A Memoir
by Lucinda Franks
Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Mar 2007
352 pages
Genre: Biography/Memoir
Publication Information
In this moving and compelling memoir about parent and child, father and daughter, Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Lucinda Franks discovers that the remote, nearly impassive man she grew up with had in fact been a daring spy behind enemy lines in World War II. Sworn to secrecy, he began revealing details of his wartime activities only in the last years of his life as he became afflicted with Alzheimer’s. His exploits revealed a man of remarkable bravado -- posing as a Nazi guard, slipping behind enemy lines to blow up ammunition dumps, and being flown to one of the first concentration camps liberated by the Allies to report on the atrocities found there.
"A sturdy but overgrown narrative in need of substantial pruning." - Kirkus.
"Even the most painful moments - as when she throws a particularly harrowing revelation back in her father's face to score revenge for adolescent resentments - are recounted with unflinching honesty as the military history takes a backseat to the powerful family drama." - PW.
"Her methods of investigation go too far, and her search for the truth rings of selfishness. This disturbing but candid memoir illuminates the dire human costs of war's trauma and may appeal to readers seeking to understand a family member scarred by military service." - Library Journal.
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Lucinda Franks won a Pulitzer Prize in 1971 for her national reporting. Her novel, Wild Apples, was published in 1991.
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