I always loved Audrey Hepburn and was extremely happy when i received an advance copy of Dutch Girl by Robert Matzen from #netgalley. It is a well-written story of a girl who built her character during WWII in Denmark. We all know the woman she became-Audrey Hepburn. Before I read the book, I knew that she was born before the war and had to experience a great deal of suffering. Her life story, written by Robert Matzen, is not only an important part of her biography but also an example of a great character. I am sure that there were thousands of stories during the war that everyone needs to know and not to forget about. The book helps us to remember about the sufferings that Audrey, her family and millions more went through. During the war times everyone is equally getting hurt and humanity is the only thing left.

"But Audrey - that was a different story. Ella was determined that he own daughter would not be forbidden; she would be encouraged, funded, and promoted. So yes, Ella lived the life of a stage mother, unashamedly so, and yes, Ella put Audrey up on the stage at the Schouwburg in the Mozart tableau."

I felt so terrible about Dutch Girl. I just could not finish it. I started it over a month ago, yet I always seemed to stay at one point in the book. I didn't make it past 50%. I think there were three things that did it for me:

1. The novel itself.
I thought this was going to be a historical fiction going in. I didn't realize that Dutch Girl was a biography of Audrey Hepburn's life. Already, I was super disappointed going in because of that.

2. The details.
Generally, I enjoy almost superfluous amounts of detail in books. Not in this. Every page was filled with excessive detail, for any book. I was skipping pages full of details because there was just so many.

3. The lack of information about Audrey.
Obviously, I didn't get through Dutch Girl in its entirety, so there may have been a lot more about Ms. Hepburn later in the book. However, I could not find much. For most of the time, Matzen was talking about Ella (Audrey's mother) and her ties to Hitler and Nazism, as well as the occupied Netherlands/Arnhem. While there were parts that talked more about Audrey's dancing, there wasn't enough in my mind, considering the book was about her.

Wow, I just didn't know any of this about Audrey Hepburn and it just continues to keep her on somewhat of a pedestal in my eyes. Fans of WWII fiction who want to know more about the Netherlands and its' own struggles will be interested in this.

I've always loved Audrey Hepburn, and knew a little about the struggles she faced during the war. I was excited to read this book, which I can highly recommend as being well-written, extremely well-researched and fascinating. It's quite extraordinary that despite her worldwide fame, she managed to keep her parent's political and ideological sympathies a secret.

I wanted to like this book, I was looking forward to reading about Audrey Hepburn’s life but I found it light on the Audrey and heavy on the family history. Just not what I was expecting to read.

This book is a must-read for those interested in what World War 2 was like for those in occupied countries, and for fans of Audrey Hepburn who are interested in her early life.

This is an exhaustive—and somewhat exhausting—narrative about Audrey’s life in Arnhem/Velp through the years of occupation , the hunger winter, and final 9 months of bombing. Matzen combed through decades of her interviews, interviewed others who were also there, located published and unpublished memoirs, used a Dutch researcher to locate Dutch sources, and had the support (and sources) of her younger son. He also chronicles her rise to fame and her deft maneuvering to never discuss her mother’s early pro-Nazi stance and later investigation.

Interesting and very thoroughly researched.

I learned some interesting details about Audrey Hepburn's early life in Robert Matzen's Biography. However, I must admit that I was expecting to learn much more. Certainly, it was fascinating to learn about her family's on again off again relationship to prominent Nazis and how when those relationships soured, her once privileged family lost everything.

What I was hoping for was more information about Audrey herself. Matzen's book focuses on her family, her community, and general background regarding how the Dutch fared during the Nazi occupation. I must admit, I was hoping to find more insights into her personal feelings, memories, etc. I suppose that she never revealed those to anyone or at least not to anyone willing to share them with Mr. Matzen.

This was a fascinating book, not only about a famous film star but also about Holland during World War Two. For me this was something I did not know a lot about. The detail of life in this Dutch village was moving. It took a lot of research, noted by the references. The author appears to try and be fair in his evaluation of the information available. I am not from this generation, so I didn't feel biased in any way. The book appeared to be lengthy and not one I could read quickly but I wanted to finish it. It would be difficult to say I liked it, as the content is disturbing but it did help me understand things and the next time I see a film with Audrey Hepburn in I will see that from a different angle.

