The Children of Freedom

The Children of Freedom
Marc Levy

A remarkable story of struggle and survival in World War II by France's No. 1 bestselling novelistEarly in 1942, two young brothers join a Resistance group. All the members of the group are young, most of their families came from elsewhere in Europe or North Africa and all of them are passionately committed to the freedom of France and Europe. They find they are not welcomed by other French groups and thus Brigade 35 is formed. For most of them, their growing up, their falling in love, their sense of friendship and family are formed by their time with the group, and between moments of extreme danger and fear, a lifestyle of a kind of normality develops.But tragedy follows when the brothers are arrested, a number of members of the Brigade 35 are killed and a traitor is suspected. The tensions between former comrades and other Resistance fighters mounts and all this against the desperate hope that the invasion by the allies is really drawing near and will rescue them all.

The Children of Freedom

Translated from the French by Sue Dyson

Marc Levy

For my father for his brother Claude, for all the children of freedom.

For my son and for you my love.

I am very fond of that verb, ‘to resist’. To resist what imprisons us, to resist prejudices, hasty judgements, the desire to judge, everything that is bad in us and cries out to be expressed, the desire to abandon, the need to make people feel sorry for us, the need to talk about ourselves to the detriment of others, fashions, unhealthy ambitions, prevailing confusion.

To resist, and…to smile.

Emma Dancourt

Table of Contents

Cover Page (#u9a0b9b2b-cb20-5643-8b09-b56b8c5083e5)

Title Page (#u0af206e6-dfe6-5295-8dae-01a5468ce94d)

Epigraph (#u9382cdcf-35de-5d10-893e-66720e7e30e1)

Prologue (#u273db150-47e9-55e4-86c0-33ce0a56ddf6)

PART ONE (#u48f7e42d-5357-5ffc-952a-0748e25b1c8b)

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