goillot, virginia

"This is a historical nonfiction book about Virginia Hall, an American spy in France who the Nazis dubbed 'the most dangerous of allied spies.' It tells the story of her youth and her work in Europe during the second world war"--Provided by the publisher.

"To say Virginia 'Dindy' Hall was ambitious would be an understatement. She was that girl at your high school who makes everyone else look like a slacker, no matter how hard they're working. But how many of them can say they've been on Nazi Germany's Most Wanted list? At a time when most women were expected to becomes wives and mothers, Virginia craved adventure. And with the world gearing up for a second World War, this fearless woman knew that she had to find a way to get involved. When the State Department proved to be a sexist boy's club that wouldn't allow her in, she went to England to join their Special Operations unit, which was more than happy to hire this talented, brilliant woman. Even after a terrible accident left her needing a wooden leg, she remained undeterred. Soon Virginia became an essential part of the Allied mission and the French Resistance, earning the dangerous honor of being named 'the most dangerous of all Allied spies' by the Gestapo"--Provided by publisher.

Describes some of the creative and subversive tactics the United States used to win World War II, including hiring Virginia Hall, the Allied Forces' most dangerous spy.

"The never-before-told story of one woman's heroism that changed the course of the Second World War. In 1942, the Gestapo sent out an urgent transmission: 'She is the most dangerous of all Allied spies. We must find and destroy her.' This spy was Virginia Hall, a young American woman--rejected from the foreign service because of her gender and her prosthetic leg--who talked her way into the spy organization dubbed Churchill's 'ministry of ungentlemanly warfare,' and, before the United States had even entered the war, became the first woman to deploy to occupied France . . . At a time when sending female secret agents into enemy territory was still strictly forbidden, Virginia Hall came to be known as the 'Madonna of the Resistance,' coordinating a network of spies to blow up bridges, report on German troop movements, arrange equipment drops for Resistance agents, and recruit and train guerilla fighters"--Provided by publisher.

"When Hitler invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, Virginia Hall was traveling in Europe. Which was dangerous enough, but as fighting erupted across the continent, instead of returning home, she headed to France. In a country divided between freedom and fascism, Virginia was determined to do her part for the Allies. An ordinary woman from Baltimore, Maryland, she dove into the action, first joining a French ambulance unit and later becoming an undercover agent for both the British Special Operations Executive and the US Office of Strategic Services. Working as a spy in the intelligence network, she made her way to Vichy, coordinating Resistance movements, assisting in the sabotage of Nazis, and rescuing downed Allied soldiers. She passed in plain sight of the enemy, and soon found herself being hunted by the Gestapo. But Virginia cleverly evaded discovery and death, often through bold feats and daring escapes. Her covert operations, efforts with the Resistance, and risky work as a wireless telegraph operator greatly contributed to the Allies' eventual win"--.

Chronicles the life and career of Virginia Hall, who became a spy during World War II even though she had a wooden leg.