THE BELGIAN GIRLS

Atwood’s YA historical novel follows two young Belgian women who defied occupying German forces, the first during World War I and the second during World War II.

It is May of 1942, and the Germans are occupying Belgium for the second time in fewer than three decades. Julienne Gobert and her father, Maurice, are leaving their small town of L’ Elpe and moving to Brussels to live with Maurice’s sister, Cecile. (Life has become sad since the recent tragic death of Julienne’s mother.) When they arrive in Brussels, Cecile greets her brother with warm enthusiasm. She is colder toward her niece, reflecting, Julienne thinks, the acrimonious relationship Cecile had with Julienne’s French-born mother. The next day, while Julienne is working in Cecile’s grocery shop, she helps an elderly Jewish woman and her granddaughter, who are being harassed by a Nazi officer. By coming to the Jewish women’s aid, Julienne incurs Cecile’s wrath. That evening, walking through Brussels, Julienne comes upon a statue of Gabrielle Petit, a resistance heroine from World War I (“the shopgirl who died for Belgium”). She will learn that she has a profound connection with Gabrielle, a real-life historical figure whose heroics (she bravely defied the Germans until she was caught and executed) were the inspiration for Atwood’s novel. Like Gabrielle, Julienne gradually and courageously immerses herself in the Belgian resistance against the Nazi occupiers. Atwood’s narrative deftly alternates between the women’s parallel tales, toggling back and forth between the two World Wars while sprinkling breadcrumbs of connections between the two. (A vibrant cast of significant secondary characters from Gabrielle’s story—survivors of the first war—reappears in Julienne’s saga to support her in her mission.) The novel is packed with chilling historical details about German atrocities against civilians, Belgian Nazi sympathizers, and the valiant acts of the resistors as they waited for the Allies to turn the tide. Scenes of adventure, frightening close calls, and great losses keep the fluidly scribed pages turning.

Intriguing, disturbing, and historically compelling, best for older YA readers.