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34 reviews for:
Resistance: A French Woman's Journal of the War
Barbara Mellor, Agnès Humbert, Julien Blanc
4.15 AVERAGE
34 reviews for:
Resistance: A French Woman's Journal of the War
Barbara Mellor, Agnès Humbert, Julien Blanc
4.15 AVERAGE
Gloria a las mujeres que perdieron, sufrieron, murieron y sobre todo vivieron luchando contra el fascismo
This is the firsthand account of a Parisian woman,
Agnès Humbert, who played an important role in the establishment of the French Resistance movement during World War II, and her experiences as a slave laborer in Germany following her arrest. She's an intelligent and thoughtful writer, and hers is a moving telling of female camaraderie, ingenuity, perseverance, and integrity in the worst of times. I will not soon forget her story.
Agnès Humbert, who played an important role in the establishment of the French Resistance movement during World War II, and her experiences as a slave laborer in Germany following her arrest. She's an intelligent and thoughtful writer, and hers is a moving telling of female camaraderie, ingenuity, perseverance, and integrity in the worst of times. I will not soon forget her story.
Super interesting and a very rare perspective of the war. Some questionable choices were made in the audiobook, including doing accents for all the dialogue. Such a fascinating snapshot of a very particular moment in time and a fascinating woman with an incredible life story. I would recommend it if you’re at all interested in this period.
Very powerful. A look at one woman's journal and her role in the resistance after the Nazi occupation of Paris, and her time as a political prisoner in concentration camps and work camps.
That is a very bland description of a super interesting book. You should read this.
That is a very bland description of a super interesting book. You should read this.
A painful, heroic story of survival
What do you do when your beloved city is occupied? How do you respond?
This journal/memoir tells the story of a middle-aged educated professional woman who finds herself part of the earliest resistance to the Nazi/ Vichy regime, and who pays dearly for it. Originally published in 1946, the author was awarded the Croix du Guerre for her resistance.
The book reads quickly even if the material in it is jarring and traumatic, all the more because it is not a work of fiction.
It is an engaging read nevertheless, and I strongly recommend it.
Passes Bechdel with ease. Duvernay not at all.
What do you do when your beloved city is occupied? How do you respond?
This journal/memoir tells the story of a middle-aged educated professional woman who finds herself part of the earliest resistance to the Nazi/ Vichy regime, and who pays dearly for it. Originally published in 1946, the author was awarded the Croix du Guerre for her resistance.
The book reads quickly even if the material in it is jarring and traumatic, all the more because it is not a work of fiction.
It is an engaging read nevertheless, and I strongly recommend it.
Passes Bechdel with ease. Duvernay not at all.
First person account of life in Paris following Nazi occupation where she joined a resistance group promoting propoganda against the regime. She was later imprisoned in France and later Germany and forced to work as a slave laborer. Her spirit and life shine through even in the darkest recounting of the trials of her life as a 40+ year old woman in the grips of an evil regime. The first and end parts are taken from her actual diaries with the middle portion detailing her imprisonment recounted from memory soon after the events as she had nothing to write with for many years. I would recommend portions for reading for high school students as a companion to Anne Frank and other accounts of the era. Humbert was not Jewish and she recounts a different aspect of Nazi barbarism than typical accounts but no less gripping.
Hope is a whisper. The louder the world gets, the harder it is to hear. That is the miracle of Agnes Humbert’s life as presented in RESISTANCE. Despite all that she goes through, she still hears that whisper. Her story had me from the start when she was an art historian. Every step more intriguing than the last—breathless reading the French Resistance passage, terrified reading the Nazi Prisoner passage, horrified reading the slave labor portion, and fascinated reading it all through to the liberation portion. More surprising than the hope she holds onto is the sense of humor she retains. Granted it is often dark and cuts to the bone but it leavens the weight of her life and even sharpens the focus of her observations.
A detailed, clear-eyed account of one woman's role in the French resistance in WWII, and as a prisoner once discovered. Humbert downplays the importance of her role to such an extent that the tone is bizzare at times, e.g. describing clearly important things as if they were not so. Humbert's depiction of herself is nuanced and she's a strong-willed, complex person, e.g.
Spoiler
supporting the Nazi mayor because she knows he's a good person who didn't really want to join the Nazi party.
An incredible first-hand account of what it meant to be a political prisoner in WWII. The integrity, bravery, and spirit of Agnes Humbert is clear on every page.
A passage I can't get out of my head:
Krefeld, 20 December 1942
The wardress tells us that a pastor is to visit us, bringing us festive wishes for Christmas. He appears as we are eating. Evidently he has had to make determined efforts in order to penetrate our strictly guarded quarters. An elderly man with a beaming face, he wishes us a cheery "Bon appetit", adding, "I see that all is well here." Martha, who cannot get over her failed suicide bid, shouts angrily, "Only because they make us pretend it is." He pushes the door shut. Following Martha's wake, the girls take turns to talk to the pastor, telling him rapidly and nervously about all that we are made to suffer. Clearly their stories bear each other out. After using up all the incredibles, inconceivables, abominables, and other similar adjectives in his vocabulary, the pastor is lost for words. Finally, one of the girls asks him not to be angry, but would he grant forgiveness to all the women who have committed suicide or attempted it. He replies, "The sufferings they have had to bear are beyond the endurance of any woman; I give them all absolution."
A passage I can't get out of my head:
Krefeld, 20 December 1942
The wardress tells us that a pastor is to visit us, bringing us festive wishes for Christmas. He appears as we are eating. Evidently he has had to make determined efforts in order to penetrate our strictly guarded quarters. An elderly man with a beaming face, he wishes us a cheery "Bon appetit", adding, "I see that all is well here." Martha, who cannot get over her failed suicide bid, shouts angrily, "Only because they make us pretend it is." He pushes the door shut. Following Martha's wake, the girls take turns to talk to the pastor, telling him rapidly and nervously about all that we are made to suffer. Clearly their stories bear each other out. After using up all the incredibles, inconceivables, abominables, and other similar adjectives in his vocabulary, the pastor is lost for words. Finally, one of the girls asks him not to be angry, but would he grant forgiveness to all the women who have committed suicide or attempted it. He replies, "The sufferings they have had to bear are beyond the endurance of any woman; I give them all absolution."
hopeful
informative
inspiring