Page 6 - Jewish News_June-July-2021

6A June/July 2021 FEDERATION NEWS

People of the Book...continued from previous page
ing on an exhibit for the U.S. Holocaust There have been a lot of books most inspiring, death-defying upsets of
Memorial Museum on “Americans and written about U.S. immigration policy all time and a symbolic blow against
the Holocaust.” As part of this exhibit, under FDR but none that have linked the Nazis during history’s darkest hour.
we looked at America’s response to the that debate to the stories of individual Neal Bascomb is the award-win-
Jewish refugee crisis that resulted from refugees and actions of U.S. consuls ning and New York Times bestselling
Nazi persecution of the Jews under and other officials. In order to tell this author of The Winter Fortress, Hunt-
Hitler. I wanted to connect the political story, I had to gather information from ing Eichmann and The Perfect Mile,
debates in the United States to the fates a wide range of official and unofficial among others.
of individual Jewish refugees attempt- sources, including State Department Why did you decide to write
ing to flee Nazi Germany. I ended up files, archives in the U.S., Germany, about this one particular aspect of
focusing on the experiences of Jews in France and Britain, family correspon- the Holocaust?
dence, court cases, visa files, oral his- It all starts with a story. A friend
tories, relief agency records and so on. regaled me about a 1930s French race
It was a challenge akin to assembling car built by Delahaye that had been
a huge jigsaw puzzle where you have dismantled and hidden away outside of
to search for the individual pieces in Paris before the Nazis invaded. Such
many different places. It took a lot of was the renown of the car and the Jew-
searching and piecing together for the ish driver, Rene Dreyfus, who had pi-
final picture to emerge. loted the Delahaye to victory against
What lessons or message do you the Germans, that Hitler wanted any
hope readers will take away from memory of it erased. This incredible Neal Bascomb
your book that will be pertinent to story first sparked my interest, and then the world who are often very propri-
our world today? I came to understand the history was etary about what they have. Thankful-
The immigration debate in the U.S. even richer, with an American heiress ly, I was able to convince the Dreyfus
tends to be rather abstract, with strong and speed-queen named Lucy Schell family to open up its personal archives
passions on either side. My book funding the challenge to beat the Third to me, everything from photographs,
shows that political and bureaucratic Reich in the greatest sport in Europe at collections of new articles in a dozen
debates here in Washington have real the time, motor racing. languages, letters and even the speech-
life consequences, and are sometimes a What was the biggest challenge es at Rene’s funeral. This then offered
Michael Dobbs matter of life and death for the people in writing this book, and how did clues on where to unearth details about
a single village in southwest Germa- involved. you overcome it? Lucy’s remarkable life. As with every
ny called Kippenheim. Some of these Neal Bascomb / Faster Tracking down the stories of Rene book, it takes a bit of detective work.
Jews found refuge in America. Others, As Nazi Germany launched its cam- Dreyfus and Lucy Schell was very What lessons or message do you
tragically, were unable to obtain Amer- paign of racial terror and pushed the difficult. Despite their celebrity at the hope readers will take away from
ican visas and ended up in places like world toward war, three misfits band- time (and success against the Nazis your book that will be pertinent to
Auschwitz. Exploring why some died ed together to challenge Hitler’s dom- that rivaled that of Jesse Owens), they our world today?
while others survived is the principal inance at the apex of motorsport: the had largely been forgotten, particularly Faster is a David vs. Goliath tale,
theme of The Unwanted. Grand Prix. Their quest for redemption from the history books. Further, there is one about a small, unlikely band of
What was the biggest challenge culminated in a remarkable race that no central archive of motor sport. Re- strivers who take on the monolithic
in writing this book, and how did is still talked about in racing circles to cords of the past are largely scattered Third Reich motor champions. Lucy
you overcome it? this day. Faster chronicles one of the among individual collectors around continued on next page

SUPPORT ISRAELI Victims

OF Terror

Photo: AP Ariel Schalit

H am a s and I s l amic J ih a d h a v e b e e n
Hamas and Islamic Jihad have been
t f
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incessantly sending rocket fire into Israel
t
k
inc
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nding r
s
and indiscriminately targeting Israeli citizens.
and indi s cr imin a t el y t ar g e t ing I s r a eli c i t i z e n s . Y o ur gi f t w i l l go
Your gift will go
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where families need it
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We support Israel as it undertakes its critical whe s e f ami l um s a need e i , t
W
t unde
t
r
s
upp
most — trauma care,
car
t — tr
a
mo
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counseling, home
home
,
w or k t o de f e nd t he J e w i s h S t a t e . repairs and crucial
work to defend the Jewish State.
pai
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s
and
cr
s oci al s e r v i c e s .
social services.
If you would like to help with emergency aid to the survivors of this tragedy, please donate to
the Victims of Terror Fund, which will support The Jewish Agency, our partner on the ground
in Israel. Thank you for your generosity!
To donate, please visit: JFEDSRQ.org/TerrorFund