What do you think?
Rate this book
A Woman is Witness: A Paris Diary
In 1938, a young Viennese woman finds herself in Paris, France, after the Nazis invaded her home-country of Austria. This book tells of her true life-story, including her descriptions of when the Nazis invaded Paris. It is a throughly engaging read, and a good look back in history.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1941
1 person is currently reading
57 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 7, 2023
An amazing book that I am so grateful I had the privilege of finding on a rack of sad, unwanted books at my local library decades ago.
Written by an Austrian man, published in 1941, it is based on the actual diary of an Austrian woman who fled to Paris in 1938 to avoid the "vote" on annexing Austria into Nazi Germany (source material, people!)
Our heroine's voice sounds quite lovely and bright at the beginning. She's youthful, energetic, and loving beautiful Paris. Near the end, which would be contemporaneous with 1940-1941, she is stunned to witness the blasé acceptance of the Nazi occupation by the native Parisians. She, as an outsider, can see it, but as a woman who's been living in Paris for several years, she can also explain it.
Along the way, Francoise haas both heartbreak and joy, including falling in love with a married man.
Very highly recommended for an authentic view of WWII at the time, if you can get your hands on a copy.
Written by an Austrian man, published in 1941, it is based on the actual diary of an Austrian woman who fled to Paris in 1938 to avoid the "vote" on annexing Austria into Nazi Germany (source material, people!)
Our heroine's voice sounds quite lovely and bright at the beginning. She's youthful, energetic, and loving beautiful Paris. Near the end, which would be contemporaneous with 1940-1941, she is stunned to witness the blasé acceptance of the Nazi occupation by the native Parisians. She, as an outsider, can see it, but as a woman who's been living in Paris for several years, she can also explain it.
Along the way, Francoise haas both heartbreak and joy, including falling in love with a married man.
Very highly recommended for an authentic view of WWII at the time, if you can get your hands on a copy.
May 18, 2018
Il libro parte benissimo, il lettore immagina di trovarsi di fronte a un romanzo storico quasi del livello de "I miserabili", ma con il passare delle pagine questa aspettativa è destinata, ahimé, a sgonfiarsi.
Lothar, infatti, trascura troppo la Storia con la s maiuscola - alla quale fa dei richiami velocissimi e quasi di contorno - per dedicarsi quasi esclusivamente al vissuto quotidiano dei protagonisti. Intendiamoci, lo fa benissimo: dopo aver letto storielle Harmony quali "Le assaggiatrici" o "Il tatuatore di Auschwitz" questo "Una viennese a Parigi" sembra un capolavoro assoluto. Però... però secondo me si poteva fare di meglio.
Lothar, infatti, trascura troppo la Storia con la s maiuscola - alla quale fa dei richiami velocissimi e quasi di contorno - per dedicarsi quasi esclusivamente al vissuto quotidiano dei protagonisti. Intendiamoci, lo fa benissimo: dopo aver letto storielle Harmony quali "Le assaggiatrici" o "Il tatuatore di Auschwitz" questo "Una viennese a Parigi" sembra un capolavoro assoluto. Però... però secondo me si poteva fare di meglio.
July 23, 2018
Bello, molto intenso, un ritratto dall’interno dell’avanzata nazista in Europa tra il 1938 e il 1940. Mi piace come l’autore riesca a far diventare la Storia quasi un personaggio a sè stante.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews