DUEL IN THE SHADOWS

by Albert Orbaan ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 17, 1965

When, in the first stages of World War II, Nazi Germany overran and occupied its near neighbors, the first reaction was shock, but it was not long before underground resistance movements formed and their activities seriously affected the German effort. What purports to be a survey of such warfare in France, Norway, Denmark, and the Benelux countries is, sadly, hardly more than an emotional diatribe against the Nazis. The text is primarily a series of dramatic anecdotes drawn from the total history, which creates a spotty and biased picture of the resistance as a whole. More serious, however, is the author's clear attempt to hallow the names of all resistance fighters, not on their own merits, but by depicting the German brutality. He includes tales of German atrocities that have no relation to the story of the underground. The writing is all in a kind of high-key literary bombast (""Hitlerian colossus,"" ""Half-crazed Teutonic fury"") that, after a while, becomes dull and irritating. The real heroism and drama of the European resistance deserves to be told and retold, but better than this.

Pub Date: Sept. 17, 1965

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Doubleday

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1965

Categories: NONFICTION