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Safe Passage
Gala opera evenings. Sudden wealth and fame. Dangerous undercover missions into the heart of Nazi Germany. Standing up to the perils of the Blitz. No one would have predicted such glamorous and daring lives for Ida and Louise Cook—two decidedly ordinary Englishwomen who came of age between the wars and seemed destined never to stray from their quiet London suburb and comfortable civil service jobs. But in 1923 a chance hearing of an aria from Madame Butterfly sparked a passion in the sisters that became a vehicle for both their greatest happiness and the rescue of dozens of Jews facing persecution and death.
Safe Passage is one of the most unusual and inspiring accounts to come out of the cataclysm of World War II. First published in 1950, Ida's memoir of the adventures she and Louise shared remains as fresh, vital and entertaining as the woman who wrote it. The Cook sisters' zest for life and genuine "goodness" shines through every page and explains why the leading opera singers of their day befriended and loved them. Even when Ida began to earn thousands as a successful romance novelist, the sisters never departed from their homespun virtues of thrift, hard work, self-sacrifice and unwavering moral conviction. They sewed their own clothes, traveled third class, bought the cheapest tickets during opera season and directed every spare resource, as well as their own considerable courage and ingenuity, toward saving as many people as they could from Hitler's death camps.
Uplifting and utterly charming, Safe Passage is moving testimony to all that can be achieved when conscience and compassion are applied to a collapsing world.
Safe Passage is one of the most unusual and inspiring accounts to come out of the cataclysm of World War II. First published in 1950, Ida's memoir of the adventures she and Louise shared remains as fresh, vital and entertaining as the woman who wrote it. The Cook sisters' zest for life and genuine "goodness" shines through every page and explains why the leading opera singers of their day befriended and loved them. Even when Ida began to earn thousands as a successful romance novelist, the sisters never departed from their homespun virtues of thrift, hard work, self-sacrifice and unwavering moral conviction. They sewed their own clothes, traveled third class, bought the cheapest tickets during opera season and directed every spare resource, as well as their own considerable courage and ingenuity, toward saving as many people as they could from Hitler's death camps.
Uplifting and utterly charming, Safe Passage is moving testimony to all that can be achieved when conscience and compassion are applied to a collapsing world.
287 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1950
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June 3, 2020
This is a book about two extraordinary sisters, Ida and Louise Cook. The one that wrote the book - Ida - was a romantic author, writing about 24 books over 40 years for the publisher Mills and Boon.
She and her sister were also passionate opera fans.
They were also two of only four British people honoured by the Israeli government with the title "Righteous Among the Nations"......for the services they did for Jewish refugees. Officially they helped 29 people out of Germany ,but Anna Stebbs, the Reuter correspondent who wrote the introduction, says the actual number must have been triple this.
Ida cites her parents as the reason why she and her sister Louise had the necessary courage and sense of duty to do the work they did. "Both parents set a standard of personal integrity that gave us children a never-questioned scale of values and made life so much easier later on."
Not only did they help the refugees financially themselves, but they made many trips to Germany, just before the war, to help people get their money out of the country, so they could afford to come and live in Britain. They might go to Germany in plain dresses, and return wearing all sorts of expensive jewellery, or a fur coat. Each time they would hope that the border guards wouldn't question the lavishness of their attire. They also went to interview people who wanted to leave Germany, to see whom they could help....and this work was harrowing, as everyone was so desperate. In the UK they worked furiously to get all the administration processed to enable people to come here, by finding them British sponsors and so forth. Coming to Britain was extremely difficult, and they were tireless in this work.
When the war broke out - their work with the refugees ended. "It seemed odd to say that one's first impression of a war could be boredom and release from tension, but that was exactly the case for us." But not for long - after a while Ida volunteered for night duty in one of the East End shelters in London. She writes about the camaraderie of the shelter, the dreadful bombing, and the devastation of London. Most of all she writes about the courage of the people.
After the war ended they returned to a more normal life, and to their great passion of opera. Opera stories fill a lot of this book - both at the beginning and towards the end. When younger they would spend days sitting on the pavement outside the big opera houses, queuing for a seat in the gods. They were just as much 'fans' of the luminaries of opera, as today's young people are fans of pop stars, perhaps even more so. When the opera season ended each year, they used to hold 'gramophone parties', where they and their opera-passionate friends would join together and play their records. Later on they got to know some of their opera heroes very well, and made some good friends amongst them. It was marvellous to see that after all their amazing hard work to help other people, they ended up living comfortable and rewarding lives.
I enjoyed the book a lot. It wasn't brilliantly written, but the story was so inspiring that the book was still a great read.
* Ida Cook wrote her novels under the name 'Mary Burchell'
She and her sister were also passionate opera fans.
They were also two of only four British people honoured by the Israeli government with the title "Righteous Among the Nations"......for the services they did for Jewish refugees. Officially they helped 29 people out of Germany ,but Anna Stebbs, the Reuter correspondent who wrote the introduction, says the actual number must have been triple this.
Ida cites her parents as the reason why she and her sister Louise had the necessary courage and sense of duty to do the work they did. "Both parents set a standard of personal integrity that gave us children a never-questioned scale of values and made life so much easier later on."
Not only did they help the refugees financially themselves, but they made many trips to Germany, just before the war, to help people get their money out of the country, so they could afford to come and live in Britain. They might go to Germany in plain dresses, and return wearing all sorts of expensive jewellery, or a fur coat. Each time they would hope that the border guards wouldn't question the lavishness of their attire. They also went to interview people who wanted to leave Germany, to see whom they could help....and this work was harrowing, as everyone was so desperate. In the UK they worked furiously to get all the administration processed to enable people to come here, by finding them British sponsors and so forth. Coming to Britain was extremely difficult, and they were tireless in this work.
When the war broke out - their work with the refugees ended. "It seemed odd to say that one's first impression of a war could be boredom and release from tension, but that was exactly the case for us." But not for long - after a while Ida volunteered for night duty in one of the East End shelters in London. She writes about the camaraderie of the shelter, the dreadful bombing, and the devastation of London. Most of all she writes about the courage of the people.
After the war ended they returned to a more normal life, and to their great passion of opera. Opera stories fill a lot of this book - both at the beginning and towards the end. When younger they would spend days sitting on the pavement outside the big opera houses, queuing for a seat in the gods. They were just as much 'fans' of the luminaries of opera, as today's young people are fans of pop stars, perhaps even more so. When the opera season ended each year, they used to hold 'gramophone parties', where they and their opera-passionate friends would join together and play their records. Later on they got to know some of their opera heroes very well, and made some good friends amongst them. It was marvellous to see that after all their amazing hard work to help other people, they ended up living comfortable and rewarding lives.
I enjoyed the book a lot. It wasn't brilliantly written, but the story was so inspiring that the book was still a great read.
