Sophie Scholl: The Real Story of the Woman Who Defied Hitler

by Frank McDonough

Sophie Scholl was one of the members of an underground German protest movement against Hitler rule, based at Munich University, during World War II. Drawing on a fascinating variety of sources, including original documents, Frank McDonough tells the dramatic, absorbing, and inspirational story of her brave struggle against the Nazi regime and examines her legacy of heroism in Germany. This important new biography shows that not all Germans blindly followed Hitler’s regime and her refusal to be silent in the face of injustice is a story that deserves to be remembered and honored.

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction, War, World War II, Holocaust, German Literature

222 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2009

About the author

Professor Frank McDonough is an internationally renowned expert on the Third Reich. He was born in Liverpool, studied history at Balliol College, Oxford and gained a PhD from Lancaster University.

He has written many critically acclaimed books on the Third Reich, including: The Gestapo: The Myth and Reality of Hitler’s Secret Police (2015). Hitler and the Rise of the Nazi Party (2012), Sophie Scholl: The Woman Who Defied Hitler (2009), The Holocaust (2008), Opposition and Resistance in Nazi Germany (2001), Hitler, Chamberlain and Appeasement (2002), and Hitler and Nazi Germany (1999). He has also published many other books, most notably, The Origins of the Second World War: An International Perspective (2011), The Conservative Party and Anglo-German Relations (2007), Chamberlain, Appeasement and the British Road to War (1998) and The Origins of the First and Second World Wars (1997).

Reviews

[Kip · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was great to see a new book in English about Sophie Scholl. I've been studying the White Rose for years and am always interested in reading a new perspective on this tragic story.

There are many amazing sources in German, such as Barbara Leisner's excellent biography, but I don't believe that or many other works about the resistance group have been translated into English.

I was impressed with McDonough's research and the new details he presented. While meant for an adult audience, it should also have a strong appeal to young adults with an interest in World War II history.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The woman herself seemed incredibly courageous, determined, and clear about what was necessary for freedom -- and she was ready to contribute her own life to the struggle. She remained to the end faithful to her belief system. Even when confronting her parents in the hour before her execution, she was calm and reconciled. And her brother's final shout as the guillotine fell was "Long live freedom!" Moving and inspiring.

I didn't find McDonough's writing very passionate or engaging, unfortunately. He clearly was passionate about the story he was telling, but was not a writer who caught me up in the emotion of the events. The prose was too distant and dry for that. I did like McDonough's final chapter in which he related his pilgrimages to the places in Sophie's life. He brought himself into the tale more and that was somewhat moving, but he's not a great communicator, sadly. Also, as I mentioned in comments, the copy I had contained a distracting number of grammatical errors and word switches which ended up affecting the meaning in probably a dozen passages. I had a copy from an academic press from the university library -- must have been uncorrected. McDonough's tepid style and the grammatical issues kept this book from receiving a higher rating from me. I look forward to reading other books about Sophie Scholl, however!

[Jerry Kaczmarowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am writing a young adult book called the Black Rose that is a fictional account of a group of young Germans caught up in World War II. It is a pivot off the real world White Rose of which Sophie Scholl was a member.

I was trying to get a sense for how German teenagers who were against the war would feel when trapped in a world not of their making. McDonough does a great job giving the reader a sense of what Sophie was thinking and feeling. Her Christian beliefs come through loud and clear as do the idealistic urges that many teenagers face in any society. I thought the author did a great job capturing not only the sense of moral injustice that Sophie felt, but the rush of pushing back against the confines of the society she was trapped in.

I'm hoping my daughter who likes young adult dystopian fiction (e.g. Hunger Games, Divergent, etc.) will read this book. I think it will give her a sense that real teenagers have fought against real dystopian societies in the past.

[Marquise · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good place to start to learn about the Scholls, especially Sophie, that's more informative and readable than other biographies about this pair of siblings.

[Iain · Rating 5 out of 5]

"It is unbelievable, to what extent one must betray a people in order to rule it." ~ Adolf Hitler (Mein Kamf, 1925)

"A book written in the worst German I have ever read, in spite of the fact that it has been elevated to the position of the Bible in this nation of poets and thinkers." ~ Hans Scholl

The White Rose resistance movement to the Nazi regime was led by Hans and Sophie Scholl and it was in the leaflets of these young German university students that Hitler found one his greatest foes. Children when the Nazis came to power in 1933 they were all members (compulsory) of the Hitler Youth and firm believers in national socialism of the Third Reich... this was short lived as they grew up to despise fascism and the way it enslaved their German nation depriving everyone of individual freedoms. The courage in which these youngsters showed against their barbaric foes is admirable and their words are inspirational. Hans and Sophie Scholl are two of the most highly regarded Germans by Germans, at last count 190 schools in Germany bear the Scholl name. As her tearful father said before his children were executed by guillotine in 1943, "You will go down in history, I'm proud of you both." I myself had to fight back tears as I read how these two very brave youths faced down tyranny with no regrets. Hans and Sophie represented what the German people should have done when the Nazis took over their country. This book is a testament to that all important lesson from history.

