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A review by marilynw
The Invisible Woman by Erika Robuck
4.0
The Invisible Woman by Erika Robuck, narrated by Caroline Hewitt
American Virginia Hall worked as an Allied spy during WWII. For her heroic actions she received the Distinguished Service Cross (the only one awarded to a civilian woman in World War II), was awarded the Croix de Guerre by France, and she was made an honorary Member of the Order of the British Empire. The Invisible Woman mostly focuses on her work from March 1944 to the end of the war, while sometimes taking us back to her earlier war days, via flashbacks. By the time we meet Virginia (codename Diane) she has hardened her heart and mind due to the massive loss of life she's witnessed and her great feelings of guilt over many of those losses.
By 1944 the Gestapo considered Virginia the most dangerous of Allied spies and her wanted poster was plastered all over France. Due to having lost the lower part of her left leg, Virginia wore a wooden leg and walked with a limp, a very serious impediment when it came to avoiding notice by anyone looking for her. But Virginia was a master of disguise and would transform herself into an old woman, thus allowing her limp to become just a part of her decrepit old lady disguise.
This audiobook sent me off for more information about Virginia. It's so easy to see how this high achieving woman would take each and every death, of those who depended on her, to heart. But she couldn't "care", couldn't allow feelings to interfere with the hard decisions she had to make every single day. She was responsible for getting supplies and weapons to the French resistance and also responsible for helping to train the men for an enemy that would get even more brutal once they knew defeat was on the horizon.
This story brought to life so much more than all that Virginia did to further the Allied cause. We see the roadblocks she faced because she was a woman sent to train and supply men. While the various factions needed to work together, many were not at all willing to listen to a woman, an old woman. Often she could win them over once they could see just how much she was able to do for them and how much she was willing to risk for them. As a wireless operator during the last part of the war, Virginia was the link to supplies and weapons that were the only hope against an enemy that was destroying every man, woman, or child in their path.
This is a remarkable story but it doesn't just tell Virginia's story. Even though people and events were often combined or altered from real life, the fight had countless named and unnamed heroes, risking and giving their lives to defend, hide, transport, and save thousands. This story left me wanting to know more about people who fought to save others during this time and place in our history.
Pub Feb 9, 2021
American Virginia Hall worked as an Allied spy during WWII. For her heroic actions she received the Distinguished Service Cross (the only one awarded to a civilian woman in World War II), was awarded the Croix de Guerre by France, and she was made an honorary Member of the Order of the British Empire. The Invisible Woman mostly focuses on her work from March 1944 to the end of the war, while sometimes taking us back to her earlier war days, via flashbacks. By the time we meet Virginia (codename Diane) she has hardened her heart and mind due to the massive loss of life she's witnessed and her great feelings of guilt over many of those losses.
By 1944 the Gestapo considered Virginia the most dangerous of Allied spies and her wanted poster was plastered all over France. Due to having lost the lower part of her left leg, Virginia wore a wooden leg and walked with a limp, a very serious impediment when it came to avoiding notice by anyone looking for her. But Virginia was a master of disguise and would transform herself into an old woman, thus allowing her limp to become just a part of her decrepit old lady disguise.
This audiobook sent me off for more information about Virginia. It's so easy to see how this high achieving woman would take each and every death, of those who depended on her, to heart. But she couldn't "care", couldn't allow feelings to interfere with the hard decisions she had to make every single day. She was responsible for getting supplies and weapons to the French resistance and also responsible for helping to train the men for an enemy that would get even more brutal once they knew defeat was on the horizon.
This story brought to life so much more than all that Virginia did to further the Allied cause. We see the roadblocks she faced because she was a woman sent to train and supply men. While the various factions needed to work together, many were not at all willing to listen to a woman, an old woman. Often she could win them over once they could see just how much she was able to do for them and how much she was willing to risk for them. As a wireless operator during the last part of the war, Virginia was the link to supplies and weapons that were the only hope against an enemy that was destroying every man, woman, or child in their path.
This is a remarkable story but it doesn't just tell Virginia's story. Even though people and events were often combined or altered from real life, the fight had countless named and unnamed heroes, risking and giving their lives to defend, hide, transport, and save thousands. This story left me wanting to know more about people who fought to save others during this time and place in our history.
Pub Feb 9, 2021