* Ida Cook wrote her novels under the name 'Mary Burchell'
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March 30, 2020The extraordinary story of Ida Cook, an ordinary-in-her-own-mind young woman obsessed with opera. She and her sister save up to see concerts, even travel to the US to meet the big stars. She becomes a romance novelist in large part to fund their opera habit.
And then it's the 1930s, and they go to Germany to see opera and are introduced to Jewish people who need guarantors to leave Germany thanks to the shitty laws on refugees. So Ida and Louise Cook spend three years desperately, frantically raising money, finding guarantors, smuggling jewels out so the refugees would have something to live on, bullying or wheedling bureaucrats, and using their opera connections in order to get Jews out of Nazi Germany before the axe falls.
It's a jawdropping story, and a deeply moving one, especially in Ida's telling, in a terrifically reasonable "what else could we have done?" tone. Well, yes, any normal person would have pinned a diamond brooch worth thousands on a glass-beaded M&S sweater and walked past Nazi border guards with their coat open. Not special at all, certainly not.
And then she lived through the Blitz, and was named Righteous among the Gentiles for her work saving lives, and went on working to help refugees for many years and--not even mentioned in the book, which really does major on her favourite opera singers--was president of the Romantic Novelists Association for twenty years. Remarkable.
And then it's the 1930s, and they go to Germany to see opera and are introduced to Jewish people who need guarantors to leave Germany thanks to the shitty laws on refugees. So Ida and Louise Cook spend three years desperately, frantically raising money, finding guarantors, smuggling jewels out so the refugees would have something to live on, bullying or wheedling bureaucrats, and using their opera connections in order to get Jews out of Nazi Germany before the axe falls.
It's a jawdropping story, and a deeply moving one, especially in Ida's telling, in a terrifically reasonable "what else could we have done?" tone. Well, yes, any normal person would have pinned a diamond brooch worth thousands on a glass-beaded M&S sweater and walked past Nazi border guards with their coat open. Not special at all, certainly not.
And then she lived through the Blitz, and was named Righteous among the Gentiles for her work saving lives, and went on working to help refugees for many years and--not even mentioned in the book, which really does major on her favourite opera singers--was president of the Romantic Novelists Association for twenty years. Remarkable.
July 29, 2010
I liked this book, but "the remarkable true story of two sisters who rescued Jews from the Nazis" is a bit of false advertising. Yes, Ida and Louise Cook saved Jews from the Nazis by arranging for them to gain refugee status in England--at considerable inconvenience, cost, and some danger to themselves--and those actions were sufficient to have them named "Righteous Among the Nations" by the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial, which means they were the real deal. But the stories of their rescues take up only about one-fourth to one-third of the book, and there are only five or six detailed stories of rescues. Most of the book tells of the two sisters' increasing love of opera during the 1930s in England, the United States, and Europe, as well as the great operas they heard and singers they were able to meet and in some cases, become friends with. These relationships led to their work with refugees, including travels to Germany and Austria to interview potential refugees and to escort some of them to England. Ida also tells of her experience during "The Blitz," the terrible months when the Nazis bombed the city of London almost to smithereens, and a bit about the sisters' work in displaced persons camps after the war. But if you're looking for a book of stories about Jews rescued during the Holocaust, you will lose patience with the other parts of Cook's book, which certainly has its charms apart from the false expectations the cover blurb may create. I recommend Thomas Keneally's Schindler's List, Eva Fogelman's Conscience and Courage, and Kati Marton's Lost Hero: Raoul Wallenberg--and other, similar books--if you're looking for stories of Holocaust rescuers.
August 8, 2018
What a lovely book!
The early chapters are a window on a totally lost time and place--London in the 1920s. Two young women, sisters Louise and Ida Cook, become opera-mad. The stories of the gallery queue for the Covent Garden Opera House are fascinating--the friendships formed with fellow queuers, the easy access to the stars of the day--all now seems so unfathomable. I loved the part about their first trip to New York City--to see one of their favorite singers, who did recitals in London, but opera only at the Metropolitan in NYC! The two were not rich by any measure--both lowly government clerks. Indeed, Ida began writing to earn money to support their opera 'hobby'.
The friendships formed in the opera world directly led to their refugee work in the mid to late 1930s. Ida's account of how naive they were about European politics in 1934 was refreshing to read. These were women who found their cause by happenstance. Once found, they did everything they could. Louise, who had an ability with foreign languages, learned German; the better to interview the people they were to help. Ida, who by this time had a fairly good income from writing books*, financed their travels to Germany and beyond. They were an almost inseparable team. These various trips are recounted without any added dramatic flourishes--they supplied enough drama on their own. Their last mission was in late August 1939, and that phase of their life ended, with mixed feelings--thankful that they could have saved the people they did and grief for the ones they couldn't.
The bit on life in London during the war will seem familiar to anyone who has read other accounts. Life in the shelters at night, the damage to the family home during the Blitz, is told well and with feeling by the author.
I especially enjoyed the post-war years. The happy re-unions with friends and acquaintances from their opera years were mixed in with news from 'their' refugees. Of course the sisters got involved with helping the 'displaced' people in Europe--once bitten by the humanitarian bug there was no way they weren't going to help as best they could.
The first version of the book (which came out in 1950) ends with the reunions. In 1976, the author decided to being their story up to date. While interesting, this section lacks the emotional punch/dramatic arc of the earlier sections.
*Ida Cook wrote under the name Mary Burchell. She wrote romances for Mills & Boon from 1936 through 1985. In this book, Ida almost never mentions her writing career. However, her love of opera shows in a number of her books.
The early chapters are a window on a totally lost time and place--London in the 1920s. Two young women, sisters Louise and Ida Cook, become opera-mad. The stories of the gallery queue for the Covent Garden Opera House are fascinating--the friendships formed with fellow queuers, the easy access to the stars of the day--all now seems so unfathomable. I loved the part about their first trip to New York City--to see one of their favorite singers, who did recitals in London, but opera only at the Metropolitan in NYC! The two were not rich by any measure--both lowly government clerks. Indeed, Ida began writing to earn money to support their opera 'hobby'.
The friendships formed in the opera world directly led to their refugee work in the mid to late 1930s. Ida's account of how naive they were about European politics in 1934 was refreshing to read. These were women who found their cause by happenstance. Once found, they did everything they could. Louise, who had an ability with foreign languages, learned German; the better to interview the people they were to help. Ida, who by this time had a fairly good income from writing books*, financed their travels to Germany and beyond. They were an almost inseparable team. These various trips are recounted without any added dramatic flourishes--they supplied enough drama on their own. Their last mission was in late August 1939, and that phase of their life ended, with mixed feelings--thankful that they could have saved the people they did and grief for the ones they couldn't.
The bit on life in London during the war will seem familiar to anyone who has read other accounts. Life in the shelters at night, the damage to the family home during the Blitz, is told well and with feeling by the author.
