The Polish Officer

Starred review from January 30, 1995
With clear, reticent prose and his trademark mastery of historical detail, Furst (Shadow Trade; Night Soldiers) brings vividly to life this WWII-era tale of espionage and bravery, chronicling the work of the Polish underground in Poland, France and the Ukraine. As Warsaw is falling in 1939, Polish Captain Alexander de Milja embarks on a harrowing journey to smuggle the national gold reserves out of the country by rail-the first of many death-defying missions he will undertake for the nascent ZWZ, the Union for Armed Struggle. Under a series of false identities, mingling with the bon vivants of occupied Paris, he later becomes a prized intelligence resource in France, surviving by cunning and passing valuable strategic information to the British. In the novel's final section, de Milja is in even more danger, working as a saboteur based in a Ukrainian forest as the Germans march east. Throughout these dramatic events, Furst's understated narrative is insightful and convincing. The unassuming de Milja-who considers himself merely ``unafraid to die, and lucky so far''-proves an engaging protagonist. His exploits and the courageous sacrifices of the ordinary patriots who help him are both thrilling and at times inspiring.

George Guidall has voiced all of Alan Furst's fascinating explorations of the WWII period in central Europe. It has become his private, exceptionally well-read preserve. In this book, set in Poland and Paris, Captain Alexander de Milja attempts to smuggle the national gold reserves out of Poland by rail to support the Polish Underground. Ever a chameleon, he then becomes a British spy in France during the German occupation. Whatever the language or accent, Guidall is the master. He is brilliant in conveying the feelings of the characters without going too far. We are surrounded by the action, swept along by the narrator. This is an outstanding performance. R.E.K. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine