Art of Resistance

An unforgettable World War II memoir set in Nazi-occupied France and filled with romance and adventure: a former Eastern European Jew remembers his flight from the Holocaust and his extraordinary four years in the French underground. Justus Rosenberg,now 98has taught literature at Bard College for the past fifty years. In 1937as the Nazis gained control and anti-Semitism spread in the Free City of Danziga majority German city on the Baltic Seasixteen-year-old Justus Rosenberg was sent to Paris to finish his education in safety. Three years laterFrance fell to the Germans. Alone and in dangerpennilessand cut off from contact with his family in PolandJustus fled south. A chance meeting led him to Varian Fryan American journalist in Marseille helping thousands of men and womenincluding many artists and intellectuals–among them Hannah ArendtMarc ChagallAndre Bretonand Max Ernst–escape the Nazis. With his German backgroundunderstanding of French cultureand fluency in several languagesincluding EnglishJustus became an invaluable member of Fry’s refugee network as a spy and scout. The spry blond who looked even younger than his age flourished in the undergroundhandling counterfeit documentssecret passwordsblack market currencysurveying escape routesand dealing with avaricious gangsters. But when Fry was eventually forced to leave FranceGussieas he was affectionately knowncould not get out. For the next four yearsJustus relied on his wits and skills to escape captivitysurvive several close calls with deathand continue his fight against the Nazisworking with the French Resistance and laterbecoming attached with the United States Army. At the war’s endJustus emigrated to Americaand built a new life. Justus’ story is a powerful saga of braverydaringadventureand survival with the soul of a spy thriller. Reflecting on his pastJustus sees his life as a confluence of circumstances. As he writes\