I especially enjoyed the post-war years. The happy re-unions with friends and acquaintances from their opera years were mixed in with news from 'their' refugees. Of course the sisters got involved with helping the 'displaced' people in Europe--once bitten by the humanitarian bug there was no way they weren't going to help as best they could.
The first version of the book (which came out in 1950) ends with the reunions. In 1976, the author decided to being their story up to date. While interesting, this section lacks the emotional punch/dramatic arc of the earlier sections.
*Ida Cook wrote under the name Mary Burchell. She wrote romances for Mills & Boon from 1936 through 1985. In this book, Ida almost never mentions her writing career. However, her love of opera shows in a number of her books.
March 29, 2011
The author of this book, Ida Cook, is an adorable, charming lady and you can't help be drawn into this book by her warmth and candidness. However, I felt that the title and description were somewhat misleading. I thought that the majority of the book would be about her and her sister's rescue of Jews in pre-World War II Germany and was a little surprised by the lengthy passages about the opera stars of the day. It was interesting to learn more about the great singers of the 1920s and 30s but not what I expected to learn about. Although their friends in the opera world were very influential in their decision to help rescue Jews, I wished to learn more of those they rescued and their stories.
So, disappointment aside, I was very inspired by Ida's and her sister's bravery in the midst of such evil and their willingness to sacrifice so much to help those in need. They really believed in doing the right thing even when it's unbelievably hard. Ida attributes their moral character to the teaching and example of her parents, which I thought was a touching tribute.
So, disappointment aside, I was very inspired by Ida's and her sister's bravery in the midst of such evil and their willingness to sacrifice so much to help those in need. They really believed in doing the right thing even when it's unbelievably hard. Ida attributes their moral character to the teaching and example of her parents, which I thought was a touching tribute.
March 22, 2021
The title is a bit misleading. The heroism is real, but it only takes place in about the middle third of the book. Most of the rest is about the author's serious love of opera.
October 30, 2013
Ida Cook authored over 100 romance novels under the name Mary Buchell, starting in the 1930s. I used to read a lot of genre romance in junior high and high school, and she was my favorite author. She spent time on character development, and her stories often featured unusual plots and very individual heroes and heroines.
I have admired her ever since I learned that she and her sister worked on behalf of Jewish refugees in the late 1930s. This is her memoir of that time, when they smuggled jewelry and furs out of Germany (so the people would have something to support themselves on once they escaped Germany) and found English sponsors to pledge to support the Jews so they would be allowed to leave for England. It was stressful and dangerous work.
Ida and her sister Louise were huge opera fans, and it was through their acquaintance with people in the opera world that their refugee work began. I give this book four instead of five stars mainly because there a lot of details about specific musical works and operatic stars. I've seen a few operas and liked them fine, but I'm not a huge fan so I found some of that a bit dull. But the parts where she describes specific refugees and their hurdles and what it was like to take shelter in London during German bombing raids is fantastic.
She is a fine writer.
"Characteristically, our last contact with Germany was strangely melodramatic. On August 24...news was received that the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact had been signed, and even the most naive could not pretend to themselves any longer that war was avoidable. It had been a curious and nerve-racking day. Just as we were going to bed, around midnight, the telephone rang. I answered it and was informed by an obviously harassed operator that there was a call coming through for me from Germany. Would I wait a few minutes? As I waited, I realized that, in the hurry and muddle of the moment, my line had not been isolated. From every side, there rushed in upon me voices speaking in a variety of languages. They all sounded agitated, of course, and simply registered as a jumble of sound. It was as though I was listening in to a mad and terrified Europe. In the silence of our hall, I seemed to be on an island, listening to the cries of those who were about to be engulfed. I was completely helpless. Soon, I too was to be swept into at least the outer currents of the swell. In just over a year, the very ceiling above my head was to crash down under the attack of the German bombers. But for the moment, I was simply 'listening in' to what was coming. I have never forgotten those dramatic few minutes." (p. 197-198)
I recommend this book to fans of Mary Burchell and to those interested in what ordinary people did to make a positive difference during the Nazi years.
I have admired her ever since I learned that she and her sister worked on behalf of Jewish refugees in the late 1930s. This is her memoir of that time, when they smuggled jewelry and furs out of Germany (so the people would have something to support themselves on once they escaped Germany) and found English sponsors to pledge to support the Jews so they would be allowed to leave for England. It was stressful and dangerous work.
Ida and her sister Louise were huge opera fans, and it was through their acquaintance with people in the opera world that their refugee work began. I give this book four instead of five stars mainly because there a lot of details about specific musical works and operatic stars. I've seen a few operas and liked them fine, but I'm not a huge fan so I found some of that a bit dull. But the parts where she describes specific refugees and their hurdles and what it was like to take shelter in London during German bombing raids is fantastic.
She is a fine writer.
"Characteristically, our last contact with Germany was strangely melodramatic. On August 24...news was received that the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact had been signed, and even the most naive could not pretend to themselves any longer that war was avoidable. It had been a curious and nerve-racking day. Just as we were going to bed, around midnight, the telephone rang. I answered it and was informed by an obviously harassed operator that there was a call coming through for me from Germany. Would I wait a few minutes? As I waited, I realized that, in the hurry and muddle of the moment, my line had not been isolated. From every side, there rushed in upon me voices speaking in a variety of languages. They all sounded agitated, of course, and simply registered as a jumble of sound. It was as though I was listening in to a mad and terrified Europe. In the silence of our hall, I seemed to be on an island, listening to the cries of those who were about to be engulfed. I was completely helpless. Soon, I too was to be swept into at least the outer currents of the swell. In just over a year, the very ceiling above my head was to crash down under the attack of the German bombers. But for the moment, I was simply 'listening in' to what was coming. I have never forgotten those dramatic few minutes." (p. 197-198)
I recommend this book to fans of Mary Burchell and to those interested in what ordinary people did to make a positive difference during the Nazi years.
February 1, 2021
The Bravest Voices definitely one of my favorite books of the year, the story of Ida and Louise Cook written by Ida herself has really moved me and made me feel many things that I really didn't anticipate.
The Bravest Voices is the story of two sisters who helped immensely during WW2 doing the impossible even risking their own lives to save many families who were in danger, smuggling jewelry, fur, everything they could so the families they rescue will have a better life in another country or place where they will be welcome and safe.
Ida shows us from the beginning, how it all started, how their love for the opera was the main reason they started to save jews. Ursuleac and Krauss were a huge key for this to happen, two opera singers of that time that we get to know more in this book.
The friendship between Ida, Louise, Ursuleac, and Krauss was amazing, I feel like during those times people were kinder and more trusting than now at days. I admire how Ida and Louise save money for many, many years just to be able to watch their favorite singers across the ocean. and that's what they did, they saved, they travel, and they help many in need.
