I have finally finished reading 'Is Paris Burning?' by Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins. I had been reading it for the past two months and have thus been living through the events that occured in Paris from the 19th to the 26th of August 1944 every night before going to bed. Anyone who's read any work of the authors of this book would know of their capacity to effectively transport the reader in time and space.As is characteristic of the style of Lapierre and Collins, a lot of effort in research has been undertaken to provide the reader with the smallest of details ( such as the colour of a dress a particular Parisienne had worn on Liberation day) which is what makes it seem like the events in the book are unfolding before one's own eyes.
The book is about how Paris narrowly escapes from being reduced to ' a field of ruins' as Hitler had planned it, to avenge the desruction of German cities by the Allies.The title of the book comes from Hitler's angry words 'Brennt Paris?' addressed to the chief of his general staff when he learns of the surprise attack of the Allied forces on German strongpoints in the heart of Paris.Hitler had repeatedly given instructions to the commander of Gross Paris Dietrich von Choltitz to ensure the capital was completely destroyed if it were to fall into Allied hands.
Apart from the actual battle for liberation, the book also describes several other conflicts that could have delayed Paris' timely liberation.These include the political fued between the Communists of France and Charles de Gaulle and the skirmishes between de Gaulle and the authorities in Washington.Further, it describes the moral dilemma that von Choltitz went through when he was instructed to execute orders which, he knew, if carried out,history would hold him guilty.
The passion that went into the efforts to save Paris comes across throughout the book.Overall, the book makes interesting read for any history buff.
Here's something that has made the experience of reading the book very interesting for me: I had read Catch 22 by Joseph Heller just before I started reading 'Is Paris Burning?'.Now, Catch 22 is famous for Heller's caustic sarcasm and is aimed at pointing out the meaninglessness of war.It blatantly rubbishes the idea of 'a hero's death' and other such romanticisms associated with war.So, while reading about the nationalisitic fervour of the young French man who took to arms to save their beloved capital and the American GIs who executed the orders they were given unquestioningly, I was constantly reminded of how these sentiments , in a way, contradict what is depicted in Catch 22.Moreover, I happened to watch two WW2 based movies - ' Schindler's List' and 'The Pianist' while I was reading the book.It then seemed like the book deals with an insignificant part of the much larger horrific event that was World War 2.
It does seem like there can never be no such thing as 'too many books' or 'too many movies' about World War 2 if we are to try to understand its actual impact on the lives of people and nations!
