. Very few of the passages feel overwritten?the phrase boom-boom, used to indicate Sophie's understandable fear, is perhaps repeated to excess?but overall, this moving and inspiring novel will provide readers with a great introduction to some of the Righteous Gentiles who resisted the Nazis. Including a glossary and extensive bibliography, this is a model of well-researched and riveting historical fiction.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)