PARIS '44 The Shame and the Glory

Peter Noble has narrated several audiobooks by historian Patrick Bishop. Here he brings subtlety and nuance to this richly detailed account of the German occupation of Paris during WWII and its exuberant liberation by the Allies in August 1944. Stories of the French Resistance provide drama enough, and the narrative is filled with celebrity names--among them Picasso, Hemingway, and Salinger. But the emphasis is on telling detail, for instance Picasso's decision to abandon his mistress Dora Maar and move back in with a former mistress in a safer part of Paris. Character is the defining element, and Noble, with his measured, expressive delivery, builds a memorable portrait of a city in which both occupation and liberation became a test of character. D.A.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2024]