[Shauni · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've always been very interested in the aspects of Nazi Germany, and when the chance arose for me to study this topic in A-Level German, I jumped at the chance. The book is so interesting, and a true insight into the terror and tension felt during those years. Would recommend to anyone who is a fan of deep reading, though for some, watching the film may be an easier and more enjoyable idea.

[Trevor Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

An astonishing story of bravery beyond belief. A story of how a young woman and her friends and family, defied the Nazis, in wartime Germany.
A story of how someone, who could have quite easily loved a life of relative comfort, gave her life to make a stand against evil. Remarkable.

[Kate Forsyth · Rating 4 out of 5]

The heart-breaking story of Sophie Scholl and the White Rose, a group of young university students who protested against the crimes of the Nazi regime and paid for it with their lives.

[Li · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Stand up for what you believe in even if you are standing alone."

I've never heard of Sophie Scholl until this year when I stumbled across an Instagram post about her. I was instantly attracted as though I was being pulled into her story. I just had to find out more.

When I received this book, I stopped everything I was doing and started reading it. McDonough did an excellent job in telling us her legacy - how it started, who was involved etc. There were numerous quotes and facts that made it even more interesting. I ended feeling inspired by Sophie and Hans Scholl and the White Rose.

However, I felt that McDonough was "distant" in his writing style. It was as though I was reading an essay done by a student. There were quite a few typos in the book as well. Somehow, with all the quotes in the book, I still felt that we weren't going deep enough in her thoughts.

Still a great book though!

"Long live freedom!"

[Sarah Stocks · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read the first book in the hitler series and saw he had also written about the white rose movement. I had heard about Sophie and wanted to know more. In the UK we should know more about her and the actions of the white rose group… although you know the end the build up still hits you.
The focus does tend to be on Sophie a young women living in a time where the woman’s role was to be a wife, bare children and maintain the family home.
Whilst she had a privileged background and education which gave her a voice the white rise movement gave her a key role equal to men. Others in the story should also be recognised William, Hans, Christophe, Alex and Kurt.
All young people should know this brave, principled young woman who stood up and said no whilst others did not.

[Jenni K · Rating 4 out of 5]

historical fiction- good pace

[Eric Holmberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

True Courage in the face of unspeakable tyranny and cruelty.

[Jeanette Stingley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always been fascinated by the history of World War 2. I think it is because the number of family members I had serve during the time combined with working at an assisted living facility when I was in my early 20's where the majority of the residents were Jewish. I used to love listening to their stories. When author Frank McDonough wrote to me asking if I would like to read and review the book Sophie Scholl: The Real Story of the Woman who Defied Hitler, I of course accepted!

Sophie Scholl was a member of an underground, non-violent protest movement against Hitler's rule in Nazi Germany called the White Rose (die Weisse Rose). Mr. McDonough was offered to read through the diaries, personal letters written by Sophie and the transcript of her interrogation by the Gestapo. He compiled this intriguing biography from information gathered during his reading.

Scholl, a student who was 21 at the time of her death in February 1943, is a legend in Germany. The White Rose movement, which opposed Nazism by circulating thousands of leaflets telling German Christians that they had a "moral duty" to rise up against Hitler, the "messenger of Anti-Christ". The leaflets were dropped between 1942 and 1943 at Munich University. In February 1943 when Sophie Scholl along with her brother, Hans, and friend, Christoph Probst, were beheaded in Stadelhein Prison, Munich, for urging German students to rise up against Nazi terror.

Overall this was an excellent book. The historical events described catch your attention. The relationships between the Scholl children, their parents and various friends of the family is touching. If you don't like reading about historical happenings, this book may seem a little flat when you read it. I was looking forward to reading a great book about Sophie but to me it seemed that the first half of the book focused more on her brother Hans and her boyfriend Fritz and what happened to them while they were fighting in the war.

[Caleb · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recently finished this moving account of the life of Sophie Scholl, a German student who bravely resisted the Nazis. The book does a good job of telling the story of Sophie's life and the events that propelled her into speaking out against the Nazis.

The White Rose group of which she was a part published leaflets trying to stir the consciences of German people to resist what the Nazis were doing. They did not have clearly defined political objectives - it was a moral and philosophical protest, motivated for many of the group, including Sophie, by their Christian faith. Sophie and her brother Hans were eventually caught, in the end due to recklessness, but faced their death sentences with courage and hope.

The main weakness of this account is that I didn't really feel it got inside Sophie's head that well - the biographer keeps saying that the White Rose group had these in-depth theological and philosophical discussions about what to do. But McDonough doesn't give as clear a sense of how Sophie's thinking and Christian faith developed and informed her actions as much as I would like - though it does include translations of the White Rose leaflets.

I'd like to find an account the White Rose group that focuses in much more depth on what they believed and how that shaped their actions - any recommendations?

