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The Girl and the Bombardier: A True Story of Resistance and Rescue in Nazi-Occupied France
A downed B-17 bombardier’s unfinished World War II memoir and a box of letters from the French girl who saved him sets a veteran’s daughter on a journey, sixty-five years later, to craft their intersecting stories—a true WWII tale of danger, courage, love, and escape
Susan Tate Ankeny was sorting through the belongings of her late father—a World War II veteran bombardier who had bailed from a burning B-17 over Nazi-occupied France in 1944—when she found two boxes. One contained her dad’s Air Force uniform, and the other an unfinished memoir, stacks of envelopes, black-and-white photographs, mission reports, dog tags, and the fake identity cards he used in his escape. Ankeny spent more than a decade from that moment tracking down letter writers, their loved ones, and anyone who had played a role in her father's story, culminating in a trip to France where she retraced his path with the same people who had guided him more than sixty years ago.
A remarkable hero emerged—Godelieve Van Laere—just a teenaged girl when she saved the fallen Lieutenant Dean Tate, risking her life and forging a friendship that would last into a new century.
The result is an amazing, multifaceted World War II tale—perhaps one of the last of its kind to be enriched by an author’s interviews with participants. It traces the transformation of a small-town American boy into a bombardier, the thrill and chaos of an air war, and the horror of bailing from a flaming aircraft over enemy territory. It distinguishes the actions of a little-known French resistance network for Allied airmen known as Shelburne. And it shines a light on the courage and cunning of a young woman who put her life on the line to save another’s.
Susan Tate Ankeny was sorting through the belongings of her late father—a World War II veteran bombardier who had bailed from a burning B-17 over Nazi-occupied France in 1944—when she found two boxes. One contained her dad’s Air Force uniform, and the other an unfinished memoir, stacks of envelopes, black-and-white photographs, mission reports, dog tags, and the fake identity cards he used in his escape. Ankeny spent more than a decade from that moment tracking down letter writers, their loved ones, and anyone who had played a role in her father's story, culminating in a trip to France where she retraced his path with the same people who had guided him more than sixty years ago.
A remarkable hero emerged—Godelieve Van Laere—just a teenaged girl when she saved the fallen Lieutenant Dean Tate, risking her life and forging a friendship that would last into a new century.
The result is an amazing, multifaceted World War II tale—perhaps one of the last of its kind to be enriched by an author’s interviews with participants. It traces the transformation of a small-town American boy into a bombardier, the thrill and chaos of an air war, and the horror of bailing from a flaming aircraft over enemy territory. It distinguishes the actions of a little-known French resistance network for Allied airmen known as Shelburne. And it shines a light on the courage and cunning of a young woman who put her life on the line to save another’s.
210 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 8, 2020
132 people are currently reading
1062 people want to read
About the author
Susan Tate Ankeny
2 books46 followersSusan is a former-teacher-turned writer who lives in the Pacific Northwest. She is a member of the 8th Air Force Historical Society, the Air Force Escape and Evasion Society, and the Association des Sauveteurs d'Aviateurs Alliés. When not reading and writing, she enjoys hiking, travel, and British baking. The Girl and the Bombardier is her first book.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews
May 18, 2021
This book came to my attention as it was written by a local resident and featured in our local newspaper. The "girl" plays just a small role in the true story of the bombardier, Ankeny's father, who had to escape his crashing bomber over France in early 1944. Although Susan had heard her father's story and knew he had reconnected with Godelieve and other rescuers through the years, Susan discovered a box of letters and photos from the 1940s after he passed away in 2003. The letters give a very personal story of his experiences, and really documents how all his semi-pacifist feelings and doubts about fighting started to change. First he met a young British girl who had lost her entire family in a German air-raid, and then in France he met Godelieve and so many others who risked their lives sheltering downed airmen, passed them from one person and sanctuary to another and tried to get them back to bases in England. There are some really tense moments when their forged documents had to pass scrutiny at travel checkpoints, with a final tense time along the coast of Brittany when a small boat would come ashore to take them to safety while surrounded by German patrols. The author was able to visit and have interviews with some of the French citizens who were young in 1944 and still had vivid memories of their experiences. See also my review of The Walls Came Tumbling Down about what happened to many who participated in these secret rescue networks but were betrayed or discovered.
January 4, 2024
In my mind there are so many ideas, opinions and nuances regarding this book, it is difficult to be brief and to the point.
(Note how cleverly I gave you no clue in my first paragraph, although if you are reading this I know you are a clever button and saw my star rating…so you are way ahead on guessing).
