Code Name Edelweiss

by Stephanie Landsem

Dakota County Library paperback 398 pages plus author's note

Published: 2023

Genre: Christian historical fiction

 

I didn't even wait until I finished the book to see how much of this was historically accurate! I also went online to read about the movie Mad Dog of Europe. I can't believe it was never finished! I'd love to see what was filmed in the 1930s. Fascinating stuff. Finding out that Landsem is a Minnesota author took me to her webpage. It would be so cool to talk with her about her book! Book Club meets in two days, so . . . probably not going to happen.

Liesl Weiss is a German woman raising her two children with her mother's help ever since her husband simply didn't come home from work one day two years previously. She is abruptly let go from her job as a secretary at MGM Studios and desperate to find a job to support the family. She is hired by Leon Lewis to spy on the German nationalists in Los Angeles. I'm not doing the story justice! It is so incredibly well-written. I'll just start with my post-it notes.

Page 37 - "With a pang of guilt, I caught the trolley and turned my mind to finding work instead of the unrelenting questions of motherhood."

Liesl is trying to be a 1930s supermom. She's working to support the family, trying to establish limits and discipline, be nurturing and supportive, and hope earnestly that her husband will show up. The "unrelenting questions" of motherhood have plagued many women!

Page 79 - "I pulled the covers up to her chin and kissed her brow, wondering how to talk to a child about people like the Grundbachers."

Liesl's daughter Tess has been told by her Aryan classmates that she should not play with Frieda because she's Jewish and "Jews are dirty and have germs." Sadly, parents teaching their children prejudice, hatred, and racism is an evil that still happens today. It can be hard as a parent to figure out how to teach your children to respond to this. Liesl's answer was pretty lame, in my opinion. "Jesus did not have germs. Go to sleep now." Waiting until she's older isn't sufficient!

Page 85 - "Somebody needed to tell those kids the real enemies weren't the Jews or the Catholics or Negroes, like the Klan and the National Socialists wanted them to believe. The real enemies were poverty and injustice and ignorance - and hate."

 

Wilhelm was my favorite character! I love that he really cared about the young men being recruited by the Nazis.

Page 103 - "Vati had taught me that being German was something to be proud of - a culture that valued work and orderliness, love for family and duty to country."

I love how the author made Liesl such a relatable character. She took the job with Leon Lewis just to have some income. She was convinced that working at the German American headquarters will not lead to any spy-worthy information. After being given a copy of Mein Kampf, her reading leads her to question her assumptions. 

Page 178 - "'But it is easier to turn a blind eye.' He tipped his head to the crowd of men hoping for a day's work. 'Especially when you have troubles of your own.'"

During this era in history, people were more concerned about economics, jobs, etc. They were past the "Great War" and not thinking so much about geopolitical events.

Page 192 - "'You don't have nothing to be sorry for,' she said. 'It's the way of the world.'"

A black woman with her two children says this to Liesl after Liesl apologizes that the woman was refused service at a restaurant. Her resignation that this is just the way of the world is so sad to me.

Page 210 - "He looked back at me and for a moment, I saw a flash of the boy I'd known. 'I love you too.'"

Oh! I love this scene between Liesl and her brother Fritz! She has been so frustrated by his choices in life and his becoming a Nazi. When she talks with him and reminds him that she loves him, I think it's a turning point for him.

Page 301 - "He was just a kid and kids shouldn't die. When they did, your heart died with them. And then you lived the rest of your life with a big hole in your chest."

I can't imagine losing a child! The fear that Liesl and Miriam feel for their children is palpable. Evil people doing evil things . . . and the innocent suffer.

Page 387 - "Our lives had been a mixture of struggles and joy but Tomas had loved me through the quarrels and our differences. I knew that now. I had not been abandoned. Not by Tomas and not by God."

It was so awful to find out what really happened to Tomas! I can't imagine the guilt of thinking he'd left her because he didn't even love her. As she explains to Tess and little Steffen, she recognizes that she has grown in her faith.

Author's Note - "Then there was what was happening in our own time in the United States. The years between 2016 and 2020 were ones of increasing division in our country. Families split along political lines. Our partisan government bickered instead of leading. The media lost credibility. Starting in 2020, a global pandemic created fear, peaceful protests turned violent, and mob mentality destroyed cities. Every part of our society struggled with isolation, distrust, and division. I began to see more clearly what might have happened during the privations of the Great Depression, the tragedy of the Dust Bowl, and the heightened racial tensions of the 1930s."

She is so eloquent! I really like this author.

Historical Note - "This is what I hope you gain from Liesl and Wilhelm's story: the truth about courage, conviction, and love that both encompasses and transcends the historical record."

Yes and amen. I loved that the theme of "If not me, who? If not now, when?" ran throughout the book. I also liked that the idea of love overcoming fear and hate is an idea that we can put into practice.

I look forward to this book discussion on Monday!