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The Twilight of Courage is replete with characters, so many that it takes quite awhile to get into the book because there's a new group of people on every page, and so many that the authors never have time to bestow much depth of character on any of them. I spent most of the book wondering what on earth all these people had in common and whether there would be a plot tying all the subplots together. In the end, most of them engage the reader's interest, and nearly all of them end up coming together at Dunkirk in time to be evacuated.

When I looked up some details in curiosity about the story of the French cavalry school resisting the Nazi advance, I found that it took place at Saumur and not at Lys, for the very good reason that the cavalry school was and is located at Saumur. I then discovered that although the story of the battle and the inspiring detail of the young cadets being allowed to go free and the Germans saluting in their honour is substantially correct, the cadets would have been entirely too late for the Dunkirk evacuation. The last ship had sailed more than two weeks before the Battle of Saumur began. It's just as well; I doubt they would have been able to get their (entirely apocryphal) mounts onto the ships. Fortunately, although it's grimly amusing to envision the boys' arrival on the deserted beach, in the actual event they marched south and did not ride west towards the Channel.

It's not as egregious as other deliberate distortions of fact that the Thoenes have perpetrated, but when there's a significant change in the map and timeline for narrative convenience, considerate writers of historical fiction alert readers in the form of an authorial note.

"Rembrandt" the artist who cut off his ear, of course, is just a blatant historical blooper testifying to the editors' carelessness.

The occasional racial or national stereotyping may also be disturbing to some. (E.g. Senegalese troops, whom I believe were the Thoenes' stand-ins for the Algerians who actually joined the defense of Saumur: not well portrayed at all.) ( )

While it may have taken many chapters to introduce the characters and to get a feel for the time frame, after that I was hooked. I really had not understood what happened at Dunkirk, but this really gave me insight into this particular time during World War II. The ones that really hit me hardest were the cadets at the school fighting for their country. For anyone interested in the World Wars, this is an excellent read! ( )

NO OF PAGES: 512 SUB CAT I: Historic Fiction SUB CAT II: Holocaust SUB CAT III: DESCRIPTION: A historical WWII fiction that engages the readers with accurate and picturesque details and an intriguing plot. This book has captured the horror and strength of the most terrifying time in recent history - the holocaust.NOTES: SUBTITLE:

This long detailed tome is set against the backdrop of world war II. Several stories are told which at times intertwine with each other. My favorite was on the two American sisters running an orphanage in Paris and of the french street children that they eventually take in. At the end of the story they escape Paris before the Nazi's invade by commendeering a boat and taking off down the Siene--great stuff. Read this one if you like historical fiction told from a Christian point of view. ( )