Pondering À Paris Sous la Botte des Nazis (1944) The mailperson stuffed the book into my tiny mailbox with the same thrust they used for catalogs and flyers. It was so tightly embedded that I had to ask my husband to yank it out. How could they know what lay inside the flimsy paper envelope, … More Paris Under the Boots of the Nazis
In victory, you deserve Champagne; in defeat, you need it. ~ Napoleon Bonaparte, French military leader Champagne! The beverage of love. And of sorrow, too. I remember my first glass of champagne. In Paris, of course, at a small restaurant on the Left Bank, far from the hubbub of Place Saint Michel. And my first … More Champagne and War: 1940-1945
A Meditation on Éric Vuillard’s The Order of the Day The thing about history I love most is that we know how certain events came to an end. Or we think we know. Most of the time, that is. Living through historical events, on the other hand, presents challenges, often life-threatening, with the outcome never … More The Art of Writing History: A Satirical Approach
This year, Santa Claus brought me a most unusual book, David Drake’s Paris at War, 1939-1944. In 2008, David Drake wandered through what he calls a “controversial exhibition of colour photographs staged in the library devoted to the history of the city” of Paris, the Bibliothèque historique de la Ville de Paris, 22, rue Malher. … More Paris at War, a Review
As a writer, I find inspiration in so many places. Gossip whispered at parties, current newspaper reportage, anecdotes revealed by family members over a few mugs of coffee, the odd remark overheard in a doctor’s waiting room or in an elevator, and on and on. History, however, provides me with more than enough material to … More Clio, the Muse of History: Why History is Important
“On the morning of November 11 I [Colonel Thomas Gowenlock] sat in my dugout in Le Gros Faux, which was again our division headquarters, talking to our Chief of Staff, Colonel John Greely, and Lieutenant Colonel Paul Peabody, our G-1. A signal corps officer entered and handed us the following message: Official Radio from Paris – … More The Ancient Story Behind Veterans’/Armistice Day, or, The Significance of St. Martin of Tours
CYNTHIA D. BERTELSEN 