Former des hommes, by Jacques de Jésus, seems an unlikely contender to be part of the Liberation Collection. It is a modestly produced booklet of barely 38 pages, whose contents are of a spiritual nature. So, why was this book selected to be part of the Liberation Collection, whose aim is to gather books and pamphlets written about the Second World War, and its immediate aftermath, in Francophone countries?

The answer lies in the short biography on the last page of the publication. Jacques de Jésus, born Lucien Bunel, was a Catholic priest and Carmelite who was arrested in 1944 for hiding Jewish children in the school that he had founded in Avon, France. The events leading up to his arrest inspired Louis Malle’s critically acclaimed film Au revoir les enfants. Continue reading ““Former des hommes” by Jacques de Jésus: more than meets the eye?” →