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A Guest of the Reich
A Guest of the Reich: The Story of American Heiress Gertrude Legendre's Dramatic Captivity and Escape from Nazi Germany | Peter Finn
2 posts | 1 read | 1 reading | 5 to read
I read A Guest of the Reich breathlessly, and found myself amazed by the pluck, guts, and courage of Gertrude Legendre. Lisa Birnbach, author of True Prep Thrilling! Bill Dedman, author of Empty Mansions The dramatic story of a South Carolina heiress who joined the OSS and became the first American woman in uniform taken prisoner on the Western frontuntil her escape from Nazi Germany. Gertrude Gertie Legendre was a big-game hunter from a wealthy industrial family who lived a charmed life in Jazz Age America. Her adventurous spirit made her the inspiration for the Broadway play Holiday, which became a film starring Katharine Hepburn. When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, Legendre, by then married and a mother of two, joined the OSS, the wartime spy organization that preceded the CIA. First in Washington and then in London, some of the most closely-held United States government secrets passed through her hands. In A Guest of the Reich, Peter Finn tells the gripping story of how in 1944, while on leave in liberated Paris, Legendre was captured by the Germans after accidentally crossing the front lines. Subjected to repeated interrogations, including by the Gestapo, Legendre entered a daring game of lies with her captors. The Nazis treated her as a special prisoner of the SS and moved her from city to city throughout Germany, where she witnessed the collapse of Hitlers Reich as no other American did. After six months in captivity, Legendre escaped into Switzerland. A Guest of the Reich is a propulsive account of a little-known chapter in the history of World War II, as well as a fascinating portrait of an extraordinary woman.
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NotCool
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Mehso-so

This book, and current events, makes me think about how much history is written not by “the winners” but by the survivors. That survivor bias must slant history towards stories of not just the extraordinarily lucky but also the upper class and wealthy.

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DebinHawaii
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My finished Mushroom Barley Soup a vegan soup slightly adapted from a Mark Bittman recipe & on the blog for #soupersundays. Recipe link👇🏻

The book caught my eye in the new NF section at the library & sounds fascinating. An American heiress works for the OSS during WWII & while on leave in liberated Paris in 1944 is captured by the Nazis & kept as a “special prisoner.” Here‘s hoping it is as good as it sounds! 📚

LauraJ Yum! Just realized I didn‘t eat dinner yet. 4y
MoonWitch94 Oh yum!! I love mushroom barley soup! 4y
Kalalalatja Looks so tasty! 4y
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