For Their Own Good: Civilian Evacuations in Germany and France, 1939-1945

Torrie (European history, St. Thomas U., Canada) compares the evacuation efforts in the two countries because sometimes they were distinct and different, and sometimes they were linked and nearly unified. Evacuations began along the border between France and Germany before the war started, she explains, to make way for troops, and the program in each country was molded by the perceived threat from the other country, a foundation that influenced all that happened later. During most the war, France was occupied by Germany, the two territories being administered as one from Berlin, and the Allied bombing raids paid little attention to a border that might have become extinct. But history and culture persevered, and evacuations continued to be a little different in each country. She covers preparing for air war, order or chaos, organizing evacuations, the stay giving no pleasure, maintaining family unity, the basis of selection, responding to chaos, and the aftermath of evacuation. Annotation c2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Julia S. Torrie completed her PhD at Harvard University and has taught European History at St. Thomas University in Canada since 2002.