Liberty Lady: A True Story of Love and Espionage in WWII Sweden

by Pat DiGeorge

Liberty Lady is the true story of a WWII bomber and its crew forced to land in neutral Sweden during the Eighth Air Force’s first large-scale daylight bombing raid on Berlin. 1st Lt. Herman Allen was interned and began working for his country’s espionage agency, the OSS, with instructions to befriend a businessman suspected of selling secrets to the Germans. Soon Herman fell in love with a beautiful Swedish-American secretary working for the OSS, their courtship unfolding amid the glamour and intrigue of wartime Stockholm. As Swedish newspapers trumpeted one of the biggest spy scandals of the war, two of the main protagonists walked down the aisle in a storybook wedding presided over by the nephew of the King of Sweden.

430 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 27, 2016

About the author

Pat DiGeorge grew up in the small town of Bartow, Florida. Following marriage, the birth of two sons, and an eventual move to Atlanta, Georgia, she embarked on a successful business career.

In 2008, Pat helped organize a local program to fly WWII veterans to Washington, D.C. to visit the memorials. She wrote tributes for many of the honorees, including one about her father, Herman Allen. As Pat learned more about her father's experiences during the war and about her mother's parallel journey in the OSS, she began to research the story of Liberty Lady.

Reviews

[Sweetwilliam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pat Digeorge wrote a really nice tribute to her parents about their experiences during WWII. Her mother and father met and married in Sweden during the war. Mom (Hedy) worked for the OSS and Dad (Herman) was a B-17 Bombardier. During his twelfth mission, Herman’s plane, the Liberty Lady, lost two engines over Berlin and was forced to do a belly flop in neutral Sweden. He was one of 1200+ Allied Aviators interned there. Apparently, there was quite the spy game going on in Stockholm between the German and American legations and Herman was used to flush out a German informant.

The spy story is a little light but I enjoyed reading about it. I really enjoyed reading Herman’s notes from his 12 bombing missions and I also enjoyed reading about the internment of the Allied Airmen in Sweden. I certainly would prefer sitting out the war in a Swedish internment camp then trying to complete 25-30 bombing runs over Germany. The American aviators continued to get paid 400$ per month while the average salary in Sweden was 60$ per month. Needles to say the Americans were very popular with the young Swedish ladies and much preferred over the British airmen. The spy game also sounded like really good duty with all the booze, party, nightclubs, smorgasbord, and blond girls.

The first 70 pages contained more information about the family tree than I cared to know. The last 70 pages could also use some editing but after reading the war years I was invested in the lives of Hedy and Herman. They lived rich, fulfilling lives and spent their time raising a loving family and helping other people.

Bravo to author Pat Digeorge for writing a nice little book about her parents experiences during the war.

Note* I recently felt compelled to bump this review up another star. I have been telling too many anecdotes from this book to too many people to give it only three stars.

[Ashley Owens · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is clear the author did a tremendous amount of research prior to releasing this book about her parents' experience in WWII Sweden. I naively assumed since Sweden was neutral, nothing much was going on there during the war. The author has schooled me in great detail on that! Just read the opening of this fact-packed epic:

"In 1944, as World War II raged in Europe, neutral Sweden was thick with espionage. Representatives of all the combatant nations moved feely throughout the country. The American Legation in Stockholm sat at the center of one of the most important listening posts of the war. The Allies and the Germans openly conducted business in the same locales, wining and dining at adjoining tables in the restaurants and bars of the capital. Information critical to the war effort was being bought and sold, and anyone could be a spy."

I couldn't stop reading after that.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is so well researched, well written and thorough - it's a dramatic love story set against the backdrop of a world mobilized for war, and a country and city (Stockholm, Sweden) that maintained its beauty and refinement when the countries all around it were falling apart from bombing. The archives, photos, letters, and connections to people who were part of the story (or their descendants) -- just wow! The author undertook a massive effort of digging into this story and unearthing so much detail. The story comes to life. If there were a museum featuring this story, I would want to visit it and see all the materials on display that the author uncovered in her remarkable research.

[Barbara Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you enjoy history and biographies this book is perfect for you. The author does a great job of bringing the personal thoughts and feelings of the persons in the story, as well as her own, and the pertinent history of the events. She does is so well. You feel you are present in the moments described, whether on the streets of London, in a B17 bomber, or during an intriguing evening of undercover. This book brings both laughter and tears. I learned so much I did not know about the OSS, Sweden during the war, bombing missions, and internees. It is a true love story and so much more.

[Terri Wangard · Rating 4 out of 5]

How much do you know about Sweden in World War II? About the interned Allied airmen? Liberty Lady tells the story of Pat DiGeorge’s parents, their early lives, how they ended up in Sweden—Hedy with the OSS and Herman as an interned airman—and their lives after the war. It’s a remarkable story of an American family.

[Glenn Dyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pat DiGeorge did a masterful job of researching her subject. She sheds light on a little known chapter in WWII and I am grateful for her efforts.

[olivia]

a man came into my library, pointed at a portrait of Folke Bernadotte, and said "My aunt was married by this man. Not to this man, but by him" and proceeded to regale me with a tale about his OSS aunt and POW uncle meeting. he casually mentioned that this book was their story, and I cannot wait to read all the fine details

[Adrian Horn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A record of intrigue and espionage in war-time Sweden. This is an astonishing and previously untold history of Sweden in WW2 but it's much more than that: Pat DiGeorge provides a touching and tender account of family, friends and women working in Stockholm's embassies as well as the American airmen interned for the rest of the war.
Liberty Lady contains invaluable primary-source material expertly recorded whilst still within living memory.
Thank you Pat

[Billy Buttons · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was entered in The Wishing Shelf Book Awards. This is what our readers thought:
Title: Liberty Lady: A True Story of Love and Espionage in WWII Sweden
Author: Pat DiGeorge

Star Rating: 5 Stars
Number of Readers: 22
Stats
Editing: 9/10
Writing Style: 9/10
Content: 10/10
Cover: 9/10
Of the 22 readers:
22 would read another book by this author.
20 thought the cover was good or excellent.
22 felt it was easy to follow.
22 would recommend this story to another reader to try.
14 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘subject knowledge’.
8 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘writing style’.
21 felt the pacing was good or excellent.
22 thought the author understood the readership and what they wanted.

Readers’ Comments
‘Interesting story of the OSS in Stockholm. A rare find! I enjoyed it very much.’ Female reader, aged 54
‘So sad in many ways, but so important to read books of this nature and to remember what happened and the terrible sacrifice made by many to stop the Nazis. Sweden, being neutral, was a hotbed of spying which the author retells with gusto.’ Male reader, aged 29
‘Interesting story; the love story was particularly sweet, counterbalancing the evil of the time. Well-written and easy to follow. Anybody interested in WW2 would find this enthralling.’ Male reader, aged 76
‘Not many will know of this story and what happened in war time Sweden. It’s a revelation.’ Male reader, aged 34

To Sum It Up:
‘Intriguing to the very last page. A silver medal winner and highly recommended.’ The Wishing Shelf Book Awards

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I purchased Liberty Lady as a research book, and it was much more than I expected. Well-written, the book includes information about the war and what happened before, during, and after the crash of Liberty Lady which puts the events in context. The author has obviously done studied the era as well as personal documentation, and the bibliography is impressive. Sometimes I was drawn into the narrative and forgot I was supposed to be taking notes! A great book for WWII aficionados or history buffs.