Hello, reader friends! Join me in welcoming author friend Amanda Barratt for a little chat celebrating The White Rose Resists!
about the author
Amanda Barratt is the ECPA best-selling author of over a dozen novels and novellas, including The White Rose Resists: A Novel of the German Students Who Defied Hitler and My Dearest Dietrich: A Novel of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Lost Love. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and a two-time FHL Reader’s Choice Award finalist.
Amanda lives in the woods of Michigan with her fabulous family, where she can be found reading way too many books, plotting her next novel, and jotting down imaginary travel itineraries for her dream vacation to Europe.
Connect with her on Facebook or Twitter and visit her website!
q&a
Share five favorites.
dessert
A: One of my favorite desserts right now is homemade lemon loaf cake. I was looking for an easy lemon cake recipe and after trying this one, I knew I’d found a winner. It’s deliciously moist and oh so lemony. I’m seriously addicted!
B: Oh, I am intrigued! Lately, I want to eat all the cake!
A: One of my all-time favorite films is Schindler’s List
B: I remember watching Schindler’s List in high school, powerful! Sounds like It Happened One Night is more my speed though!
quote
A: One of my favorite quotes comes from Corrie ten Boom. “Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow. It empties today of its strength.” It’s such a poignant reminder.
B: Wise words from a wonderful woman.
genre or time period
A: Historical fiction. I love exploring the past through the lens of story. I enjoy novels set in all eras, but have a special place in my heart for World War II fiction.
B: Yes! All the history! I have a particular fondness for historical romance.
bookish place
A: Baker Book House in Grand Rapids, MI. I feel blessed to live in the state that’s home to THE best Christian bookstore on the planet. In my opinion, at least. 🙂 Walking into that store is a book lover’s dream. Amazing staff, a coffee shop that sells yummy drinks and treats, aisles and aisles of Christian books, music, movies, Bibles, gifts, you name it. Though I’m only able to visit a few times a year, I cherish every trip.
B: I would love to visit someday!
Describe The White Rose Resists in five words:
A: Courageous. Romantic. Thoughtful. Heart-wrenching. Inspiring.
B: I think this is an improvement from your description of My Dearest Dietrich… wrenching is a little better than breaking, imo.
What’s your writing style?
A: I’m always on the hunt for a spark of a story. That moment where my breath catches and a snippet of an idea takes hold of my heart and won’t let go. Whether that idea comes from a book or memoir I’m reading, an article or interview on the internet, a conversation with someone that sets my mind spinning, or a visit to a city or historical site, the source matters less than that gut-level reaction. If an idea captures me and I can’t stop thinking about it, it makes me wonder if others might feel the same way.
Usually, my interest is piqued to the point where I dive into research right away, reading books and digging into the background and setting. I liken this initial research stage to a second date—no matter how magical the first date is, sometimes you realize you really aren’t as compatible as you thought. Which means not all of my ideas make it past this step.
But in romance as in writing, sometimes an investment of time takes you from initial attraction to the desire for a deeper commitment. When I walk around with a giddy smile on my face and scribble down notes at all hours of the day (and night), that’s when I know I’ve found a story I want to pour many months, countless hours, lost sleep, and my whole heart into creating.
B: I appreciate and admire your passion for stories!
Do you have any writing quirks?
A: Because my novels are so steeped in history, I can’t write without my research books—a huge stack of them. This means if I want to go to a coffee shop to write, they have to come with me. 🙂 I’m used to loading them up in a backpack and hauling them around—hey, that counts as exercise, right?
While immersed in a project, I “live” with those research books—reading them in bed, underlining them, using post-it notes to mark pages, even taking them on vacation. By the end of a project, usually one or more of my research books is literally falling apart!
B: That is dedication, my friend! Thank you for taking the time to share a little bit of this story with us, Amanda! I’m looking forward to reading it!
about the book
The White Rose Resists by Amanda Barratt
Inspired by the incredible true story of a group of ordinary men and women who dared to stand against evil.
The ideal of a new Germany swept up Sophie Scholl in a maelstrom of patriotic fervor–that is, until she realized the truth behind Hitler’s machinations for the fatherland. Now she and other students in Munich, the cradle of the Nazi government, have banded together to form a group to fight for the truth: the White Rose. Risking everything to print and distribute leaflets calling for Germans to rise up against the evil permeating their country, the White Rose treads a knife’s edge of discovery by the Gestapo.
Annalise Brandt came to the University of Munich to study art, not get involved with conspiracy. The daughter of an SS officer, she’s been brought up to believe in the Führer’s divinely appointed leadership. But the more she comes to know Sophie and her friends, the more she questions the Nazi propaganda.
Soon Annalise joins their double life–students by day, resisters by night. And as the stakes increase, they’re all forced to confront the deadly consequences meted out to any who dare to oppose the Reich.
A gripping testament to courage, The White Rose Resists illuminates the sacrifice and conviction of an unlikely group of revolutionaries who refused to remain silent-no matter the cost.
goodreads | amazon | bookdepository | christianbook | bookbub
tour giveaway
Thanks to the generosity of the author, one fortunate Faithfully Bookish reader friend will win a print copy of The White Rose Resists by Amanda Barratt.
US only | ends 6/9 | giveaway policy
enter giveaway here
https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js
Reader friends, I have no doubt that this will be a powerful book you will not want to miss!
Tell me what aspect of historical fiction most appeals to you.
Be sure to add The White Rose Resists by Amanda Barratt to your tbr.
Faithfully Bookish 
Thanks so ,I have for the chance to win! Looking forward to reading this book!
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It’s sure to be another heart probing read!
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The title is interesting and I love historical fiction so it goes on my TBR wish list. Is the white rose the name of a resistance group or does it have other significance?
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Yes, I believe it’s the name of the group (I think I remember them mentioned in My Dearest Dietrich, I’ve not read this one yet)
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I love WWII novels but have to admit I’ve never watched Schindler’s List. I don’t know if I could fall asleep after watching it. I enjoy reading historical fiction because it puts a personal spin on a real life event and allows me to imagine myself in that situation.
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I mostly remember the deep heartache after 20+ years. Fiction helps us bridge head knowledge with heart knowledge.
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I love reading historical fiction because we need to remember and never forget so we can learn from the past.
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I love historical fiction because it brings the past to life.I look forward to your book.
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My Dearest Dietrich is on my TBR list, I love reading about the brave men and women in our past, and historical fiction really helps me to put myself in their shoes.
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