Paris Undercover by Matthew Goodman
Published: February 4, 2025 by Ballantine Books
Genre:
Non Fiction, WWII
Taken from Goodreads: Two women in Nazi-occupied Paris created a daring escape line that rescued dozens of Allied servicemen. With one in a German prison camp, the other wrote a book about it—a memoir that was built on lies. Now the bestselling author of Eighty Days shares their incredible, never-before-told full story.
Etta Shiber and Kitty Bonnefous are the unlikeliest of two seemingly ordinary
women, an American widow and an English divorcée, living quietly together in
Paris. Yet during the Nazi occupation, these two friends find themselves
unexpectedly plunged into the whirlwind of history. With the help of a French
country priest and others, they rescue untold numbers of British and French
soldiers trapped behind enemy lines—some of whom they daringly smuggle
through Nazi checkpoints in the trunk of their car.
Ultimately the Gestapo captures them both. After eighteen months in prison,
Etta, a New Yorker of Jewish descent, is returned to the United States in a
prisoner exchange. Back home, hoping to bring attention to her friend Kitty’s
bravery, Etta publishes a memoir about their work. Paris-Underground becomes
a publishing sensation and Etta a celebrity. Meanwhile Kitty spends the rest of
the war in solitary confinement in a Nazi prison, entirely unaware of the book
that has been written about her – and the deeds that have been claimed in her
name.
In researching this story, Matthew Goodman uncovered military records, personal
testimonies, and Etta Shiber’s own never-before-seen wartime letters. Together
they reveal, for the first time, the shocking truth behind Etta's bestselling
memoir and the unexpected, far-reaching consequences of its
publication. More than just a story of two women’s remarkable courage, Paris
Undercover is also a vivid, gripping account of deceit, betrayal, and
personal redemption.
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He has given book talks at venues including
the Museum of the City of New York, the Gotham Center for New York History, the
Center for Jewish History, the National Yiddish Book Center, the Brooklyn Book
Festival, the 92nd Street Y, the Newseum in Washington, D.C., Authors at
Harbourfront Centre in Toronto, and many bookstores, universities, and
libraries. His radio and television appearances include National Public
Radio’s All Things Considered, The Diane Rehm Show, On the Media, Only
a Game, Back Story, and The Splendid Table; HuffPost
Live; the British Broadcasting Corporation’s Woman’s Hour; the
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s As It Happens; Arte
France’s L’Incontournable; and numerous others.
He lives in Brooklyn, New York, with his wife
and two children.
Contact: matthewgoodmanbooks@gmail.com
