The Girl From the Channel Islands

 The Girl From the Channel Islands                                                                   Jenny Lecoat

This debut novel by screenwriter, Jenny Lecoat, is set in the place of her birth, Jersey, one of the small Channel Islands just 14 miles off the coast of Brittany in France. 

The World War 2 story is a retelling of actual events. The main character, Hedy, has survived the Anschluss in her native Austria and finds herself working as a mother's helper on Jersey just before the island is invaded and annexed by the German army in 1940. In spite of being Jewish, Hedy is able to find work as a translator for the German authorities, a position that enables her to defy the Germans and aid her community. She ends up in a relationship with a German officer who is then instrumental in her survival. 

I don't know if most people realize the extent of the hardships faced by the Channel Islanders during the German occupation. Personal rights were obliterated overnight, most foodstuffs were requisitioned by the Germans, leaving the locals in a position of near-famine. Radios were seized, electricity was sporadic and fuel for cooking or keeping warm was hard to come by. People became so desperate that they would do almost anything to survive. 

Then, when the Allies attacked the French coast during the June 1944 D-day raids, Islanders' hopes of rescue died as they came to realize that they were being passed over. The actual rescue did not arrive until nearly a year later. 

Despite the riveting details of all these troubles and hardships (I had to put the book down and walk away a few times) I enjoyed reading  The Girl From the Channel Islands and recommend it to others.