The Faithful Spy: Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Plot to Kill Hitler

By John Hendrix

Book Overview

The Faithful Spy is the dramatic true story of German pastor and Nazi resister Dietrich Bonhoeffer come to life in this award-winning graphic novel from John Hendrix.

"Intertwines two stories: the insidious rise of Hitler with his creed of hatred and Bonhoeffer's development as an ethical thinker who believed that radical action was necessary, but that killing was a sin." --New York Times

Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party is gaining strength and becoming more menacing every day. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a pastor upset by the complacency of the German church toward the suffering around it, forms a breakaway church to speak out against the established political and religious authorities.

When the Nazis outlaw the church, he escapes as a fugitive. Struggling to reconcile his faith and the teachings of the Bible with the Nazi Party's evil agenda, Bonhoeffer decides that Hitler must be stopped by any means possible.

This is real-life, detailed history that will enthrall young readers. The plots involve deception, gut-wrenching timing, and concealed explosives: a bomb in a gift package, a rigged docent conducting a tour of captured weaponry, and an explosive briefcase snuck into the heart of Hitler's fortress.

Hendrix frames this remarkable true story not merely as a tale of resistance, but as a profound moral struggle--one that explores the tension between faith, conscience, and the obligation to confront evil.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 141973265X
• ISBN13: 9781419732652
• Release Date: September 2018
• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 1.09 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.4" x 9.0"
• Age Range: 10 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 9

Customer Reviews

Excellent biography; not dumbed down for the format

This is much richer than a typical "comic book," and it even incorporated quotes from Bonhoeffer's writing in ways that work for kids (and his writing is not light, kid-accessible stuff). I'm not generally a fan of illustrated books, but I felt like the art added to this work instead of reducing it. I read this professionally as a middle school librarian, and I regret not getting a hardcover earlier.

Meant to grab this for my child, kept it to read myself

Though not normally one to gravitate towards a graphic novel, I have to admit I couldn’t put this one down. The storytelling is clever, engaging, and creatively even uses a limited color palette to convey the story. I previewed this for my kids, but I am getting a copy for myself. My husband saw me unable to put this book down and ending up grabbing it after I finished it. Great book!

It’s a comic book

Was disappointed that it’s a comic book and not a kids biography