There were many opera singers helping Ida and Louise but nothing like Ursuleac and Krauss I really became a fan of them just by reading the story, I even started playing their music in the background to get to know more about these two characters that were so important in the lives of many Jews.
in The Bravest Voices, we get to learn about each family how they were able to be saved by Louise and Ida, what they had to do. The hardest part was the waiting, how many had to wait for years and even months to be able to escape because everything had to be planned very carefully not to make any mistakes.
one of the things that I really love about this book is the stories we get to know that usually, we don't get to hear about WW2 especially if the story involves women.
the part that really broke me was when Ida says it was the first time she was really considering murder because of the things she was hearing on daily basis, I really felt her so much at that part, when I read those words, I was asking myself "how can you be helping all those people and not feeling like you wanted to kill someone" the evilness of the Nazis was something I have never understand, and I'm grateful for Ida to show that vulnerability but at the same time that strength when it came to those evil people.
we also get to learn more about the stories of people who couldn't go out in time but later they were able to meet and tell their stories to Ida and Louise.
I can write more and more about this magnificent book but I really don't want to give more away, this is a book that will change your life, that will teach you how everything is possible and if you have a kind heart and the will to help others everything will be even better in your own life.
Thank you Ida and Louise for your courage and your bravery and for your love of Opera.
The Bravest Voices is the story of two sisters who helped immensely during WW2 doing the impossible even risking their own lives to save many families who were in danger, smuggling jewelry, fur, everything they could so the families they rescue will have a better life in another country or place where they will be welcome and safe.
Ida shows us from the beginning, how it all started, how their love for the opera was the main reason they started to save jews. Ursuleac and Krauss were a huge key for this to happen, two opera singers of that time that we get to know more in this book.
The friendship between Ida, Louise, Ursuleac, and Krauss was amazing, I feel like during those times people were kinder and more trusting than now at days. I admire how Ida and Louise save money for many, many years just to be able to watch their favorite singers across the ocean. and that's what they did, they saved, they travel, and they help many in need.
There were many opera singers helping Ida and Louise but nothing like Ursuleac and Krauss I really became a fan of them just by reading the story, I even started playing their music in the background to get to know more about these two characters that were so important in the lives of many Jews.
in The Bravest Voices, we get to learn about each family how they were able to be saved by Louise and Ida, what they had to do. The hardest part was the waiting, how many had to wait for years and even months to be able to escape because everything had to be planned very carefully not to make any mistakes.
one of the things that I really love about this book is the stories we get to know that usually, we don't get to hear about WW2 especially if the story involves women.
the part that really broke me was when Ida says it was the first time she was really considering murder because of the things she was hearing on daily basis, I really felt her so much at that part, when I read those words, I was asking myself "how can you be helping all those people and not feeling like you wanted to kill someone" the evilness of the Nazis was something I have never understand, and I'm grateful for Ida to show that vulnerability but at the same time that strength when it came to those evil people.
we also get to learn more about the stories of people who couldn't go out in time but later they were able to meet and tell their stories to Ida and Louise.
I can write more and more about this magnificent book but I really don't want to give more away, this is a book that will change your life, that will teach you how everything is possible and if you have a kind heart and the will to help others everything will be even better in your own life.
Thank you Ida and Louise for your courage and your bravery and for your love of Opera.
August 24, 2010
This book did not read the way I expected it to, but it still is fascinating story of two sisters. They live in England and are huge opera fans, and become friends with many opera stars. As a result, they are in a position to help many people escape Europe with WW II looming. I found their attitude so refreshing and amazing...they came into money just as things were heating up in Germany and their attitude was, that since they hadn't ever had money before, now that they did, why wouldn't they use it all to help others. An added bonus to the book for me, as learning more about opera! Because it was written by the woman who did it all, it rather matter of fact, which I found rather wonderful....although, I can see where some people might find all the opera stuff a little slow.
November 14, 2019
This is a book about two sisters, born in 1901 and 1904 respectively, who rescued Jews from Europe in the years just preceding the start of World War II. I had seen it written up in the online New Yorker as a book worth a second look and got a hankering to read it -- for the first time, in my case. The ladies purportedly were two ordinary Englishwomen who used their very ordinariness in their cause. Ida, the younger of the two, is the author.
The first thing I noticed was how comfortable the author and her sister seemed in their environment. That stood out in comparison to the people who inhabit Amos Oz' memoir A Tale of Love and Darkness, which I'd finished just before this book. Those characters had been stressed in Eastern Europe where they came from and in British-mandate Palestine, where they alighted. It made a difference, I thought, that Ida and her sister Louise were part of the majority, not a minority, and a settled majority at that. They did not question their identities or roles.
Reading this book was in that sense a relief.
Also, after the other books I've been reading or, for that matter, after undergoing current events, reading about some individuals doing the right thing was a balm. Their activities were not being performed to trumpet their virtue, either, since the two sisters already seemed comfortable with themselves. They weren't virtue signalers having to promote an ideology or bash anyone else in the service of their own identities.
The ladies became opera fans in their young adulthood. They weren't upper class or wealthy. They were young women in their first jobs who scrimped and saved to follow their stars. In fact the earlier, 1950 version of this book is We Followed Our Stars. The present version hails from 1976, and my copy was printed in 2008.
Fully the first 100 pages has to do with their opera adventures, which has discouraged some readers. I'm not an opera fan, but my uncle was, so I read it in his honor. Moreover, it was the connections the two ladies made through following opera that enabled them to travel back and forth to Germany and Austria to rescue people in the late 1930s.
Ida's learning to write was another, though relatively less emphasized aspect of this book. She first gave up a very safe but not very lucrative civil service job to take a lowly journalism-related position, and from there was discovered as able to write serials. Eventually she became a writer of romance novels (under the pen name of Mary Burchell), and that was one way she and Louise could finance their refugee activities.
The tales she tells of some of the escapes they facilitated are in very matter-of-fact language, as though anyone could have done it, though of course, that's not true. The sister team was one of a kind, and besides great faith in their British passports, nerves of steel, and, in some cases, not fully appreciating the risks they were taking, they had great social skills, which had helped endear them to their opera friends and others in the first plase. Also, Ida expressed the opinion that they sere just doing what any Christian should. Ultimately, they were singularly equipped to rise to the many occasions with which they were presented.
I appreciate hearing views that are specific to their time and place and which are likely related to the sisters being settled in a culture they understood and loved. But some views haven't changed, for example, when Ida has an initial reaction of minimizing what was happening as just foreigners inexplicably mistreating each other -- the way people nowadays will distance themselves from faraway suffering by thinking, Oh, those people have been fighting each other for centuries.
After the war started, bringing an end to their rescue activities, Ida tells about their experiences during the bombing of London, eventually touching on denazification after the war, the refugee problems of Poles marooned in Germany, and the like. It's there, from what I've been learning elsewhere (for example, Year Zero: A History of 1945), that she minimizes what was happening, likely because the extent of problems was not yet known. In general, in discussing "the Jewish problem," though, she's discussing what did not become an accepted subject of discussion for decades, although perhaps which a degree of "Jew-blindness," (analogous to so-called "color blindness" today). Any quibbles I have, though, are minor.
