History

Agent Josephine: American Beauty, French Hero, British Spy

Agent Josephine: American Beauty, French Hero, British Spy

  • Downloads：1785
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-07-16 11:21:33
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Damien Lewis
  • ISBN：1668617595
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

Susan ，

Until I read Agent Josephine I had only a general knowledge of this fascinating and strong woman。 I knew of her talent and of her move to Paris but not many details and certainly not anything about her determination to help the Resistance。 She was willing to use her position to fight the Nazis， risking her life for others。 A truly remarkable woman。 This book is a masterful piece of historical investigating。 It is also very well written and I was never bored。 My thanks to the publisher PublicAffa Until I read Agent Josephine I had only a general knowledge of this fascinating and strong woman。 I knew of her talent and of her move to Paris but not many details and certainly not anything about her determination to help the Resistance。 She was willing to use her position to fight the Nazis， risking her life for others。 A truly remarkable woman。 This book is a masterful piece of historical investigating。 It is also very well written and I was never bored。 My thanks to the publisher PublicAffairs and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more

Janilyn Kocher ，

A remarkable story about the exploits and dangers of Josephine Baker as a secret agent during WWII。 This was a topic I knew nothing about and came away much more informed after reading Lewis’ book。Interspersed with her background， Lewis delves into the intricate spy and resistance rings emanating from France after the surrender in 1940。 The author gave elongated explanations in the foreword and epilogue about how he had to turn archives upside down to find out all he did。 The sleuthing part of t A remarkable story about the exploits and dangers of Josephine Baker as a secret agent during WWII。 This was a topic I knew nothing about and came away much more informed after reading Lewis’ book。Interspersed with her background， Lewis delves into the intricate spy and resistance rings emanating from France after the surrender in 1940。 The author gave elongated explanations in the foreword and epilogue about how he had to turn archives upside down to find out all he did。 The sleuthing part of the story was the most interesting to me。Lewis highlights an unsung heroine， Josephine Baker， to give her her rightful place of honor。Thanks to PublicAffairs and NetGalley for the advance copy。 。。。more

Debra Pawlak ，

I was given an advance reading copy （arc） of this book by NetGalley。com in return for a fair review。 Many years ago， I read a biography on Josephine Baker。 She was a black child born in St。 Louis， Missouri to a dirt poor family and the only kindness she received was from her grandmother。 Her own mother admitted that she didn't want her。 She was never quite sure who her father was。 She often went hungry and didn't even own a pair of shoes to wear to school。 Despite her talent， she faced prejudice I was given an advance reading copy （arc） of this book by NetGalley。com in return for a fair review。 Many years ago， I read a biography on Josephine Baker。 She was a black child born in St。 Louis， Missouri to a dirt poor family and the only kindness she received was from her grandmother。 Her own mother admitted that she didn't want her。 She was never quite sure who her father was。 She often went hungry and didn't even own a pair of shoes to wear to school。 Despite her talent， she faced prejudice and was shunned in her own country because of her skin color。 She took a chance and went to Paris in the 1920s in search of a better life。 There， she was accepted for the incredible singer and dancer that she was。 She became the toast of Paris nightlife， the highest paid performer in Europe， and hobnobbed with the upper echelon of European society。 Everyone loved Josephine Baker。 And then Hitler came to power bringing with him a shift in politics across the continent。 When the Nazis stormed Paris， Josephine was no longer allowed to work due to the fact that she was black。 Outraged， she agreed to spy for the resistance using her fame and popularity to gather information that would help the Allies。 Josephine Baker did not disappoint。 Author Damien Lewis brings to life a period of French history that is not well known and writes about a gutsy lady who worked hard to rid Europe of fascists。 She was not only fearless， but driven and despite being ill herself， she delivered documents， hid arms， and helped smuggle undesirables out of Europe。 Josephine Baker was not just a chanteuse， but a woman who was not afraid to stand up for what is right。 Her efforts gained her the respect of the French government， as well as the Croix du Guerre and the Legion of Honour with the rosette of the Resistance。 She is also one of only six women honored at the Pantheon in Paris。 If you are looking for an exciting page turner--this is the book for you。 James Bond could take a lesson from the lady who perfected the banana dance！ Well done， Mr。 Lewis！ You did a fine job detailing the head-spinning accomplishments of this remarkable woman。 。。。more

John R McKay ，

My knowledge of Josephine Baker， prior to reading “Agent Josephine” was extremely limited。 I had heard of her and knew she was a big star back in the thirties， but that was about as far as my knowledge took me。You will learn about a quite formidable， resolute and highly courageous woman who used her stardom to fight Nazi tyranny， putting herself in grave danger on many occasions for the good of all。 You will be hooked from the very beginning; Damien uses the preface to explain how the book came My knowledge of Josephine Baker， prior to reading “Agent Josephine” was extremely limited。 I had heard of her and knew she was a big star back in the thirties， but that was about as far as my knowledge took me。You will learn about a quite formidable， resolute and highly courageous woman who used her stardom to fight Nazi tyranny， putting herself in grave danger on many occasions for the good of all。 You will be hooked from the very beginning; Damien uses the preface to explain how the book came to be written and that story in itself is totally engrossing。 This is not a typical Damien Lewis book by any means。 There are no battle-hardened troops jumping from planes to wreak havoc on the German war machine; no daring escapes under enemy fire。 Instead we have an amazing account of the most unlikely， yet true， story of a real WW2 heroine， not to mention the bravery of those around her， particularly her accomplice， Jacques Abtey。 A heroine whose endeavour stretched beyond the war years in her fight for equality and against discrimination in all its forms。 The story of a superstar whose star still shines to this day， with her very recently being honoured with a place in the Pantheon in Paris， an honour bestowed on very few people; she is a true French hero。 And now， with this new book， telling the tale of her little known WW2 years the star that shone so brightly during her lifetime will now never fade。The depth of research that has gone in to produce this quite excellent book is nothing short of breathtaking and is clearly evident in the detail of the storytelling。 However， rather than it getting bogged down in that detail the narrative flows seamlessly keeping the reader engaged throughout， all the time desperate to know what will happen next; how will Josephine survive， endure and ultimately triumph。Put simply， this is a masterful work。 It is a triumph of research and storytelling and I urge everyone to read it。 Although quite a lengthy book， it took me only three sessions to complete。 You will not be disappointed， I guarantee it。 。。。more

Scott Lenga ，

Captivating true story of Josephine Baker， the most unlikely of World War II heroes。 A tale of jazz， stardom， espionage and the amazing resilience of the human spirit。 Josephine is an unsung hero who worked with the British master spy who was the model for James Bond and the head of intelligence for the French Resistance， hiding all the while in plain sight and mesmerizing friend and foe with a song and an erotic dance。 I loved this book。

Brendan Dowd ，

Full review coming soon

thepessimisticreader ，

Full of information about the second World War and Josephine Baker’s part in it， but I found it too long and not very thrilling。 I think this is a personal preference and I would have enjoyed historical fiction more than a biography。Regardless， Josephine was a very interesting woman who did a lot with her life and it makes for a long， but informational read。