[Bev Walkling · Rating 3 out of 5]

I spent quite some time reading this book. The print was incredibly small which definitely slowed me down. I found the first part of the book rather dry and uninteresting. This focused on Sophie Scholl and her family in the time before the war and in the early years of the war. In chapter 9 of the book the focus turned to the White Rose group and their various activities. This author chose to focus primarily on Sophie Scholl but it would seem her brother had an equally important role as did others. This section was of much greater interest to me and contained some information that really impacted on me emotionally. The capture of Sophie and Hans really seemed to boil down to some carelessness in particular on Sophie's part. The timing was such that the Nazi's were looking for people to make examples of and these two plus Christoph Probst sadly fit the bill. The method of execution seemed particularly garish to me and the fact that the executioner had killed well over 3000 people in this manner was mind boggling. I wonder how he could live with himself?

The book is clearly well researched. It is full of chapter notes, sources, details of what became of all the people involved and even copies of each leaflet the White Rose had disbursed. It comes across as a scholarly dissertation, just a little dry in the writing style for the average reader.

[Rachel L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fairly recent biography on Sophie Scholl, this book has details not included in the other books I've read on the White Rose. It seems that the author had access to more documentation (including Gestapo records and trial transcripts), which serves to give the book a more credible and factual feel. The author seems to have a liberal bent, though he does make a strong effort to show how important some form of Christianity was to the members of the White Rose.

I'd have given it a much higher rating, except for the fact that there is some unneeded and not exactly edifying information included. I can't recommend this for younger readers, and even older readers could probably skip or skim chapter 4. Even so, the story is powerful. I'd recommend it for older readers interested in the activities of the White Rose.

[Chelsea · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was thoroughly disappointed with this book. Though it was mostly factually correct, it was told in such a tepid, awkward, detached manner that it was unbearable. The translations of quotes were especially cringe-worthy, written in a very stilted manner of speech. There were numerous grammatical and factual errors that could have been easily corrected with just a bit of editing, editing Frank McDonough evidently thought his book was above. One such error mentions that there was a farewell party held for Hans Scholl and the departing medics on the night of July 22 1943. But the execution of Hans and Sophie Scholl had already been carried out in February 1943. I consider this a failure and I strongly encourage Mr McDonough to just stop writing completely.

[Mrs. Hassig · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm so glad I finally finished this book. Even though I know the story, I still found new things I hadn't known before. It's also rather disheartening reading a story when you know the ending and the ending is tragic. But I perservered on and while I was finishing it in the Detroit airport a young lady next to me asked me about it. She said she had done a huge paper on Sophie and hadn't seen the book before. I loaned it to her for a few minutes and asked if she'd seen the movie "Sophie Scholl: the Last Days?" Not only had she seen it she watches it every two months she loves it so much! She was thrilled an "older person" was interested in Sophie Scholl's story! If you want an in-depth look at Sophie's life this is the book for you!

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read just about anything "Sophie" I could get my hands on since I was a kid. This book was a welcome addition to my knowledge of Sophie's life. This one seemed to emphasize her humanness and documents the path that led to both her readiness and willingness to die for what was right. Her faith in God and the pleasure she received by seeking God through creation and thought was inspiration. Much was revealed about her brother Hans as well. Some of what Sophie was credited for actually was an action of Hans Scholl.

[Lauren Hopkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a very good biography about Sophie Scholl, going beyond the White Rose, digging into bits left unsaid by other historians...though the book is RIDDLED with typos! Some are quite important, like names being spelled inconsistently throughout (Ernst Reden is a victim of multiple misspellings). In some sentences, entire words are left out. How embarrassing for the author, who has otherwise written a fine work...he should be ashamed at his editors! Otherwise it's an honest look into Sophie's life, providing readers with a deep history as well as the legacy of the White Rose.

[Frank Peters · Rating 4 out of 5]

The topic of the book was outstanding. While people from Germany all know about Sophie Scholl already, most of the rest of us do not. She is worth reading about and worthy of a massive amount of respect. The author was clear about his purpose: to present Sophie as she was, not as a saint. I appreciate this greatly. The largest problem with the book was the editor. The number of grammatical errors and other typos was shocking for a published book.

[Emily Squires · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've admired the story of Sophie Scholl for years. Her courage to speak out against the Nazi Regime is one of the reasons why she is so highly regarded. I thought this book served her, much justice. I learnt alot more about, not only her life but life in general in the late 30s in Germany - which sadly isn't written alot. I highly recommend it.

A hero of Germany when they didn't have many and she unfortunately paid the price.

[Dianne Burton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing story of the determination of a few to influence many and with such courage and faith. I loved this book and it brought me to tears and I had not heard of Sophie Scholl prior to reading it.
A must read.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book about a remarkably courageous young woman, who spoke out against the Nazi regime. However, the book was spoilt by the numerous typographical, grammatical and other errors, which could have been eliminated at the proof reading stage.

[Paul Armstrong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably the best book I have read on Sophie Scholl's life. Although it is the biography of one person, what has shone through is that there were many brave people around Sophie too. Willi Graff, Kurt Huber, Alexander Schmorell, Hans Scholl and countless others who are heroes as much as she is.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sophie School and her brother Hans have a remarkable story. Who knows if their actions really changed anything but their courage in Germany is astounding.

[Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very moving. Definitely on a par with the Dumbach/Newborn biog. Highly recommended.