- ホーム
- > 洋書
- > 英文書
- > Biography / Autobiography
Full Description
Eva and Otto is a truestory about German opposition and resistance to Hitler as revealed through the early lives of Eva Lewinski Pfister (1910-1991) and Otto Pfister (1900-1985). It is an intimate and epic account of two Germans—Eva born Jewish, Otto born Catholic—who worked with a little-known German political group that resisted and fought against Hitler in Germany before 1933 and then in exile in Paris before the German invasion of France in May 1940. After their improbable escapes from separate internment and imprisonment in Europe, Eva obtained refuge in America in October 1940 where she worked to rescue other endangered political refugees, including Otto, with the help of Eleanor Roosevelt. As revealed in recently declassified records, Eva and Otto later engaged in different secret assignments with the US Office of Strategic Services (OSS) in support of the Allied war effort. Despite their vastly different backgrounds, Eva and Otto gave each other hope and strength as they acted upon what they understood to be an ethical duty to help others threatened by fascism. The book provides a sobering insight into the personal risks and costs of a commitment to that duty. Their unusually beautiful writing—directed to each other in diaries and correspondence during two long periods of wartime separation—also reveals an unlikely and inspiring love story.
Contents
Preface
Prologue
Part I. Eva's Path to 28 Boulevard Poissonnière
1. Childhood in Goldap (1910-1926)
2. Study in France and at the Walkemühle (1926-1932)
3. Anti-Nazi Work in Germany (1932-1933)
4. Early Years in Exile in Paris (1933-1935)
Part II. Otto's Path to 28 Boulevard Poissonnière
5. Childhood in Munich (1900-1920)
6. "Education" in Italy and France (1920-1935)
Part III. Resistance and Love in Paris, 1935-1940
7. Anti-Nazi Work in Paris
8. War Begins: Internment, Sabotage, and Love
Part IV. German Invasion on May 9, 1940: Eva and Otto Forced on Separate Paths
9. Eva's Internment at Vélodrome d'Hiver and Camp de Gurs
10. Eva's Refuge in Castagnède, Montauban, and Marseille
11. Otto's Capture and Imprisonment by the Nazis
12. Otto's Return to Paris and Flight to Montauban
13. Eva's Escape over the Pyrenees and Unexpected Delay in Lisbon
Eva's Voyage from Lisbon to New York
Part V. New York, 1940-1941: Urgent Efforts to Rescue ISK Colleagues, including Otto
15. Eva's Daunting Task of Obtaining U.S. Visas
16. Help from Eleanor Roosevelt and Other Americans
17. Three Crucial Meetings on December 27, 1940
18. 1940 Correspondence
19. Eva's Other Activities before the End of 1940
20. Further Pleas to Help Otto and Other Refugees
21. Otto's Wait for a Visa in Southern France
22. Otto's Escape to America
23. Eva's Defense of Her Decision to Marry Otto
Part VI. Rescue Efforts and Work for the OSS in the Face of Personal Challenges
24. Priorities: Eva's Rescue and Relief Work
25. René-Eva Correspondence: Eva's Secret Work with the Office of Strategic Services
26. Three Big Decisions in 1943-1944
27. A Devastating Loss
Part VII. Separated Again
28. Otto's OSS Mission and Eva and Otto's Wartime Correspondence
29. The War Drags On, Reports on Nazi Atrocities, and Another Personal Loss
30. Questions about the Future as the Allies Battle in Europe
Part VIII. Hope Renewed
31. 1945: Signs of Spring as the War in Europe Grinds to an End
32. A New Life
Epilogue
Afterword
Acknowledgments
Appendix A. Summary Backgrounds of ISK Members on Eva's List of Applicants for Emergency Visas
Appendix B. Examples of René-Eva and Robert-Eclair
Correspondence
Appendix C. Eva's Memorial Summary of Otto's Life
Notes
Bibliography
Index