I can graciously admit that this book won’t be on everyone’s hit parade. But I think I will make my own rule for the universe that no one can cruelly pan it. Okay, now that my rant done…
This read from the beginning was obviously a daughter’s love gift to her beloved father, her family, the generation of WW II veterans who came back to us and those who did not and to those of us who want to know more about the past as we experience life and the future.
I say, bravo Susan Tate Ankeny, you did a marvelous job of research, organization and sharing this slice of your father’s past. I appreciated the nuance of your story telling, thank you for the restraint of not interpreting people’s unknown motivations and feeling, instead being true to your sources.
As a life time resident of the northwest and a long time resident of Newberg, Oregon I loved the setting! It made me feel a part of the story and of your dad’s goodness to walk down these streets and be the places he had been.
What a triumph of a book, and what a man your father must have been: bright, sensitive, kind, brave and heroic.
I enjoyed this so much I am buying extra copies to gift!
(Note how cleverly I gave you no clue in my first paragraph, although if you are reading this I know you are a clever button and saw my star rating…so you are way ahead on guessing).
I can graciously admit that this book won’t be on everyone’s hit parade. But I think I will make my own rule for the universe that no one can cruelly pan it. Okay, now that my rant done…
This read from the beginning was obviously a daughter’s love gift to her beloved father, her family, the generation of WW II veterans who came back to us and those who did not and to those of us who want to know more about the past as we experience life and the future.
I say, bravo Susan Tate Ankeny, you did a marvelous job of research, organization and sharing this slice of your father’s past. I appreciated the nuance of your story telling, thank you for the restraint of not interpreting people’s unknown motivations and feeling, instead being true to your sources.
As a life time resident of the northwest and a long time resident of Newberg, Oregon I loved the setting! It made me feel a part of the story and of your dad’s goodness to walk down these streets and be the places he had been.
What a triumph of a book, and what a man your father must have been: bright, sensitive, kind, brave and heroic.
I enjoyed this so much I am buying extra copies to gift!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 3, 2021
I am so glad I found this book. It is now among the four top books in my WWII reading collection. Written with the aid of her father's memoir and other first-hand reports of Americans rescued through the French Resistance, the author puts the reader in every scene, gripping with suspense. This book is from the pov of an American bombardier shot down over France, and his amazing, terrifying, and heart wrenching journey of rescue.
In 1943, Dean Tate of Newberg, Oregon, was about to graduate from college, but little did he dream how his life would soon change. He was drafted into WWII and his mother received his diploma in his absence at graduation. Lt. Dean was already into the surreal and lonely existence of being a soldier in wartime. His dream of going to law school was not to happen as he trained for bombing missions for the Allies against Germany.
In clear and descriptive prose, the author shows how the Allied and American soldiers and ordinary French citizens saved each other's lives and freedoms. Unselfish heroism vs. paralyzing terror ripple through the pages, as Dean Tate and other downed airmen hope against the odds of returning home safely; and Godelieve VanLaere, French neighbors, and Parisians hide and transport the rescued airmen under the watchful gaze of the German Gestapo.
The final chapter of the book takes place up to 70 years later--in the next century, as author Susan Tate Ankeny visits France, meets some of her dad's rescuers, and sees the place where he landed in his parachute in 1944 over Nazi-occupied France. It is a heartwarming conclusion to the story of Dean Tate, his fellow airmen, and the people who comprised the French Resistance.
In 1943, Dean Tate of Newberg, Oregon, was about to graduate from college, but little did he dream how his life would soon change. He was drafted into WWII and his mother received his diploma in his absence at graduation. Lt. Dean was already into the surreal and lonely existence of being a soldier in wartime. His dream of going to law school was not to happen as he trained for bombing missions for the Allies against Germany.
In clear and descriptive prose, the author shows how the Allied and American soldiers and ordinary French citizens saved each other's lives and freedoms. Unselfish heroism vs. paralyzing terror ripple through the pages, as Dean Tate and other downed airmen hope against the odds of returning home safely; and Godelieve VanLaere, French neighbors, and Parisians hide and transport the rescued airmen under the watchful gaze of the German Gestapo.
The final chapter of the book takes place up to 70 years later--in the next century, as author Susan Tate Ankeny visits France, meets some of her dad's rescuers, and sees the place where he landed in his parachute in 1944 over Nazi-occupied France. It is a heartwarming conclusion to the story of Dean Tate, his fellow airmen, and the people who comprised the French Resistance.
March 20, 2021
This book was written by the daughter of a local man trained as an airman in WWII. He was reluctant to serve as he had his future laid out as an attorney, but he was drafted. He became a bombardier and after a few .runs out of England, he was shot down in France. The story details the people of France who helped him not only to survive but to escape back to England.
