My Father's Secret War: A Memoir
MY FATHER'S SECRET WAR: A Memoir (Miramax Books; Hardcover; On-sale March
14, 2007):
Family relationships are often riddled with conflict, and Lucinda
Franks's relationship with her father was no exception. After decades of a
strained, uneasy coexistence, Franks stumbled across a secret about her
father: the remote, nearly impassive man she grew up with had in fact been a
daring spy behind enemy lines in World War II.
Originally sworn to secrecy, Tom Franks began revealing details of his
wartime activities only in the last years of his life. His exploits revealed
a man of remarkable bravado --- posing as a Nazi guard, slipping behind
enemy lines to blow up ammunition dumps and being flown to one of the first
concentration camps liberated by the Allies to report on the atrocities
found there.
MY FATHER'S SECRET WAR is an intimate account of Franks coming to know
her own father after years of estrangement. As she turns her reporting
skills on her family, she glimpses a loving man full of warmth in the years
before the war. But after his grim wartime exploits, he takes refuge in a
chilly distance and a secret romance. Franks's story is haunting and
beautifully told, even as the tragedy becomes clear: Franks finally comes to
know her father, but only as he slips into dementia.
MY FATHER'S SECRET WAR is a triumph of love over secrets and a tribute to
a daughter's insistence on knowing her father. It will, we believe, resonate
for many adult children of "The Greatest Generation."
"Even the most painful moments-as when she throws a particularly
harrowing revelation back in her father's face to score revenge for
adolescent resentments-are recounted with unflinching honesty as the
military history takes a backseat to the powerful family drama."
---Publishers Weekly
“Here is one of the most original memoirs of our time—an unsparing double
portrait of an elusive and mysterious man and the daughter determined to
learn the fullest truth about his life. Richly documented by the author’s
research into U.S. military intelligence records and her father’s private
correspondence, MY FATHER'S SECRET WAR moves with the dramatic and moral
urgency of a Graham Greene novel.” ---Joyce Carol Oates
"MY FATHER'S SECRET WAR tells the story of a devoted daughter’s search to
understand a father broken and drained by the Second World War --- a father
who at the same time attracts, repels, and obsesses her. Lucinda
Franks’memoir is a fascinating combination of sensitivity, suspense, and
mystery told against the Nazi nightmare." ---Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.
More details about Lucinda Franks and MY FATHER'S SECRET WAR can be found
on LucindaFranks.com, including:
-About the Book: http://www.lucindafranks.com/content/book_description.asp
-Excerpt: http://www.lucindafranks.com/content/book_excerpt.asp
-Appearances/Events: http://www.lucindafranks.com/content/events.asp
(subject to change)
-Praise: http://www.lucindafranks.com/content/press.asp | 
