European Book Tour 'Forty Letters' - Women in War

The reading will take place from 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM.

Forty Letters – Women in War

Forty Letters is the result of a hundred-day research journey through newspaper archives, academic studies, books, museums, and interviews across Europe. The book contains forty concise, deeply personal letters addressed to forty different women – musicians, reporters, students, nuns, teachers, nurses, and others who lived in Europe between 1939 and 1945.

Through these intimate, often harrowing letters, Van Loon guides readers through the atrocities of World War II while also casting a light on the post-war era. His objective is to amplify the voices of women whose experiences have long been overshadowed in traditional historical narratives. Written in clear, accessible English, the letters transform major historical events into biographical portraits of resilience, courage, and vulnerability. Three of the letters relate to experiences in Switzerland.

Uncomfortable Truths

Instead of celebrating famous personalities, the book honours forgotten women in wartime – and does not shy away from difficult questions. Van Loon thanks the English farmer Peggy Banham, who is still alive today, for feeding his parents in 1945. He also recounts how on 14th May 1944, the Dutch police zealously rounded up Roma and Sinti – only for most of them to be released from Westerbork camp due to unlawful arrests. Additionally, he highlights why people in six 'systemically important' professions were spared from deportations, how two villages miles apart were burned down on the same day, how a Ukrainian puppeteer escaped a massacre, and how some Danish resistance fighters made considerable sums by ferrying Jewish refugees to Sweden. Van Loon not only mentions victims but also convicted perpetrators – some of whom went on to have successful post-war careers.

European Book Tour Begins at Photobastei 2.0

The European Book Tour kicks off on 11th April at 3:00 PM at Photobastei 2.0 in Zürich. This will be followed by a reading on 13th April at Altroquando in Rome, on 15th April at Shakespeare & Company in Vienna as well as at Massolit in Budapest, and on 17th April at Sense in Kyiv. Subsequent readings will take place on 18th April in Warsaw, on 19th April in Prague, and on 20th April in Berlin. Between 11th May and 14th May.

Media Contact:
Romano Zerbini
Verein PhotoCreatives / Photobastei
Sihlquai 125
8005 Zürich
email: romano.zerbini@photobastei.ch
T +41 44 240 22 00
M +41 79 220 09 84

Editor's note: Image rights belong to the respective publisher. Image rights: Photobastei Zürich