After the war, he gave up on a career as an attorney to instead become a teacher. He had honed his skills by relating to incoming servicemen on how to escape detection and eventual return to safety.
He has since died but his daughter was able to use diaries kept by the French to reconstruct his adventure.
Great book!
After the war, he gave up on a career as an attorney to instead become a teacher. He had honed his skills by relating to incoming servicemen on how to escape detection and eventual return to safety.
He has since died but his daughter was able to use diaries kept by the French to reconstruct his adventure.
Great book!
September 27, 2020
Note: I received this book as a Goodreads giveaway. Anyone who knows me knows that would never bias my opinion, but better to disclose the fact.
This is a quick but compelling non-fiction tale of the author's father's evasion and escape from Nazi-occupied France during WWII, as well as the life-long bonds that were formed in those few short weeks.
Of particular interest to me (read in a time of rising authoritarianism around the world) is the shift from "Sometimes ... I wonder what all this is about" to a deeper understanding of freedom and the human will to prevail.
I believe this book would make an excellent movie.
This is a quick but compelling non-fiction tale of the author's father's evasion and escape from Nazi-occupied France during WWII, as well as the life-long bonds that were formed in those few short weeks.
Of particular interest to me (read in a time of rising authoritarianism around the world) is the shift from "Sometimes ... I wonder what all this is about" to a deeper understanding of freedom and the human will to prevail.
I believe this book would make an excellent movie.
October 2, 2020
I LOVED this book. Such a well told story of bombardiers caught behind enemy lines and being able to escape back to England. Thank you for this book!
April 26, 2021
Good history perspective. Not the stereotype "war hero" account.
May 28, 2021
This was more a collection of facts than a narrative, though I could tell the author was trying. The names and places have been put down now. I was also expecting "the girl" in the title to have been more important in the rescue, but she was one of many to help in the rescue. This is the most uninteresting book about WWII I've read.
May 9, 2022
A wonderful story about the life and war history of Lieutenant Dean Tate. This book tells the tale of the young man from Oregon who went into the Air Force during WWII, the harrowing adventures of air missions over Europe, and his being shot down over Nazi occupied France. Tate's daughter, upon his death, discovered two boxes of envelopes, photos, fake IDs, dog tags, and an unfinished manuscript of her father's tale. The author would spend years researching her father's history, retracing his steps, and contacting people who had a role to play in her father's story. One of the main characters in this drama is that of Godelieve Van Laere, a teenage girl who saved Dean Tate, risking her life to save his, and who established a lifelong friendship. This is a detailed and insightful story about the War, about the French resistance, and about one young man's journey for survival. It is a story of courage, and the striving for freedom. It is a story of self-sacrifice. A wonderful read about a terrible time in our human history. Well researched and documented I would highly recommend this book.
July 12, 2022
An incredible true story written by the daughter of the book’s bombardier subject. As she was going through her dad’s—Lt Dean Tate’s—personal effects, she found two boxes. One contained the typical uniforms, medal, personal effects, and the like. The other, however, contained an unfinished manuscript—a diary of sorts from his war experiences—and several letters from a teenage French girl—Godilieve—who saved and protected Dean after his B-17 was shot down and he had to bail out in 1944. Chronicling Dean’s experiences, the author travels to France herself and retraces and even speaks to this in the French resistance who aided in Tate’s escape and eventual arrival into Allied American care. Her story, 65 years later, may be among the last of its kind with first-hand interviews we have of the brave French who helped save, protect and whisk Americans to safety during WWII. A wonderful book!
June 14, 2022
Mostly read WW2 genre fiction books, that is why I enjoyed reading this true account of an allied airmans' rescue by the French resistance. So glad that the story of Dean Tate was put into print. To all of those who knowingly risked their lives to help fallen Allied soldiers there are not enough words of thanks. Interesting to read some of the correspondences and journal excerpts plus see pictures of those involved. Thought the book was well written, and researched by the author to ensure accuracy. Highly recommend this book to anyone interested in reading about one mans escape from a burning B17 over France to his eventual return to England.
October 14, 2020
French Resistance Aids Downed Crews
There are some wonderful stories written about those who helped the allies during WWII, but the true ones have a greater impact on me. Wish more soldiers had passed down their stories. Well researched and enjoyable.
There are some wonderful stories written about those who helped the allies during WWII, but the true ones have a greater impact on me. Wish more soldiers had passed down their stories. Well researched and enjoyable.
November 30, 2020
I won this Kindle edition book in a Goodreads
Giveaway. Thank you to everyone involved.
A great well written book.
