The Innocents Within

by Robert Daley

Book Overview

Based on a little-known true story, The Innocents Within offers a unique and untold view of wartime France and the Holocaust. The scene is the high plateau of the Massif Central. The time is the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0375501789
• ISBN13: 9780375501784
• Release Date: September 1999
• Publisher: Villard Books
• Length: 438 Pages
• Weight: 1.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 6.5" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

A Novel that is almost a History

The Innocents Within by Robert Daley: A well-written novel describing explicitly realistically the possible daily routine in occupied France during the Second World War. Robert Daley has developed convincing characters, ranging from a Protestant minister down to a French farmer, whose reactions to the occupying German forces appear to be such a credible description that the novel reads more like a personal history. Into the complex arena of occupied France, Mr. Daley pops in (literally) a shot-down American flier. (I wondered why Daley had the American pilot, David Gannon, attending Fordham University, until I looked up the author's biography and saw that R. Daley had graduated from Fordham in 1951.) Davey, the downed and wounded American pilot, has to be cared for by the stepdaughter of the minister, Andre Favert, and, as usual, one thing leads to another, and the pilot and the daughter are doing what comes naturally. Daley excels in describing naturally occurring events, as the drive in the snow to the prison, the tracks the farmer left behind when he drew the gasoline from crashed American plane, and the treatment of the farmer, his farm and his animals when the Germans discover that the farmer had helped the American airman. For example, the author has the German soldiers not just killing the pigs, but butchering them and taking away the hams. This presents the picture of a group of men destroying a farm, killing the farmer and all the while considering what they were going to do for dinner after the "work" was done. Daley does not completely develop the German characters, in my opinion, as the German soldiers are depicted more as grasping and thieving individuals, rather than fanatics of an army of Master-Race

THOUGHT PROVOKING; COMPELLING

I have to admit that I read less than three novels per year (non-fiction being my interest). This said, Daley's Innocents captures the reader in a real-life setting wrapped around a compelling love story. The author obviously has first-hand experience with airplanes, WW II, and falling deeply in love. I wonder if I would have put my own family at risk to shelter refugees, as these courageous French families did. Would you?

A Message of Hope

I found Robert Daley's "The Innocents Within" to be a fascinating look into a part of World War II that I had never read about before. We all know of the invasion of Normandy, the fall and liberation of Paris, the bitterness of the Nazi occupation of the country. But Mr. Daley's moving story about simple people preyed upon by war in a poor, little known, "unglamorous" part of France, was, for me, both interesting and powerful. In a time when moral decisions seem to be hedged or clouded, Mr. Daley's story of Pastor Andre Favert rings with a refreshing and reassuring clarity. The book's portrayal of a Protestant minister who saves the lives of thousands of Jews (and others), despite physical and spiritual trials, reveals a rare heroism, rarer still because it is paterned aftr a true story. Of course, like all strong books, "The Innocents Within" is made up of more than one story and it is the intertwining of these several threads that moves the book forward at a brisk pace. I found the rather improbable love story between the downed American pilot and the pastor's adopted Jewish daughter to be a touching counterpart to Nazi brutality and to the senseless repugnance of war. Despite the horrors, the cruelty, the poverty of place and time, Mr. Daley's message is still one of hope, personified by Andre Favert. For me, "The Innocents Within" is a "real book, adult in the best sense of the word and a rich, satisfying read.

Compelling and colorful tale of intrigue

Mr. Daley has done it again. The dramatic account of a youngAmerican pilot, Jewish girl and heroic gentiles risking their livesmakes for a truly energetic and gripping plot. I tried to savor the story, and make it last, but I had to stay up late to finish or not be able to fall asleep, too anxious to find out how all these fascinating characters would turn out. I loved this book and would recommend it for its historical drama, realistic romance, and superb turn of events

Up all night!

This book kept me up later than I wanted to be up. The blending of history and deeply evolved characters make for a worthwhile investment of precious time. I was interested to see the New York Times (Oct 29, 1999) interview with Mr. Daley which took place in the town where these brave people stood up for what was right. DON'T MISS THIS ONE-an excellent book!