The Women Who Wrote the War

The women who served as combat correspondents in World War II were a capable, gutsy, and inquisitive bunch. Their bravery snapping photos from bomb-laden B-17s over North Africa or interviewing blood-soaked soldiers fresh from Iwo Jima was matched only by their pluck in overcoming sexist double standards and patronizing attitudes. To a one, they were determined to prove their mettle at a time when "few newspaperwomen had made it from the society desk into the newsroom," as author Nancy Caldwell Sorel points out. Sorel (whose witty First Encounters appeared in The Atlantic for years) tracked down dozens of these women, most well into or past their 70s, and has combined candid interviews with rigorous research to piece together their amazing wartime stories. The Women Who Wrote the War follows the chronology of the conflict through the reporters' eyes, beginning as early as a 1931 interview of Hitler by Dorothy Thompson Lewis (wife of Sinclair), in which she called the future Führer "inconsequent ... voluble, ill-poised, insecure." (Shortly after her "Little Man" rose to power, she would be expelled.) Tough and opinionated Collier's correspondent Martha Gellhorn, another reporter married to a famous writer, frustrated her new husband, Ernest Hemingway, shortly after D-Day--defying military orders, she sneaked onto the beaches of Normandy just ahead of him, pitching in as a stretcher-bearer to get her story. Gripping and well documented, Sorel's work ably captures the excitement of both the war and the exploits of the women who reported on it. --Paul Hughes From Library Journal Sorel, a freelance journalist who writes regularly for Esquire and the Atlantic, has assembled an impressive amount of biographical information about the women reporters who covered World War II. Though numbering fewer than 100, these women were extremely dedicated to overcoming the bias of their employers, who often felt that the front was no place for a woman, and of the military itself. The stories of these women reportersAe.g., Lee Miller, Martha GelhornAare at once inspiring, frustrating, and sad, and most are certainly worth knowing. The book, however, is more anecdotal than analytical. Important questions, such as whether these women reported the war differently from their male counterparts, is not treated systematically. In addition, the place of women in the history of news needs greater context. Still, as a journalistic account of an often neglected story, it is recommended for public libraries.AFrederic Krome, Jacob Rader Marcus Ctr. of the American Jewish Archives, Cincinnati Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Booklist World War II is a story without end that can be told from countless perspectives, and Sorel, a contributor to Esquire and the Atlantic , has chosen one that is as fascinating as it is overlooked: the unique vantage point of women war correspondents. Their battle began at home, where they had to convince skeptical male editors of their mettle, and it continued on the battlefield. Treated either dismissively or overprotectively, they were also the objects of much sexual and romantic desire, but these unconventional and courageous women persevered, suffering all the hardships and horrors of war in Europe and the Pacific, and striving to tell the truth about what they witnessed. Sorel, who never fails to relish a telling anecdote, deftly weaves together more than a dozen profiles of such trailblazers as Sigrid Schultz, Berlin bureau chief for the Chicago Tribune ; photographer Margaret Bourke-White; Martha Gellhorn; Virginia Cowles; Sonia Tomara; Lee Miller; and Dickey Chapelle, who was later killed in combat in Vietnam. By insightfully presenting both the private and professional sides of her subjects' lives, Sorel has written a many-faceted and refulgent chapter in the history of women, war, and journalism. Donna Seaman From Kirkus Reviews A worthwhile, impressively researched history of the women correspondents who chronicled WWII. Sorel (co-author, with Edward Sorel, of First Encounters: Meetings with Memorable People, 1994) tells the trail-blazing stories of some two dozen women journalists who covered US military operations during WWII. Although these women faced the same dangerous conditions as their male counterparts, they also confronted the military's patronizing attitudes about women. In one memorable wartime example, General George Patton delivered an expletive-laden lecture to his staff officers, interspersing his tirade with sheepish apologies to the ``lady'' reporters in the back. Much of the book describes the resourcefulness of these women in circumventing the military's endless restrictions. Marguerite Higgins bent the rules to become the first reporter to detail the sickening horrors of Dachau, arriving at the camp within minutes of its liberation. ``Dickey'' Chapelle covered the carnage on Iwo Jima, getting shot at by the enemy and reprimanded by the US military. Martha Gellhorn had an especially rocky war, covering events in Europe and Asia with her philandering husband, Ernest Hemingway. Despite the risks, these woman forced their way to the front lines. Catherine Coyne's account of being at ground zero while Nazi bombers attacked a bridge is simply unforgettable. Janet Flanner, the famous ``Gent'' of the New Yorker, brilliantly depicts the liberation of Paris. Sorel has a gargantuan task in attempting to capture the experiences of so many different women in so many different places, from North Africa to China to Normandy. At moments, her wide-ranging narrative suffers from a lack of depth. The famously tempestuous relationship between Gellhorn and Hemingway, for example, is described only briefly, as is Lee Miller's friendship with Pablo Picasso. Any one of these fearless women could be the subject of an entire book. An ambitious and entertaining examination of a neglected side of American military history: the war within a war waged by women journalists. (b&w photos, not seen) -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. "Hunger for books about World War II is never satisfied. Give his to your daughter or to anyone who doesn't see women as ambitious and tough as men." -- Washington Times Nancy Caldwell Sorel has vividly recreated the adventures and hardship of war reporting for the 100 or so women who saw action during World War II. -- The New York Times Book Review , Judith Newman Read more