Petra

Petra is an historical novel inspired by the life of German activist Petra Kelly, a founding member of the German Green Party in the 1980s. Told in the voice of Petra's former lover, Manfred Schwartz, it is the story of Petra's rise to fame and power and her complicated relationship with the much older former NATO general, Emil Gerhardt. The two were drawn together by their common goal to stop NATO nuclear missiles from being placed in West Germany and became the faces of the anti-nuclear weapons movement. Her charisma led the party to representation in the German parliament but eventually her uncompromising personality and failure to adapt to the often tough realities of government resulted in her exclusion from the party. I remember Petra Kelly as an inspiring and outspoken activist during the waning Cold War era and the collapse of the Soviet Union but knew nothing about her personal life which ended tragically. It's a fascinating read for those interested in political movements, post-WW2 history or the complexity of human relationships.  I read Petra against the backdrop of the 2020 US election. If she were alive today Petra Kelly would be just 73 years old and I found myself wondering what she would think about the state of the world she endeavoured to make better place for all.