Ninette’s war by John jay {Review}

In 1943, most exodians still believed forced labour was the worst fate awaiting French Jews. Even firsthand testimony failed to convince them, as two Auschwitz escapees, Haïm Salomon and M Honig, discovered when they returned to Nice looking for their families. Having survived the selection, the pair escaped and reached France. Arriving first, Honig described Auschwitz’s gas chambers to the Comité Dubouchage, a group that represented the Riviera’s Jews in talks with the Italians. Concluding that the horrors of a concentration camp had sent him mad, the committee took pity on him and spirited him and his family over the border to Switzerland.
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In a nutshell

Ninette’s War is a Jewish story of survival set in 1940s France. John Jay explores the country’s dark years under Nazi occupation through the life of Ninette Dreyfus. When the war breaks out, Ninette is a teenager, described as “a cosseted scion” – living a sheltered, privileged life. That world is quickly stripped away as she is forced into adulthood, exile, and life as a fugitive. Through her story, the book sheds light on the lived experience of French Jews during this time.

Book Club Notes

This isn’t an easy, flowing read, but it is incredibly well researched. John Jay draws on first-hand conversations with Ninette, her diaries from 1939 – 1951, as well as archived documents, memoirs, interviews, and history books to build a detailed account. That said, I struggled with the flow. Just as I would get immersed in Ninette’s personal story, the narrative would shift into long sections of historical context. While this adds depth and is valuable from a historical perspective, it did interrupt the storytelling for me. Because of this, I’d recommend the book more for history lovers than for readers looking for a smooth, narrative-driven read.