One wish: here we have an author who's a romance novelist, and yet she never mentions why neither she nor her sister married. Yes, of course, there was the shortage of males after the Great War, and yet wouldn't those lost have been somewhat older, since Ida's immediate contemporaries would have been just fourteen years old at the end of that war? In the matter of lack of personal romance, she leaves a mystery!
The retrospective review that led to my reading this book: https://www.newyorker.com/books/secon...
The first thing I noticed was how comfortable the author and her sister seemed in their environment. That stood out in comparison to the people who inhabit Amos Oz' memoir A Tale of Love and Darkness, which I'd finished just before this book. Those characters had been stressed in Eastern Europe where they came from and in British-mandate Palestine, where they alighted. It made a difference, I thought, that Ida and her sister Louise were part of the majority, not a minority, and a settled majority at that. They did not question their identities or roles.
Reading this book was in that sense a relief.
Also, after the other books I've been reading or, for that matter, after undergoing current events, reading about some individuals doing the right thing was a balm. Their activities were not being performed to trumpet their virtue, either, since the two sisters already seemed comfortable with themselves. They weren't virtue signalers having to promote an ideology or bash anyone else in the service of their own identities.
The ladies became opera fans in their young adulthood. They weren't upper class or wealthy. They were young women in their first jobs who scrimped and saved to follow their stars. In fact the earlier, 1950 version of this book is We Followed Our Stars. The present version hails from 1976, and my copy was printed in 2008.
Fully the first 100 pages has to do with their opera adventures, which has discouraged some readers. I'm not an opera fan, but my uncle was, so I read it in his honor. Moreover, it was the connections the two ladies made through following opera that enabled them to travel back and forth to Germany and Austria to rescue people in the late 1930s.
Ida's learning to write was another, though relatively less emphasized aspect of this book. She first gave up a very safe but not very lucrative civil service job to take a lowly journalism-related position, and from there was discovered as able to write serials. Eventually she became a writer of romance novels (under the pen name of Mary Burchell), and that was one way she and Louise could finance their refugee activities.
The tales she tells of some of the escapes they facilitated are in very matter-of-fact language, as though anyone could have done it, though of course, that's not true. The sister team was one of a kind, and besides great faith in their British passports, nerves of steel, and, in some cases, not fully appreciating the risks they were taking, they had great social skills, which had helped endear them to their opera friends and others in the first plase. Also, Ida expressed the opinion that they sere just doing what any Christian should. Ultimately, they were singularly equipped to rise to the many occasions with which they were presented.
I appreciate hearing views that are specific to their time and place and which are likely related to the sisters being settled in a culture they understood and loved. But some views haven't changed, for example, when Ida has an initial reaction of minimizing what was happening as just foreigners inexplicably mistreating each other -- the way people nowadays will distance themselves from faraway suffering by thinking, Oh, those people have been fighting each other for centuries.
After the war started, bringing an end to their rescue activities, Ida tells about their experiences during the bombing of London, eventually touching on denazification after the war, the refugee problems of Poles marooned in Germany, and the like. It's there, from what I've been learning elsewhere (for example, Year Zero: A History of 1945), that she minimizes what was happening, likely because the extent of problems was not yet known. In general, in discussing "the Jewish problem," though, she's discussing what did not become an accepted subject of discussion for decades, although perhaps which a degree of "Jew-blindness," (analogous to so-called "color blindness" today). Any quibbles I have, though, are minor.
One wish: here we have an author who's a romance novelist, and yet she never mentions why neither she nor her sister married. Yes, of course, there was the shortage of males after the Great War, and yet wouldn't those lost have been somewhat older, since Ida's immediate contemporaries would have been just fourteen years old at the end of that war? In the matter of lack of personal romance, she leaves a mystery!
The retrospective review that led to my reading this book: https://www.newyorker.com/books/secon...
October 14, 2021
Very disappointing. A story more on opera and the personal gratification of the sisters travelling over the world to see their favorite opera divas. The fact that they saved some Jewish refuges is dealt with very simply...almost as an after thought to their admiration for their operatic idols. I despise publishers and authors who peddle their books under false pretenses especially when dealing with such a heartbreaking story as the holocaust (pre, actual time, and post holocaust)
April 23, 2024
If you love opera and know it’s history in the early 20th century this will interest you. These sisters went to great lengths to pursue their passion of opera. Probably 2/3- 3/4 of the book is about that. Very little is about what they did to aid Jewish people in escaping from Europe. This was disappointing and why I had chosen to read this memoir.
July 20, 2023
⭐️⭐️
Didn’t turn out to be quite as advertised, which was disappointing. Not worth reading if you didn’t have an encyclopedic knowledge of opera singers - without it, 2/3 of the book was irrelevant.
Didn’t turn out to be quite as advertised, which was disappointing. Not worth reading if you didn’t have an encyclopedic knowledge of opera singers - without it, 2/3 of the book was irrelevant.
Read
May 19, 2021I cannot in fairness rate this book. It was an incredible (true) story, but it was so different than what I was expecting.
August 11, 2024
When I started this book, I was not exactly sure where it was going. It took a journey, laying the groundwork before getting to any part about the war. It was fascinating; this life these two women created.
When it did get to how they helped during the war, it was in a way that I had not heard of before. It was very interesting, especially how their connections with the opera world led them to helping free people from persecutions of the Nazi regime.
A good read.
When it did get to how they helped during the war, it was in a way that I had not heard of before. It was very interesting, especially how their connections with the opera world led them to helping free people from persecutions of the Nazi regime.
A good read.
June 26, 2020
my review from 2010
Two winsome sisters, both single, a common occurrence in Great Britain after the Great War. They are commoners, plain Janes, whose vitality and enthusiasm propels them to write their favorite opera stars. Friendships— unlikely, but genuine — flourish. They jaunt around to hear these stars, and because of their camaraderie get involved in rescuing dozens of Jewish people from Nazi Germany in 1934-1939.
I cannot muster enough superlatives. I relished every page of this book.
Two winsome sisters, both single, a common occurrence in Great Britain after the Great War. They are commoners, plain Janes, whose vitality and enthusiasm propels them to write their favorite opera stars. Friendships— unlikely, but genuine — flourish. They jaunt around to hear these stars, and because of their camaraderie get involved in rescuing dozens of Jewish people from Nazi Germany in 1934-1939.
I cannot muster enough superlatives. I relished every page of this book.
October 10, 2013
After a week of trying I have found the story very repetitive.
I think it is fantastic what these two women did to help those stranded & facing the worst of existence, however the writing style is very floaty & more suited to someone who prefers a subtle style of personal accounts. I'm going to pass this book onto my grandmother who will probably enjoy this more than myself.