Giveaway. Thank you to everyone involved.
A great well written book.
January 31, 2025
Despite the passage of time Ms Ankeny brings to life the fear and courage her father experienced in WWII. Excellent quick read. Hard to put down
January 27, 2025
Before reading The Girl and the Bombardier: A True Story of Resistance and Rescue in Nazi-Occupied France, I didn’t really fully grasp or appreciate the details, the dangers and risk undertaken by the French Resistance to aid and extract downed Allied aircrew from occupied France. Combat aircrew members understood and accepted the risk of war so I am in awe of the French Resistance for doing what they did. If they were caught aiding Allied aircrew, they would be tortured and killed along with their family members.
The Girl and the Bombardier: A True Story of Resistance and Rescue in Nazi-Occupied France isn’t about the entire French Resistance’s evade and escape network. Instead, it focuses on the experience of Lt. Dean Tate, one French girl (Godelieve Van Laere) who was his initial rescuer, and others who helped him evade the Nazis and escape back to England. The story of one airman’s experience allows a fuller understanding of why, who, and how the French Resistance returned downed Allied airmen back to England.
I found it fascinating that the escape and evasion was in “plain sight” of the Nazis. The downed Allied aircrew used faked IDs, took public trains, and presented their fake IDs to the French Police and Nazis. This took incredible guts and courage to do this. I think I would have been paralyzed with fear if it was me.
The Girl and the Bombardier: A True Story of Resistance and Rescue in Nazi-Occupied France kind of reminded me of the movie “The Great Escape” when escaping Allied POWs tried to evade the Nazis using fake IDs and public trains. Most were unsuccessful, but they didn’t have the French Resistance to help them.
Lt. Dean Tate is an interesting person. He wasn’t the gung-ho Army Air Corp. officer. He was more of a pacifist who questioned the war and his involvement in it. He didn’t even take his military issued sidearm pistol when on an air mission.
If you’re a WW2 history buff, I highly recommend The Girl and the Bombardier: A True Story of Resistance and Rescue in Nazi-Occupied France.
The Girl and the Bombardier: A True Story of Resistance and Rescue in Nazi-Occupied France isn’t about the entire French Resistance’s evade and escape network. Instead, it focuses on the experience of Lt. Dean Tate, one French girl (Godelieve Van Laere) who was his initial rescuer, and others who helped him evade the Nazis and escape back to England. The story of one airman’s experience allows a fuller understanding of why, who, and how the French Resistance returned downed Allied airmen back to England.
I found it fascinating that the escape and evasion was in “plain sight” of the Nazis. The downed Allied aircrew used faked IDs, took public trains, and presented their fake IDs to the French Police and Nazis. This took incredible guts and courage to do this. I think I would have been paralyzed with fear if it was me.
The Girl and the Bombardier: A True Story of Resistance and Rescue in Nazi-Occupied France kind of reminded me of the movie “The Great Escape” when escaping Allied POWs tried to evade the Nazis using fake IDs and public trains. Most were unsuccessful, but they didn’t have the French Resistance to help them.
Lt. Dean Tate is an interesting person. He wasn’t the gung-ho Army Air Corp. officer. He was more of a pacifist who questioned the war and his involvement in it. He didn’t even take his military issued sidearm pistol when on an air mission.
If you’re a WW2 history buff, I highly recommend The Girl and the Bombardier: A True Story of Resistance and Rescue in Nazi-Occupied France.
January 4, 2021
I learned about this book by reading about the family in the newspaper, as the bombardier, Dean Tate, is from Newberg, Oregon. This is the story of his experience of getting shot down over occupied France during World War II, and his subsequent rescue by the French resistance and escape to England. The heroics and bravery of the common people is amazing. The book is written by his daughter after his death. Although she knew about her father's experience during the war, she was inspired to learn more and research his experience when she found a box of his wartime memorabilia and correspondence from those who were a part of his rescue.
May 20, 2022
The Girl and the Bombardier was an interesting story about how the French Resistance worked to get Allied soldiers out of France during WWII. The story revolves around Dean Tate, an officer and bombardier, who parachuted out of his plane after it was hit by the Germans. The story, which is told by Tate's daughter, follows Tate as he journeys through France in an effort to get to England. The reader learns about many French Resistance workers and their heroic actions during WWII.
July 31, 2022
A Fine Story To Preserve Heroic Deeds Done In Dangerous Times
I am so glad Susan Tate Ankeny told this story of her heroic father and those brave men and women who helped save the lives of downed Allied airmen during WWII. Her writing style made me fell like an eyewitness to the things Lieutenant Tate endured. I am so glad that this story of the greatest generation on both sides of the Atlantic has been preserved by a proud and respectful daughter.
