1942 Kasia rescues a mute Polish girl from a ghetto and escapes to France with her. They stay with winemaker Hugo but Kasia has a secret role to send radio messages to the Allies which puts them all in danger…
All the Courage We Have Found is an historical novel set during the Nazi occupation of France in the Second World War.
The main three characters are thrown together unexpectedly. They need to negotiate their relationships as well as contend with their own painful memories of the past. Hope for the future is tempered by the fear of the present and sorrow from the past.
A palpable tension exists from the start of the book and danger is never far away from any of the characters. Kasia has a mission to code and transmit messages, actively defying the Nazis by being part of the resistance. Hugo has attempted to outwardly conform but now his guests put him at risk.
There is a lot of emotion in the book which the characters try to block out in order to function and survive. We are shown Kasia, Hugo and the girl’s perspectives and I found the latter utterly heartbreaking due to the childlike quality the author adopts. The presence of the girl allows Hugo to confront his past and show Kasia his vulnerable side.
All the Courage We Have Found is a tense and emotional historical novel.
All the Courage We Have Found: An utterly heartbreaking and beautiful World War 2 historical novel by Carly Schabowski
About the book
France, 1942: An unforgettable, heart-wrenching and utterly unputdownable World War Two novel about one woman’s bravery in the face of darkness, and her heartbreaking decision to risk everything to do the right thing…
As Kasia creeps out of the farmhouse in the dead of night to transmit an urgent message, her heart pounds in her chest. Gripping her radio tightly in her hand, she feels a terrible sense of dread. She knows that this message could be the one that finally leads the Nazis to her…
Crouching in the shadows, with trembling fingers she turns the dial on her radio and hears the familiar crackle of static. Shaking, she quickly taps out her message and, holding her breath, she waits in the darkness.
Suddenly, she sees a quick flash of light out at sea. Her message has been received by the Allied boats; now they know it’s not safe to come ashore tonight.
As she looks back towards the little farmhouse, her heart catches in her throat. Inside, the two people she loves most in this world are sleeping soundly. Because while Kasia knows her messages might save thousands of soldiers, she also knows that her radio signal could bring the Germans terrifyingly close, perhaps even straight to Hugo and Elodie…
Carly Schabowski worked as a journalist in both North Cyprus and Australia before returning to Oxford, where she studied for an MA and then a PhD in creative writing at Oxford Brookes University. Carly now teaches at Oxford Brookes University as an associate lecturer in Creative Writing for first and second-year English literature students.
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