I received this book in exchange for a honest review from NetGalley.

I absolutely adored this book! I have already suggested it to so many people and my library is planning to get a book club set. As the granddaughter of two people who were also children in the occupied Netherlands I think this story needed to be told. There are so few WWII books that delve into the lives of those in the occupied countries and especially the children. Both of my grandparents generally (much like Audrey) refused to speak of the occupation. This book has given me so much insight into how they may have lived and the hardships that they faced. Overall this book is phenomenal and everyone should read it.

Audrey and her family lived through the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands and witnessed the terrible events of the war first hand, including the Hunger Winter of 1944-45. I knew nothing about her parents going in and their story is just as interesting given all of the circumstances. One thing that I didn't expect was the close connection between Audrey and Anne Frank - they were almost exactly the same age and lived fairly close to one another, but their lives were very different. It's easy to see how she grew to become the woman she did especially when it comes to work with children and UNICEF.

Thank you NetGalley, Good Knight Publishing and Robert Matzen for an e-ARC.of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is a fascinating book about the early life of Audrey Hepburn that would appeal equally to lovers of cinema and those interested in World War II. It is a striking tale of what those living under Nazi occupation endured but also their own resolve and bravery. I always liked Audrey Hepburn, but now I have extreme respect and gratitude all those like her too. Highly recommended.

Audrey Hepburn has always been an icon to me. She is pure beauty, with poise and talent beyond just on a cinema screen. I have always admired her charitable work, understanding the kind, caring person she lived to be. This book appealed to me as a fan of hers but through an interest in lives of people throughout the War. This book talks about Audrey's life before Hollywood...the years she lived under the Nazi occupation of Holland.

I admit that I never though of what she would have gone through during World War II in the Netherlands. My respect for her has increased so much since I finished reading this book.
I enjoyed this book tremendously, to discover how she was shaped by what she witnessed and suffered.
This is the first book by Robert Matzen that I've read but I will be interested in reading more.

There are a lot of us Americans who think we know poverty, we understand hunger, appreciate that life is hard and sometimes barren. Dutch Girl: Audrey Hepburn and World War II is a reality check for even those of us with memories of a rough childhood.

Most history's and historical novels don't more than touch on the effects of the Second World War on Holland. This biography by Robert Matzen brings to life the world of young wartorn Audrey, that remarkable actress of Sabrina and Breakfast at Tiffany's fame, that gamine face on the big screen that we feel like we know and love. After you finish this book, you will have to watch those old films again and know that you really do love that pretty smile and honor the memory of that girl.

I received a free electronic copy of this biography from Netgalley. Robert Matzen, and GoodKnight Books. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have voluntarily read and reviewed this book. This is my honest opinion of this work.

At its most basic, the Dutch Girl is the story of a Belgium born, girl named Adriaantje, later she would become Audrey Hepburn.
The book recounts the events which shaped Audrey Hepburn's life during her formative years. From her early childhood in Belgium to her education in England then to the Netherlands where Audrey continued her education but found that it was dance that most interested her and she excelled in it. She took lessons not far from her home in the Velp - Arnhem area where she lived with her brothers and mother, Ella. She began to perform at various venues through-out her neighboring communities.
The bulk of this book, however, is WWII . Ella was a Nazi sympathizer and somewhat infatuated with Hitler. When Nazi personnel work their way into the Netherlands, Ella welcomes them with open arms but things soon turn sour when the Velp - Arnhem region becomes their main area of command.
If the reader is not familiar with the the affects of WWII in this area, he or she will find this book enlighteining as well as horrifying . Also of interest, of course, was the lasting impact the war had on Audrey. She was struck by the imprisonment and assasination of her Uncle and the diary of a young girl, very similar to her in age, named Anne Frank.
Author, Matzen has written a wonderful portrayal of a much loved actress. Many readers who have enjoyed her as an actress may not have known just how much she had lived through during the years of World War II.
Thank you NetGalley, Good Knight Publishing and the author for an Advance e-ARC of this book.