I am so glad Susan Tate Ankeny told this story of her heroic father and those brave men and women who helped save the lives of downed Allied airmen during WWII. Her writing style made me fell like an eyewitness to the things Lieutenant Tate endured. I am so glad that this story of the greatest generation on both sides of the Atlantic has been preserved by a proud and respectful daughter.
November 6, 2022
This is a lovely story from an aspect of the war which we rarely hear about. What did downed airman go through to reach the freedom of England if they weren't immediately picked up by the Germans? What were they feeling, and what about the people who actually hid them and guided them to a safe pickup by the British navy?
It is written with warmth from the aspect of the daughter of one such flier, and it's based upon the memories of her father's savior.
It is written with warmth from the aspect of the daughter of one such flier, and it's based upon the memories of her father's savior.
March 7, 2024
Really enjoyed this tale - and the characters kept me very intrigued. If you enjoy historical fiction, or just WWII history, this tale really helps us understand the nightmare Germany invoked on
France during the 1940s. As a retired aviator, I fully relate to Lt Tate and the many traumas he suffered while trying to survive and return to England. His history is such a victory lap, my thanks to Ms Susan Tate Ankeny for telling this story. Well done.
France during the 1940s. As a retired aviator, I fully relate to Lt Tate and the many traumas he suffered while trying to survive and return to England. His history is such a victory lap, my thanks to Ms Susan Tate Ankeny for telling this story. Well done.
September 26, 2020
This is a fascinating and truly personal account of heroism, honest in its telling, and totally compelling. It is painstakingly researched, gripping from the start, and tells of ordinary people showing incredible courage to survive in extraordinary times. A theme that runs throughout the book is one of friendship and strength in alliance. It’s truly inspirational.
September 26, 2022
Fascinating Story. Truth is Stranger Than Fiction
Susan Tate Ankeny’s historical account of French Resistance fighters rescuing downed American pilots is amazing. Her father was a bombardier on a B /17 over France when the plane was shot down. Using his notes, letters and records, she compiled a history of his experiences.
Susan Tate Ankeny’s historical account of French Resistance fighters rescuing downed American pilots is amazing. Her father was a bombardier on a B /17 over France when the plane was shot down. Using his notes, letters and records, she compiled a history of his experiences.
October 26, 2022
Listened to this book as an audible book driving to Virginia with Larry. I found it hard to keep interested in the book but that could have been because of the many stops and starts we had because we only played it while we driving long distances. I think Larry enjoyed the book a lot more than I did.
December 31, 2022
The title could make one think this is a romance novel, which it is not. The girl saw the bombardier fall from the sky and the story begins there. The French bravely took so many chances to help our downed men. This is the true story of how the French Resistance helped our troops. Very good book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 19, 2024
Couldn’t finish this, at 23%, after one too many frustrations at a poorly described incident, or an incomplete anecdote, or another cliched shorthand attempt at characterization. I’m sorry about that because this was written by a former member of my choir, who I never met, but I respect the effort to honor her dad’s memory.
October 16, 2021
Great book! More of these types of books should be written so future generations can read and understand the great efforts of past generations to preserve our freedoms. Especially poignant for the times we are currently living in.
February 21, 2022
Good read, well written.
Anyone who is studying WW2 will find this book of interest. Though its main characters are aviators, it portrays all of the issues of evasion and escape, with partisan assistance, of any military personnel trapped being enemy lines.....
Anyone who is studying WW2 will find this book of interest. Though its main characters are aviators, it portrays all of the issues of evasion and escape, with partisan assistance, of any military personnel trapped being enemy lines.....
March 3, 2022
they helped each other
This book is well written showing how humans help each other. It shows how that generation really assisted each other. And how we can be remembered, and how we should remember in return.
This book is well written showing how humans help each other. It shows how that generation really assisted each other. And how we can be remembered, and how we should remember in return.
April 29, 2022
Suspenseful
Strong, well researched story of the lengths the French, English, and Americans went to to get downed airmen out of occupied France during WWII. An admirable effort in light of required sacrifices and horrific consequences.
Strong, well researched story of the lengths the French, English, and Americans went to to get downed airmen out of occupied France during WWII. An admirable effort in light of required sacrifices and horrific consequences.
September 29, 2022
Well written, interesting insights.
The people of France took incredible risks during WW II to help downed allied airmen. This particular story, one of many, is told well and documented throughout. An excellent read.
The people of France took incredible risks during WW II to help downed allied airmen. This particular story, one of many, is told well and documented throughout. An excellent read.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews