
Muriel's War
An American Heiress in the Nazi Resistance
Sheila Isenberg(Author)
Palgrave Macmillan (Publisher)
Published on 29. December 2010
Book
Hardback
256 pages
978-0-230-61565-6 (ISBN)
Description
An American heiress turned resistance hero, Muriel Gardiner was an electrifying woman who impressed everyone she met with her beauty, intelligence, and powerful personality. Her adventurous life led her from Chicago's high society to a Viennese medical school, from Sigmund Freud's inner circle to the Austrian underground. Over the years, she saved countless Jews and anti-fascists, providing shelter and documents ensuring their escape. This remarkable woman's life as a legend of the Austrian Resistance was captured in the movie Julia with Vanessa Redgrave and remains an inspiration to all those who believe that one individual can change the world. Gardiner's astonishing story is told here for the first time in all its variety and unanticipated twists and turns.
Reviews / Votes
'Isenberg's account of her extravagant life and loves is a gripping read.' - The Scotsman 'Terrible times can elicit extraordinary deeds even from ordinary people, and Muriel Gardner was anything but ordinary...[Author Sheila Isenberg sets] the story straight about this intrepid American heroine.' - The Boston Globe 'A long overdue biography of a remarkable woman. Mining hitherto unpublished material Sheila Isenberg skillfully weaves together the complex threads of Muriel's life into a riveting story of her many loves and unassuming heroism.' - Brenda Webster, author of Vienna Triangle 'Sheila Isenberg tells Muriel Gardiner's extraordinary story exceedingly well. Muriel's War portrays the energetic idealism and exceptional generosity of its subject with admiration, even devotion. Through careful attention to every available source, Isenberg details the remarkable achievements of a life filled to overflowing with benevolent action and unflinching reflection.' - George Rupp, President, International Rescue Committee "Beautiful, brilliant, rich, brave, Muriel Gardiner could have been a character in a potboiler novel - but she was a real-life heroine of the Nazi resistance and Sheila Isenburg has done an extraordinary job of documenting her remarkable life both conscientiously and suspensefully in this absorbing biography." - Amanda Vaill, author of Everybody Was So Young: Sara and Gerald Murphy - A Lost Generation Love Story "This is an utterly absorbing book. Exhaustively researched and thoroughly documented, it is dramatic, suspenseful, and movingly inspirational." - Arthur Zitrin, M.D., Professor emeritus of psychiatry at New York University School of Medicine, Co-producer of the documentary film, "The Real Julia: The Muriel Gardiner Story' "Isenberg puts Gardiner's life in sharp focus - what twists in her life brought her to Vienna and ultimately to underground resistance work during and after Hitler's 1938 takeover of Austria. We see what makes Gardiner human, and what makes her a hero, but most of all we see how one woman can make a difference in the lives of many. Murial Gardiner looked fear in the face, and as Eleanor Roosevelt has said, 'we must do that which we think we cannot.'" - JoAnn Myers, chair of the Eleanor Roosevelt Center, professor of Political Science & Women's Studies at Marist College, USAMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Basingstoke
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
Illustrations, map, ports.
Dimensions
Height: 243 mm
Width: 160 mm
Thickness: 23 mm
Weight
437 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-230-61565-6 (9780230615656)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
SHEILA ISENBERG author of Varian Fry, A Hero of Our Own and Women Who Love Men Who Kill. She is the recipient of a fellowship from the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation. She is an instructor of English and Journalism at Marist college. She lives in Poughkeepsie, NY.