I think it is fantastic what these two women did to help those stranded & facing the worst of existence, however the writing style is very floaty & more suited to someone who prefers a subtle style of personal accounts. I'm going to pass this book onto my grandmother who will probably enjoy this more than myself.
March 4, 2016
Once I accepted that this book was as much about opera and relationships as WWII I enjoyed it more. This is not your typical book about helping Jews through the Holocaust. Their is little danger it is more about using what resources are available to help as many people as possible. Worth reading.
January 7, 2023
Too much about Opera, not enough about the heroism of the sisters.
January 8, 2024
This autobiography will mean more to opera lovers.
February 23, 2025
I was really looking forward to reading this book but it wasn’t quite what I expected.
I am not an Opera Lover but can understand the writers love for it and how remarkable their connections to that world are. I also understand how that connection helped them to do the amazing things they did to help get families out of danger up to the declaration of war in 1940.
I did not enjoy how much of the book covers their connection to opera and I also thought that the actual saving of people was very down played.
Nevertheless, the author and her sister did take risks and worked hard to get things in place to get people out. They didn’t have to do it and I think they are remarkable for doing that.
I appreciated the last 1/3rd of the book with the tales of being in London and experiencing the Blitz.
I think that the ladies lived remarkable lives and were trailblazers of their time.
This book is more an autobiography of their lives and the telling of the saving of refugees is just a small part of that.
Written with joy and enthusiasm for their beloved Opera and also for fellow human beings.
I am not an Opera Lover but can understand the writers love for it and how remarkable their connections to that world are. I also understand how that connection helped them to do the amazing things they did to help get families out of danger up to the declaration of war in 1940.
I did not enjoy how much of the book covers their connection to opera and I also thought that the actual saving of people was very down played.
Nevertheless, the author and her sister did take risks and worked hard to get things in place to get people out. They didn’t have to do it and I think they are remarkable for doing that.
I appreciated the last 1/3rd of the book with the tales of being in London and experiencing the Blitz.
I think that the ladies lived remarkable lives and were trailblazers of their time.
This book is more an autobiography of their lives and the telling of the saving of refugees is just a small part of that.
Written with joy and enthusiasm for their beloved Opera and also for fellow human beings.
September 3, 2024
Never before have I had a book go from a 1 1/2 possible 2 star read to 4 stars ! The first 100 pages are tedious. As others have mentioned in their reviews, the sister’s trips abroad to meet opera stars and attend performances is detailed. But, it is through these very connections that Ida and Louise Cook become involved in saving European Jewish citizens during the dark days of the 1930’s —Hitler’s rise to power.
I am so glad I persevered since an incredible story of selflessness, ingenuity and courage unfolds.
I am so glad I persevered since an incredible story of selflessness, ingenuity and courage unfolds.
June 24, 2025
Two simple British women typical of women of most eras, just living their lives to do and be the best they could be within the circumstances in which they were born.
Two simple women whose love of opera, helped them save many lives of Jews fleeing Hitler. They didn’t save them on the scale of others the Jews have honored as “The Righteous Among Nations”, but they used what they had to do what they could. It’s an inspiring story of the best of humanity in the very worst of times that the world hasn’t seen since WW2.
Two simple women whose love of opera, helped them save many lives of Jews fleeing Hitler. They didn’t save them on the scale of others the Jews have honored as “The Righteous Among Nations”, but they used what they had to do what they could. It’s an inspiring story of the best of humanity in the very worst of times that the world hasn’t seen since WW2.
February 11, 2026
I really enjoyed this book. I am not sure how to rate it. So I am giving it 5. I really enjoyed the insights into their personal experiences during events I’ve read so much about. I enjoyed learning about opera from a personal perspective. I am impressed and grateful for the Cook sisters who did everything in their power to help rescue people. They are people of heart, courage and generosity.
October 2, 2025
This was a fun true memoir of World War 2 told from the perspective of two British sisters and the good they did during this very difficult time. Really interesting and fun read.
March 7, 2025
So fascinating!
It's always amazing to me to hear stories of regular people who end up being a part of something big and wonderful just because they were living fully in their world. This book gives a glimpse into the twenties and thirties in England, the States, and Europe, from the perspective of two sisters who loved opera and because of that befriended numerous opera greats of the twentieth century. Then, because of these friendships, they ended up helping a large number of Jewish families get out of Europe before Hitler fully took power.
Ida writes straightforwardly without pomp or elaboration, but with a clear love for opera and people. The opera love might be a little much if a reader doesn't enjoy learning about this subject, but I enjoyed it, and kept popping over to YouTube to find musical clips of some of the greats they heard in person.
It's always amazing to me to hear stories of regular people who end up being a part of something big and wonderful just because they were living fully in their world. This book gives a glimpse into the twenties and thirties in England, the States, and Europe, from the perspective of two sisters who loved opera and because of that befriended numerous opera greats of the twentieth century. Then, because of these friendships, they ended up helping a large number of Jewish families get out of Europe before Hitler fully took power.
Ida writes straightforwardly without pomp or elaboration, but with a clear love for opera and people. The opera love might be a little much if a reader doesn't enjoy learning about this subject, but I enjoyed it, and kept popping over to YouTube to find musical clips of some of the greats they heard in person.
February 28, 2026
This book took me 3 months to finish. It was good, but easy to put down and not pick up again.
I admire these women, though.
I admire these women, though.
September 20, 2022
More opera than I anticipated.
October 13, 2026
This was the perfect book for me, as it was about my two greatest interests, live music and refugees from genocide.
Goodreads has recently changed their rating system in a chaos-inducing way, but you still can't give a book more than five stars, which I would like to do this time.
In the early 1920s, Ida Cook and her sister Louise were young civil servants living with their parents in London (Ida making 2 pounds, 6 shillings, and 0 pence per week.) Then Louise blundered into a lecture on music, was transported, and decided that she must have a gramophone (£23.) In short order Louise and Ida became record collectors, opera lovers, and voice lovers in general. Their favorite star was a singer called Amelita Galli-Curci. I never heard of her, or almost any singer that was mentioned in the book. I thought that was because I was pig ignorant, but the book's biographical notes explain that although this was a golden age of opera, most of the singers that the sisters admired have now "passed out of memory." Well, that's how it goes! I listened to some Calli-Curci recordings on YouTube and she does have a beautiful voice and the songs evoke a tender feeling of long ago days.
Anyway, the sisters realized they would never be happy unless they heard Galli-Curci sing opera, but she only did that in New York. They had never spent a night away from home and had no money, but they decided that they had to go to New York (a transatlantic sea voyage that very few people ever took.) They decided that they if they saved £200 they could do go and that they could manage to save that over two years. It was such a crackpot scheme that they couldn’t tell anyone, but of course that’s exactly when you have to tell someone. So they wrote a fan letter to Galli-Curci telling her what they planned, and she replied that if they made it to NYC she would give them tickets to everything she sang, and invited them to meet her at the Albert Hall after her upcoming show there.
