The Hiding Game<\/a><\/em>, a work of creative nonfiction, is a moving account of the author\u2019s great-uncle Daniel Benedite and Varian Fry, brave men who were instrumental in saving the lives of some of the most important scientists, artists, writers and thinkers of the day such as; Vlady Serge who fled to Mexico and became one of the country\u2019s leading muralist, Max Ernst, a German painter, and artists Marc Chagall and Marcel Duchamp, among others.<\/p>\n\n\n\nLittle Aube, daughter of the famous poet, Andre Breton,( known as the Pope of Surrealism), is forced to move from place to place with her family during the 1940s in Nazi-occupied France. They eventually find shelter in Villa Air-Bel, a hidden villa where Varian, with funds from the New York American Rescue Committee, works with Daniel to arrange passage for them, and others, out of war-torn Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sundays are Aube\u2019s favorite day because, together with all of the \u201cguests\u201d in the house, she spends the day drawing, singing, and playing games. \u201cPapa said that by singing, playing and laughing with the greatest joy, they would fight against fear.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But most of the time, things remain secret, like the radio for listening to the war news, and the cow in the yard for giving milk. Aube also has her own secret hiding place; the old armoire in the kitchen, just in case \u201cthey\u201d come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Illustrations by Herb Leonhard draw the reader into the lives of the characters, turning a factual account into a personal encounter with time and history. Strauss also provides actual photos of the individuals, a brief history of the account, and links for further study and reading.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I leave you with a quote listed in the book\u2019s endnotes attributed to Rosemary Sullivan\u2019s book, Villa Air-Bel. \u201cAndre Breton believed that surrealism and art must keep the playful child inside us alive. He believed that laughter was fundamentally the opposite of fascism.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Veronica Jorge<\/p>\n\n\n\n
See you next time on April 22nd<\/sup>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Picture books, that welcoming world of imagery and words that capture the heart and the imagination. And most wonderful of all, when the story is true and reveals a hidden gem.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":475,"featured_media":20769,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2160,1528],"tags":[502,3607],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?resize=70%2C70&ssl=1",70,70,true],"medium":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=241%2C300&ssl=1",241,300,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"mbt_book_image":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"mbt_endorsement_image":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=321%2C400&ssl=1",321,400,true],"theme-large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"theme-half":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"theme-third":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=371%2C463&ssl=1",371,463,true],"theme-fourth":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=271%2C338&ssl=1",271,338,true],"theme-thumbnail":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?resize=200%2C200&ssl=1",200,200,true]},"post_excerpt_stackable":"
Picture books, that welcoming world of imagery and words that capture the heart and the imagination. And most wonderful of all, when the story is true and reveals a hidden gem.<\/p>\n","category_list":"Book Reviews by Veronica Jorge<\/a>, Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge<\/a>","author_info":{"name":"Veronica Jorge","url":"https:\/\/www.asliceoforange.net\/author\/veronica-jorge\/"},"comments_num":"0 comments","featured_image_urls_v2":{"full":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?resize=70%2C70&ssl=1",70,70,true],"medium":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=241%2C300&ssl=1",241,300,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"mbt_book_image":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"mbt_endorsement_image":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=321%2C400&ssl=1",321,400,true],"theme-large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"theme-half":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=401%2C500&ssl=1",401,500,true],"theme-third":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=371%2C463&ssl=1",371,463,true],"theme-fourth":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?fit=271%2C338&ssl=1",271,338,true],"theme-thumbnail":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/The-Hiding-Game-by-Gewn-Strauss.jpg?resize=200%2C200&ssl=1",200,200,true]},"post_excerpt_stackable_v2":"Picture books, that welcoming world of imagery and words that capture the heart and the imagination. And most wonderful of all, when the story is true and reveals a hidden gem.<\/p>\n","category_list_v2":"Book Reviews by Veronica Jorge<\/a>, Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge<\/a>","author_info_v2":{"name":"Veronica Jorge","url":"https:\/\/www.asliceoforange.net\/author\/veronica-jorge\/"},"comments_num_v2":"0 comments","yoast_head":"\nBOOK REVIEW: THE HIDING GAME by Gwen Strauss<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n