MARSEILLE, 1940. Varian Fry, a Harvard-educated journalist and editor, arrives in France. Recognizing the darkness descending over Europe, he and a group of like-minded New Yorkers formed the Emergency Rescue Committee, helping artists and writers escape from the Nazis and immigrate to the United States. Now, amid the chaos of World War II, and in defiance of restrictive U.S. … immigration policies, Fry must procure false passports, secure visas, seek out escape routes through the Pyrenees and by sea, and make impossible decisions about who should be saved, all while under profound pressure—and in a state of irrevocable personal change. In this dazzling work of historical fiction—one that illuminates previously unexplored elements of Fry’s story, and has, since its publication, brought us new insight into his life—Julie Orringer, award-winning author of The Invisible Bridge, has crafted a gripping tale of forbidden love, high-stakes adventure, and unimaginable courage.
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Varian Fry lit a small, bright lamp in a world of darkness, and in the deft hands of Julie Orringer — under the spell of her masterful prose, her feeling portraiture, her classic spy-thriller plotting and her vivid recreation of that beautiful and terrible world — I found the radiance of Fry’s courage, flawed humanity, and steadfast resistance shedding an inexhaustible light on our own ever-darkening time.
Okay, so I’m a sucker for World War II, Nazi-themed, historical fiction thrillers, characters that come to life on the page because of common, yet heroic humanity. Julie Orringer tells the tale of one man’s attempt, a New York journalist, who takes it upon himself to save a number of artists, writers, and other luminaries from Hitler’s war against the Jews. It’s a morality tale that ponders the question of whether the life of the rich and famous is worth more than that of ordinary folk. No easy answers here.
No book this year could possibly compare with The Flight Portfolio: ambitious, meticulous, big-hearted, gorgeous, historical, suspenseful, everything you want a novel to be.
Orringer’s much-anticipated second novel begins in gripping fashion with Varian Fray visiting the Chagall residence in attempt to convince the painter and his family of the danger of their staying in occupied France. And with that remarkable opening scene, The Flight Portfolio never relinquishes its grasp as Orringer delivers an incredibly immersive and meticulous epic that is fused with constant, almost unbearable tension and riveting drama the entire way.
The story focuses around the real-life figure of Varian Fry and his work to save lives during World War II, but Orringer seamlessly weaves Fry’s heroics with an intimate tale that considers the dilemmas Varian faces with decisions in his personal life. Varian works for the Emergency Relief Committee, an American-funded organization with an undertaking to move artists and writers out of France before the Nazis hunt them down and round them up.
At the heart of the novel, Orringer examines the conscientiousness of determining the value of saving one life over another. She also addresses the explosive consequences of seeking truth amid secrets and lies. The story offers many shocks and revelations and the characters are remarkably drawn, but perhaps the novel’s most impressive aspect rests with Orringer’s ability to capture the natural wonder of France’s landscape and its cities and towns with dazzling descriptions and spellbinding passages. She also demonstrates her gift of probing the intricacy and complexity of love and loss.
The Flight Portfolio not only illuminates a window into history that honors the sacrifices of Varian Fry and his associates to save the lives of thousands, but also the novel becomes a joy to experience the mesmerizing swoon of Orringer’s prose, which had me savoring every word, rereading and whispering aloud to myself the beauty of her language as she delivered a memorable story.
I’ve read several WW2 books and I am always amazed at the cleverness and determination of the people who need to escape and those who help them. I’ve learned much more about the situations and people during the war than I ever learned from history books. I enjoyed the characters in this book.
Could not get very deep into
Fictionalization of the story of real-life hero Varian Fry, who saved prominent artists and thinkers from the Nazis. A page-turning read, but there is too much fiction woven into the true story, without enough guidance for the reader. I recommend you read the author’s end-notes first.
I wanted more of Fry’s story as it involved his work with the Rescue Committee.
A historical novel absolutely relevant to our own time, The Flight Portfolio brings to life a hero as complex and engrossing as the agonizing ethical questions he faces. Orringer not only recreates the world of wartime Marseille, but seems to drop the reader there by way of a masterfully fashioned literary trapdoor — and anyone who picks up this spectacular novel risks a swift descent into its vivid and consuming swirl.