Audre Hepburn is an icon, and learning about her through the eyes of Robert Matzen was fascinating. I thought it was a well thought out and greatly executed novel.

Adriaantje's jeugd in een bezet Nederland

Audrey Hepburn, geboren als Audrey Kathleen Ruston, en was een Brits-Nederlands-Belgische actrice en speciaal ambassadeur van het Unicef. Ze geld als één van de beroemdste filmactrices van de twintigste eeuw.

In de jaren vijftig en zestig van de twintigste eeuw was ze een wereldberoemd stijlicoon, mede dankzij de creaties van de Franse couturier Hubert de Givenchy. Zij droeg zijn japonnen zowel in films als privé.
Legendarisch in film- en modekringen is de door De Givenchy ontworpen zwarte jurk die ze in combinatie met een halsketting van Roger Scemam die ze aanhad tijdens de beginscène van de film Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Ook de witte jurk die ze droeg bij haar bezoek aan het paardenrennen in de film My Fair Lady behoort tot de bekendste filmoutfits ooit.

'Dutch girl' is een haar biografie, gebaseerd op de periode dat zij de oorlogsjaren doorbracht in België, Engeland, en Nederland, en opgedragen aan de bewoners van de stad Velp.
In het eerste deel van de biografie, maken we kennis met een aantal familieleden van de illustere Heemstra familie. Haar vader, haar opa, oom en tante en haar twee halfbroers Alex en Ian.
Haar vader verliet het gezin toen Adriaantje zes jaar oud was, een zeer traumatische ervaring, waar ze haar hele leven mee kampte. ‘Een kind heeft twee ouders nodig om op te groeien tot een evenwichtig persoon.’

Adriaantje was een stil, verlegen, en ingetogen meisje. Ze las veel, en hield van muziek en dansen. Haar moeder stuurt haar naar een klein stadje in Engeland om een ‘all British education’ te krijgen. Haar moeder blijft met haar beide jongens op het continent, Adriaantje komt onder de hoede van Mary Butcher, de voor haar een tweede moeder wordt.
Adriaantje vond school een uitdaging, ze was rusteloos en kon slecht stil blijven zitten. Meestal zat ze wat uit het raam te kijken of te tekenen. Wel bleek ze erg goed in muziek, dans en Engels te zijn. Haar contacten met de docenten en de andere leerlingen waren goed, maar leren was gewoon niet haar ding. Ze miste haar broers en haar moeder, en zonder familie in Engeland, veranderde ze in een introvert, dik en ongelukkig meisje.

Haar vader, Joseph Hepburn-Ruston, de Britse bankier, was de grote afwezige in haar jeugd en ook in haar latere leven, was lid van de fascistische partij van Oswald Mosley in het Verenigd Koninkrijk. Haar moeder Ella, barones van Heemstra, bleek ook niet onverdeeld negatief tegenover Hitler te staan. Ze sprak vloeiend Duits en hield van Duitsland en was vanaf het begin een groot bewonderaar van Hitler. Ze was regelmatig in het gezelschap van Hitler, en op de Berghof te vinden. „Voor haar stond het fascisme voor het moderne nieuwe leven". De Britse fascistische partij van Mosley vond bovendien dat vrouwen ook moesten kunnen werken. Er zat een feministisch element in dat haar aantrok."

Haar moeder Ella Van Heemstra, bleek de stuwende kracht achter Audrey’s carrière. Ze kon in de oorlog in de schouwburg optreden. Ze was een rijzende ster in die tijd. Dat kon alleen als je goede contacten had met de Duitsers. Haar moeders brede netwerk, in combinatie met het danstalent van Audrey, opende vanaf 1940 in Arnhem de deuren naar Audrey ‘s internationale carrière.”
 
