Author Description

"Virginia d'Albert-Lake was one of thousands who risked their lives saving downed airmen along the Comet escape line which stretched from Belgium to Gibraltar. What distinguished Virginia from other resisters was that she was an American citizen who had the option to return to the safety of her native country. Yet she chose to remain in France, where her dangerous work with the Comet line nearly cost her her life." "This book tells the remarkable story of an ordinary American woman's heroism in the French Resistance. Born in Ohio and raised in Florida, Virginia Roush fell in love with Philippe d'Albert-Lake during a visit to France in 1936; they married soon after. In 1943, they joined the Resistance. Defying gender stereotypes, Virginia put her life in jeopardy as she sheltered downed airmen. Her refusal to reveal secrets while a prisoner of war saved many lives, and when Free French and Allied forces finally liberated her in 1945, she weighed 76 pounds, 50 pounds under her normal weight." "After the war, Virginia stayed in France with Philippe, receiving awards from the governments of France, Belgium, Great Britain, and the United States, including the Croix de Guerre, Legion d'Honneur, and Medal of Honor. She died at the age of 87 in 1997." "Judy Barrett Litoff brings together two rare documents in this unique book - Virginia's diary of wartime France until her capture in 1944 and her prison memoir, written immediately after the war."--Jacket.