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The Nazi ghost train : evasion, betrayal, and escape during World War II / Greg Lewis.

Lewis, Greg, 1968- (author.).

Summary:

"In the final hours before the liberation of Brussels in 1944, the Germans loaded more than 1,400 members of the Resistance, SOE agents, and Allied airmen onto a train bound for the Neuengamme concentration camp. What happened next came to be known as the miracle of "The Ghost Train," as members of the Resistance rose up to delay, divert, and eventually derail the train and save the lives of all of those on board. The book shines a light on everyday heroes who have been lost to history: such as New Yorker Ted Kleinman, a Jew who risked his life to carry out sabotage behind the lines; young Resistance heroines such as Michou Dumon, who ordered an attempt to kill one traitor and escaped to London to expose another to British intelligence; and Belgian businessman Gaston Masereel, who planned to parachute into his homeland as an SOE agent. Badly hurt when his plane was attacked, he killed all four German soldiers who came to arrest him. As well as the heroes, there is a villain every bit as keenly drawn and despicable as any in a spy thriller: the most heartless double agent of all-Prosper Dezitter-a traitor of such cunning that he came to be seen as an almost mythical bogey man. A convicted rapist and swindler, he enlisted the aid of his Spanish-born mistress to create a false network of helpers to ensnare airmen and résistants. It was a process which made Dezitter a millionaire. Investigative journalist Greg Lewis draws upon a wealth of primary sources and his own extensive interviews to bring to life a cast of unforgettable characters, as The Nazi Ghost Train unfolds in a tense and pacy narrative, describing the feeling of terror after being shot down on bombing missions, the fight to stay alive with the Gestapo on your trail, and the gut-wrenching horror of betrayal." -- Provided by publisher.

Record details

  • ISBN: 9798897101030
  • Physical Description: 319 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.
  • Edition: First Pegasus Books cloth edition.

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:
Includes bibliographical references.
Formatted Contents Note:
aAuthor's note -- Prologue -- Part One: Evasion. A bad omen -- Promise to resist -- Under suspicion -- Lucky escape -- Schrage musik -- 'Mike, the spirit of LSU' -- The carpetbaggers -- Death in the water -- Secrets and sabotage -- A chateau near Namur -- Checkpoint -- Part Two: Capture. 'Here you are at last!' -- Working with the resistance -- A betrayal revealed -- The man with the missing finger -- The 'dog house' -- No place of safety -- 'Cawn't Miss' -- Dezitter's last airmen -- A village in terror -- The dark cells -- Agents behind bars -- Part Three: The escape. Nacht und nebel -- The train -- The station -- A journey to nowhere -- A battle of wills -- The last prisoners -- After the train -- Acknowledgments -- Sources.
Subject:
World War, 1939-1945 > Underground movements > Belgium.

Available copies

  • 4 of 9 copies available at NC Cardinal. (Show)
  • 0 of 1 copy available at Carteret County Public Library.

Holds

  • 3 current holds with 9 total copies.
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Location Call Number / Copy Notes Barcode Shelving Location Status Due Date
Newport HISTORY WAR WW2 LEWIS (Text) 34208900293597 Adult New Nonfiction Checked out 08/08/2026