The sisters saved a pound a week each for two years, by eating brown rolls for lunch and living frugally. Their aunt told their mother not to let the girls go because New York was “hell with the lid off,” but their puzzled parents did not try to stop them. Ida made all the clothes for her and Louise’s trip, using a magazine called Mabs Fashions, because their budget did not include buying new outfits. They had a fairy tale trip to New York, heard all these wonderful operas, visited Galli-Curci in her Fifth Avenue apartment, and ended up becoming friends with her. Then they sailed back home and started saving up for their next voyage to New York.
Meanwhile the highlight of their lives was the international opera season at Covent Garden. The gallery seats were first-come, first-served. The fans arrived around six or seven am but occasionally queued overnight for special events. That part seemed perfectly normal to me as a music fan, but the wild part is that the opera fans rented camp stools from two men who also arbitrated any disputes about cutting the line. The fans were allowed to go off and leave their stools and then come back in the evening. At first this seemed incredibly soft and lenient to me. Then I realized they were doing this every day for two months, not just every few days over a period of weeks like queuing for a contemporary rock tour. So the sisters were getting the first train in the morning before 6am, putting in a full day at work, going back to their stools, seeing the show, and then getting the last train home at 12:40am just to get up in a few hours and do it all again. That is devotion.
The sisters made friends in the queue and ultimately made friends with some of the prima donnas and conductors. Ida gave up her safe government job and became a journalist. The sisters began taking trips to Europe as well to hear opera, with their homemade clothes and Woolworth beads.
Ida began writing fictional serials and then romance novels for Mills & Boon. Like with Charlotte Brontë and all the best romance writers, there was no evidence (in these pages anyway) of any sweethearts or romantic happenings in her own life, other than her deep impassioned love for music and then, it developed, saving lives. Her new writing career hugely lifted up the budget for the sisters— why, Ida got a thirty pound advance for her first book! But before they got a chance to blow it all on opera, they fell into refugee work.
It was soprano Viorica Ursuleac and her husband Austrian conductor Clemens Krauss who got the sisters into helping refugees, starting with asking them to “look after” fellow opera lover Mitia when she went to London. They didn’t understand that she was Jewish or even why that would be end up being a tragic problem for a lady from Frankfurt, but they soon found out and helped their new friend. One thing led to another and soon they were helping others.
The dumb British policy at that time on Jewish refugees from Hitler was that a woman might be able to be brought over as a domestic servant. (My great uncle Max made it to the US under a similar scheme—all the other brothers and sisters went up the chimney—I know this is a commonplace tale.) Men between 18 and 60 could come to the UK if they could prove they were in waiting to go to the US, but they needed a British sponsor to assume full financial responsibility for however many years the refugee would be waiting his turn to enter the US. A man over 60 had to be guaranteed for life. British people would promise the sisters a shilling a week or that they could sponsor someone for a few months. The sisters would raise the money and get it all together until they got enough to cover a person and then persuade someone to sign the paperwork. Although she was shy, Ida ended up speaking at churches and women’s groups and raised a lot of money that way. The sisters also had to wheedle and argue with British officials about missing paperwork and lost files, just the most idiotic things. It sounds exactly like when you’re on the phone with the credit card company or trying to get a refund from the airline—they say they can’t do anything but it turns out they can if only they want to. These men had no idea why they should care about the life and death situation of some Polish Jew in Vienna, so Ida had to talk them into it. Overall the sisters brought 29 different people to the UK before the war broke out. They also bought a small flat for the people to live in while they got on their feet. Of course Ida ended up going into debt for her cases, but how can you put a price on human lives or say no to anything in such situations?
Every few months they went to Munich to meet with their “cases” and also give them encouragement so they wouldn’t commit suicide, which did happen. Officials in Cologne became suspicious of their frequent trips but the sisters got impresario Kraus to tell them what he was putting on at the opera the nights they would be in Germany, then they would bore the border officials with all the details. They would fly in to Cologne but go back through Holland usually by train because they were smuggling jewelry. Starting November 1938 every Jewish adult male under 60 was rounded up and sent to the death camps, but then later some were released under the impossible condition that they leave the country within eight weeks, taking no money or valuables. So the families needed someone to smuggle portable valuables out and then reunite them with the money in the UK. The sisters would enter Germany wearing no jewelry, not even a watch, and leave covered in jewelry that was suspiciously much nicer than the clothes they wore. At one point Ida has to wear a simply enormous diamond brooch that was someone’s entire capital on top of a six and eleven penny Marks & Spencer jacquard satin jumper with glass buttons. She figures everyone will just think the brooch is costume jewelry. The sisters also brought dress labels from good English shops and put them in fur coats to wear back to London.
Being British and humble, the sisters were not comfortable with big demonstrative emotions, but people keep saying stuff to them like “I owe you my life,” and the most awkward part is that they knew it was true. Or years later the children of these people would pop up somewhere and say “My mother said a prayer for you every night until the day she died.” The stories of the individual refugees told in this book are really poignant and interesting and I won’t spoil any of them for you.
When the war starts, the sisters’ refugee work comes to a close, as well as their enjoyment of opera. The section about Ida’s war work in an air raid shelter and the bombing of their home in the Blitz is plenty interesting to read though. After the war they finally get to pick up their old threads of opera and friends and visits to the US.
Obviously I wholeheartedly recommend that you read this wonderful memoir, told in a very modest and unassuming style. The original title was “We Followed Our Stars” which I think is much better. This story was very inspiring to me both as a music lover and as someone who is raising money for an internally displaced family in Gaza living in a tent in Deir Al-Balah.
Goodreads has recently changed their rating system in a chaos-inducing way, but you still can't give a book more than five stars, which I would like to do this time.
In the early 1920s, Ida Cook and her sister Louise were young civil servants living with their parents in London (Ida making 2 pounds, 6 shillings, and 0 pence per week.) Then Louise blundered into a lecture on music, was transported, and decided that she must have a gramophone (£23.) In short order Louise and Ida became record collectors, opera lovers, and voice lovers in general. Their favorite star was a singer called Amelita Galli-Curci. I never heard of her, or almost any singer that was mentioned in the book. I thought that was because I was pig ignorant, but the book's biographical notes explain that although this was a golden age of opera, most of the singers that the sisters admired have now "passed out of memory." Well, that's how it goes! I listened to some Calli-Curci recordings on YouTube and she does have a beautiful voice and the songs evoke a tender feeling of long ago days.