In het tweede deel wordt er aanvankelijk regelmatig stilgestaan bij moeder Ella van Heemstra. Opgevoed volgens strikte Victoriaanse regels, bleek Ella al snel uit de toon te vallen bij haar adellijke familieleden. Ze deed lekker waar ze zelf zin in had, tot grote verbijstering en ongerustheid van haar ouders. Eigenzinnig, dominant, belezen en intellectueel, wilde ze van jongs af aan graag in de spotlight staan. Ze zag zichzelf het liefst als balletdanseres of dichteres (ze schreef een gedicht ter ere van de geboorte van prinses Irene). Ze was een goede vriendin van Freddie Heineken, die haar ‘een geboren actrice noemde, op het melodramatische af’, met haar op de tanden, echter wél ‘een vrouw waar je ontzettend mee kon lachten’.

Veel aandacht ook voor de tweede wereldoorlog. Audrey ‘s geliefde oom Otto, graaf van Limburg Stirum, als ook enkele andere namen uit vooraanstaande adellijke geslachten worden uit wraak en als ‘voorbeeld’ door de Duitsers worden gefusilleerd. Door de afwezigheid van haar eigen vader, waren haar opa en oom Otto als een vader voor haar. Haar verdriet om zijn dood was zo intens, dat ze er tijdens haar leven nooit over heeft willen praten. Als we latere berichten mogen geloven, heeft het verdriet om oom Otto als ook de verschrikkingen van de oorlog zijn sporen nagelaten: Audrey is en bleef een verlegen privé persoon, die buiten haar werk aandacht schuwde.

Audrey Hepburn overleed op 63-jarige leeftijd. In Arnhem is er een Audrey Hepburn plein, in Almere is er een straat naar haar vernoemd. Ook is er een tulp naar haar vernoemd. Ze is postuum onderscheiden voor haar werk op humanitair gebied.

Een werkelijk prachtige biografie, met aanvankelijk wel héél veel nadruk op stambomen, afkomst en adellijke betrekkingen. In het tweede deel ligt de nadruk vooral op het leven (en overleven) tijdens de bezetting van Nederland in het algemeen. Een uitzonderlijk gedegen biografie over vrouw, die buiten de bühne om alle publieke aandacht schuwde. De biograaf heeft ogenschijnlijk veel onderzoek heeft verricht en beweert in zijn boek dat Audrey zelf actief bij het verzet was betrokken, - ondanks het feit dat haar ouders openlijk sympathiseren met de nazi’s. Het boek wordt ingeleid door een voorwoord van Luca Dotti, haar zoon en opgedragen aan alle inwoners van Velp (Gld), waar Adriaantje volgens eigen zeggen, ondanks de ontberingen en het verdriet, 'de gelukkigste tijd van haar leven beleefde.'
Prachtig!
***** 5 sterren

I spent a lot of afternoons watching movies with my best friend growing up, and one of our favorite screen stars was Audrey Hepburn. I can't count the number of times we saw Roman Holiday, Charade, and Breakfast at Tiffany's? Audrey Hepburn was the quintessential Holly Golightly. So when I saw that a book about her life during World War II had been written, I was really excited to read it, especially when I realized I knew nothing about Audrey Hepburn's off-screen life.

Robert Matzen has written a biography that focuses mainly on Audrey Hepburn life during the Second World War when she was living under Nazi occupation in Holland, with her Dutch family on her mother's side. Hepburn was only 11 years old when the Nazis invaded, and it would understandably have a deep impact on her. In fact, all through her adult life, Audrey was haunted by what much of what she witnessed and experienced during WWII.

Audrey was born in 1929 to a Dutch mother, Ella, Baroness van Heemstra and a German/English father, Joseph Ruston, but money problems soon meant Ruston would be gone a largely absent father. Audrey, her mother, and two stepbrothers, Alex and Ian, found themselves living in Arnhem with her Opa, Baron van Heemstra and his wife. Then, in the early 1930s, both Joseph and Ella fell under the influence of Sir Oswald Mosley, head of the British Union of Fascists, and both parents became strong supporters of Hitler. In fact, Ella wrote two published articles in support of National Socialism, she even attended the 1935 Nuremberg rally, and is present in a photo with Hitler and others at Nazi headquarters in Munich.

