Greg Hands MP attended the book launch this week of “Andrée's War”, by local author Francelle Bradford White.
A book about heroism in wartime France, it tells the story of Francelle’s mother, Andrée Griotteray, who fought with the French Resistance under Nazi occupation.
When the Germans invaded France, Andrée Griotteray was only 19, just another young teenager, in search of fun and frivolity. However she soon found herself living in an occupied city, forced to work alongside the men who had invaded her country. Unable to stand by and do nothing, her younger brother Alain first set up an underground newspaper, urging readers to join the resistance, before creating his own resistance network. Andrée risked her life helping him in both endeavours.
Through her job at the passport department of the Police Headquarters in Paris, she typed up and printed copies of La France, and stole blank ID cards to be distributed to anyone attempting to escape France. She travelled across France, picking up and dropping off intelligence destined for the British and Americans. She always fearless in the face of immense pressure, until one day, she was betrayed and arrested.
Andrée’s story is told in English, by her own daughter, based on her diaries and conversations over the years, Francelle brings her mother’s story to life. Andrée has been lauded by the French Government for her bravery, being awarded three medals for her actions, the Croix de Guerre, the Légion d’Honneur and the Médaille de la Résistance.
Fulham resident, Francelle Bradford White says she remembers growing up among friends who had lost grandparents during the Second World War in Poland, Hungary and France. Many of her schoolmates’ parents had lived in Nazi-occupied Europe.
After attending the book launch in Fulham, Greg said: “I very much enjoyed hearing of Andrée’s story. It’s wonderful to hear such stories of bravery. I’m pleased to support local authors and the very good cause that Francelle Bradford White is donating the royalties to fight Alzheimer's disease and dementia.”
Francelle decided to write this book as part of her efforts to raise money for research into Alzheimer's disease and any other form of dementia. All royalties and any net profits the made from sales of the book will go directly to the charity. Francelle hopes that, if Andrée knew about this book, she would approve of her daughter using her remarkable life as a platform to raise awareness of a very cruel disease.