Anyway, the sisters realized they would never be happy unless they heard Galli-Curci sing opera, but she only did that in New York. They had never spent a night away from home and had no money, but they decided that they had to go to New York (a transatlantic sea voyage that very few people ever took.) They decided that they if they saved £200 they could do go and that they could manage to save that over two years. It was such a crackpot scheme that they couldn’t tell anyone, but of course that’s exactly when you have to tell someone. So they wrote a fan letter to Galli-Curci telling her what they planned, and she replied that if they made it to NYC she would give them tickets to everything she sang, and invited them to meet her at the Albert Hall after her upcoming show there.
The sisters saved a pound a week each for two years, by eating brown rolls for lunch and living frugally. Their aunt told their mother not to let the girls go because New York was “hell with the lid off,” but their puzzled parents did not try to stop them. Ida made all the clothes for her and Louise’s trip, using a magazine called Mabs Fashions, because their budget did not include buying new outfits. They had a fairy tale trip to New York, heard all these wonderful operas, visited Galli-Curci in her Fifth Avenue apartment, and ended up becoming friends with her. Then they sailed back home and started saving up for their next voyage to New York.
Meanwhile the highlight of their lives was the international opera season at Covent Garden. The gallery seats were first-come, first-served. The fans arrived around six or seven am but occasionally queued overnight for special events. That part seemed perfectly normal to me as a music fan, but the wild part is that the opera fans rented camp stools from two men who also arbitrated any disputes about cutting the line. The fans were allowed to go off and leave their stools and then come back in the evening. At first this seemed incredibly soft and lenient to me. Then I realized they were doing this every day for two months, not just every few days over a period of weeks like queuing for a contemporary rock tour. So the sisters were getting the first train in the morning before 6am, putting in a full day at work, going back to their stools, seeing the show, and then getting the last train home at 12:40am just to get up in a few hours and do it all again. That is devotion.
The sisters made friends in the queue and ultimately made friends with some of the prima donnas and conductors. Ida gave up her safe government job and became a journalist. The sisters began taking trips to Europe as well to hear opera, with their homemade clothes and Woolworth beads.
Ida began writing fictional serials and then romance novels for Mills & Boon. Like with Charlotte Brontë and all the best romance writers, there was no evidence (in these pages anyway) of any sweethearts or romantic happenings in her own life, other than her deep impassioned love for music and then, it developed, saving lives. Her new writing career hugely lifted up the budget for the sisters— why, Ida got a thirty pound advance for her first book! But before they got a chance to blow it all on opera, they fell into refugee work.
It was soprano Viorica Ursuleac and her husband Austrian conductor Clemens Krauss who got the sisters into helping refugees, starting with asking them to “look after” fellow opera lover Mitia when she went to London. They didn’t understand that she was Jewish or even why that would be end up being a tragic problem for a lady from Frankfurt, but they soon found out and helped their new friend. One thing led to another and soon they were helping others.
The dumb British policy at that time on Jewish refugees from Hitler was that a woman might be able to be brought over as a domestic servant. (My great uncle Max made it to the US under a similar scheme—all the other brothers and sisters went up the chimney—I know this is a commonplace tale.) Men between 18 and 60 could come to the UK if they could prove they were in waiting to go to the US, but they needed a British sponsor to assume full financial responsibility for however many years the refugee would be waiting his turn to enter the US. A man over 60 had to be guaranteed for life. British people would promise the sisters a shilling a week or that they could sponsor someone for a few months. The sisters would raise the money and get it all together until they got enough to cover a person and then persuade someone to sign the paperwork. Although she was shy, Ida ended up speaking at churches and women’s groups and raised a lot of money that way. The sisters also had to wheedle and argue with British officials about missing paperwork and lost files, just the most idiotic things. It sounds exactly like when you’re on the phone with the credit card company or trying to get a refund from the airline—they say they can’t do anything but it turns out they can if only they want to. These men had no idea why they should care about the life and death situation of some Polish Jew in Vienna, so Ida had to talk them into it. Overall the sisters brought 29 different people to the UK before the war broke out. They also bought a small flat for the people to live in while they got on their feet. Of course Ida ended up going into debt for her cases, but how can you put a price on human lives or say no to anything in such situations?
Every few months they went to Munich to meet with their “cases” and also give them encouragement so they wouldn’t commit suicide, which did happen. Officials in Cologne became suspicious of their frequent trips but the sisters got impresario Kraus to tell them what he was putting on at the opera the nights they would be in Germany, then they would bore the border officials with all the details. They would fly in to Cologne but go back through Holland usually by train because they were smuggling jewelry. Starting November 1938 every Jewish adult male under 60 was rounded up and sent to the death camps, but then later some were released under the impossible condition that they leave the country within eight weeks, taking no money or valuables. So the families needed someone to smuggle portable valuables out and then reunite them with the money in the UK. The sisters would enter Germany wearing no jewelry, not even a watch, and leave covered in jewelry that was suspiciously much nicer than the clothes they wore. At one point Ida has to wear a simply enormous diamond brooch that was someone’s entire capital on top of a six and eleven penny Marks & Spencer jacquard satin jumper with glass buttons. She figures everyone will just think the brooch is costume jewelry. The sisters also brought dress labels from good English shops and put them in fur coats to wear back to London.
Being British and humble, the sisters were not comfortable with big demonstrative emotions, but people keep saying stuff to them like “I owe you my life,” and the most awkward part is that they knew it was true. Or years later the children of these people would pop up somewhere and say “My mother said a prayer for you every night until the day she died.” The stories of the individual refugees told in this book are really poignant and interesting and I won’t spoil any of them for you.
When the war starts, the sisters’ refugee work comes to a close, as well as their enjoyment of opera. The section about Ida’s war work in an air raid shelter and the bombing of their home in the Blitz is plenty interesting to read though. After the war they finally get to pick up their old threads of opera and friends and visits to the US.
Obviously I wholeheartedly recommend that you read this wonderful memoir, told in a very modest and unassuming style. The original title was “We Followed Our Stars” which I think is much better. This story was very inspiring to me both as a music lover and as someone who is raising money for an internally displaced family in Gaza living in a tent in Deir Al-Balah.
June 22, 2022
2022 bk 188. Highly Recommend to those who love opera, World War II stories, and travel. This pair of sisters were first introduced to opera through their new phonograph and a record the salesman talked them into buying. In their youth, they wrote the voice on the first record and arranged an eventual meeting. Throughout the 20s and the 30s, the two women of middle class means, arranged vacations to coincide with opera being performed in the U.S., Italy, Austria and Germany. They continued to approach elite members of the music world in friendship. As things in Germany worsened, they were the ones approached, to help their Jewish musician friends. They did this by smuggling valuables out of the country and finding for guaranteers for the refugees. At one point, Ida Cook says they helped 28 families, but there were far more. When war came to Britain, the two women continued to keep their love of music going with phonograph parties. Ida's description of volunteering in a bunker provided details I've not seen in any other book. After the war, they reconnected with the world of opera and continued to work with refugee organizations. These two lived life to the fullest! One of the best WWII memoirs I've read.
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