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Agent by accident
245 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 1997
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February 7, 2021
This book offers rare insights into life in Eastern Europe (Hungary in particular) in the latter part of WWII through the eyes of South African escaped POW Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Howie. This carefully researched account is written by his daughter-in-law.
As commanding officer of the 2nd Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Howie was engaged in the battlefields of North Africa where he was captured by the Germans at Tobruk. Taken initially to Italy for imprisonment, he was later moved to a camp in Silesia whence he soon escaped, making his way into German-allied Hungary where the main story unfolds.
As a high-ranking Allied officer, he soon linked up with an array of Hungarian, Polish and other people keen to mount a resistance to the Nazis. The tale captures the hardships of ordinary life in Budapest at that time, the constant menace of being discovered, the confusing complexity of shifting and ambiguous alliances among Hungarians, and the frustration and difficulties of arranging any resistance with very limited resources and communication. Howie made deep connections with the people who protected him and with whom he plotted and worked.
It’s a fascinating tale of a context I’ve not encountered elsewhere but I was left feeling a little frustrated by the paucity of the author’s own reflections of what the experience meant for Lieutenant-Colonel Howie for whom these wartime years were surely the most intense and pivotal of his life. There are hints of the depression he suffered later as a result but I was left wanting more. No doubt this is difficult territory for a daughter-in-law.
I always applaud the recordal of personal histories of those involved in crux moments. Recommended reading for anyone interested in WWII history.
As commanding officer of the 2nd Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Howie was engaged in the battlefields of North Africa where he was captured by the Germans at Tobruk. Taken initially to Italy for imprisonment, he was later moved to a camp in Silesia whence he soon escaped, making his way into German-allied Hungary where the main story unfolds.
As a high-ranking Allied officer, he soon linked up with an array of Hungarian, Polish and other people keen to mount a resistance to the Nazis. The tale captures the hardships of ordinary life in Budapest at that time, the constant menace of being discovered, the confusing complexity of shifting and ambiguous alliances among Hungarians, and the frustration and difficulties of arranging any resistance with very limited resources and communication. Howie made deep connections with the people who protected him and with whom he plotted and worked.
It’s a fascinating tale of a context I’ve not encountered elsewhere but I was left feeling a little frustrated by the paucity of the author’s own reflections of what the experience meant for Lieutenant-Colonel Howie for whom these wartime years were surely the most intense and pivotal of his life. There are hints of the depression he suffered later as a result but I was left wanting more. No doubt this is difficult territory for a daughter-in-law.
I always applaud the recordal of personal histories of those involved in crux moments. Recommended reading for anyone interested in WWII history.
Displaying 1 of 1 review