Friends of Europe on Goodreads discussion

Hello to the "Friends of Europe" group. I'm Doug Jacobson. I am an author who has family in Antwerp, Belgium and I have traveled extensively in Europe over the past fifteen years. As an avid WW2 history buff I was inspired to write my first book by the experiences of my Belgian and Polish relatives and friends, many of whom lived through the occupation. I always tell groups that I speak to that for Americans interested in the history of WW2, spending time in Europe changes your perspective. My special area of interest are the thousands of stories of personal courage displayed by ordinary people who were fighting for freedom. I'm looking forward to exchanging greetings and sharing stories with others in this group.
Douglas W. Jacobson
Author,
NIGHT OF FLAMES: A Novel of World War Two Night of Flames A Novel of World War II

Hello Douglas,

welcomeon Froends of Europe on Goodreads Group !

Thanks for your message about your interesting novels related to WW2.

I think they're really interesting and am sure that your novels can attract many eager readers.

Please, come back soon to tell us more about your works.

Finest regards

Max

Hello Max & Friends of Europe,
For many years I have been interested and inspired by the acts of courage displayed by ordinary people during the horror of WW2 and the Nazi occupation. Here's one example that was memorialized in my book.

In 1941 a young Belgian woman working as a nurse was determined to do more for the cause of freedom. With her father, a schoolteacher, this young woman (Andree de Jongh, code name; Deedee) started the Comet Line which grew to become Europe's largest escape organization. From 1941 until 1944 the covert agents of the Comet Line (mostly women, teenagers and elderly men) rescued miore that a thousand Allied aviators who were shot down over Belgium and Holland. They hid these young aviators from the German SS, obtained false papers for them and personally escorted them out of Belgium, through France, over the Pyrenees Mountains and into Spain, where they could find safe passage back to Britain. The task was so dangerous that for every Allied aviator that was rescued, almost one Comet Line agent was arrested and executed.

Following the publication of NIGHT OF FLAMES, I was contacted by a friend in Brussels and informed that an organization exists yet today honoring the memory of these brave people. In December of 2007 I was invited to address this group, Comete Line Kinship, in Brussels and had the pleasure of meeting three surviving agents of the Line. They are all women in their 80s, they all survived capture by the Nazis and imprisonment in concentration camps. When asked why they did it, their response can best be summarized by the words of Andree Dumon (code named, "Nadine") who told me, "We did what we could do, we did it for freedom."

Douglas W Jacobson
Author, NIGHT OF FLAMES: A Novel of World War Two

Douglas wrote: "Hello to the "Friends of Europe" group. I'm Doug Jacobson. I am an author who has family in Antwerp, Belgium and I have traveled extensively in Europe over the past fifteen years. As an avid WW2 hi..."

Very interesting. For an in-depth expose on living through the Holocaust as a Jew, try "Jacob's Courage." This is a tender coming of age love story of two young adults living in Salzburg at the time when the Nazi war machine enters Austria. This historical novel presents accurate scenes and situations of Jews in ghettos and concentration camps, with particular attention to Theresienstadt and Auschwitz. It explores the dazzling beauty of passionate love and enduring bravery in a lurid world where the innocent are brutally murdered. From desperate despair, to unforgettable moments of chaste beauty, "Jacob’s Courage" examines a constellation of emotions during a time of incomprehensible brutality.

Thanks Charles, for sharing further interesting descriptions about your novel.