But after the Nazis defeated the Dutch in 1940 and began occupying Holland, life changed for everyone. With her country under siege, and life getting more and more difficult, Audrey threw herself into ballet. She had begun ballet while in school in London, and it remained her greatest passion throughout her life. Though her first performances as a ballerina were for German audiences, Audrey later used her increasing dance skill to raise money for the Dutch Resistance, evenings referred to as zwarte avonden or black evenings. She spent much of her time volunteering for Dr. Visser't Hooft, a leader in the Dutch Resistance, at his hospital It was he who encouraged her dancing in service of the resistance.

But Audrey's life during WWII wasn't all about dance. She took the death of her beloved Uncle Otto van Limburg Stirum, executed by firing squad with four other men in retaliation for resistance activities, very hard. Witnessing the Nazi's cruel treatment of Dutch Jews, and later their mass deportation was also seared in her memory. But it was the deprivation and starvation of the last year of the war, the Hunger Winter, that seems to have had the greatest impact on Audrey physically as well as mentally and influenced her relationship with food for the rest of her life, and perhaps even her decision to serve as a representative for UNICEF, the United Nations organization that provides world-wide emergency food and healthcare to children.

Matzen has written an intense, exciting biography of Audrey Hepburn. Interestingly, he has interspersed chapters about her later life as it relates to WWII. It appears that Audrey never quite reconciled her parents support of Hitler and National Socialism, but there was an unspoken agreement between mother and daughter to never speak of it in public, though she lived in fear that it would be discovered.

But Dutch Girl is more than just Audrey Hepburn's wartime experience. It is a very well-researched history of World War II, as it relates to the Netherlands. Holland was a peace-loving country that was traumatized by constant dogfights in the air between Allied and German pilots, heavy bombing and towards the end of the war, the particularly destructive V1 and V2 bombs meant for England but landing in Holland when they malfunctioned. And although Hitler thought the Dutch were Germany's Aryan cousins, as things intensified, they were treated with more and more cruelty.

Included in Dutch Girl are extensive photographs, maps, Chapter Notes, and Selected Bibliography.

On a personal note, I found Dutch Girl to be especially valuable because of my interest in the impact of war on children, part of the reason I began this blog in the first place. I was really glad Matzen included the chapters about Audrey Hepburn's life after the war, often quoting her. I could see the impact of WWII on her young life in a way that fiction often doesn't provide. It is very well written and organized, and I found I could not put this book down once I began reading it.

Dutch Girl is, I think, a book that will appeal to people interested in WWII history, more so that those who simply might be looking for a book about the glamorous life of a movie star.

This book is recommended for readers age 17+
This book was provided to me for purposes of review.

An interesting read with new insights to Audrey Hepburn that I was not familiar with. The book has clean and easy to follow writing. Though I could not seem to really immerse myself in this book, perhaps it's because this is not my usual genre (and thereby not a fault of author's). I would definitely recommend this to a friend.

I was fortunate to do a blog tour of this book on my blog at januarygray.net Very amazing woman! It was nice learning more about her than just the Hollywood glam side.

Since Audrey Hepburn’s passing many new biographies around her life and legacy have come out. It is in this book by Robert Matzen that I feel he has introduced a facet to her story that most would not believe. It was one of the reasons that I enjoyed this book so much that followed with support from her immediate family namely her sons. Audrey’s son Luca Dotti wrote a preface for the book and describes recollections his mother would tell him and his brother on her experience in the second world war. Through these recollections in which Matzen elaborates on creates a vivid picture of a young girl in the Netherlands and her immediate experience in World War II namely participation in the Dutch resistance. By looking further into her family history we find out young Audrey utilized her creative nature to survive, and assist in relaying information and supplies during Nazi occupation. It is to note that most of this information was received for the first time as many resources in this area have not been translated into English. Matzen did a superb job at looking at the inner-psychological impact the war had on Audrey Hepburn. As a casual reader to Audrey Hepburn’s life, this was an open window of information and showed an aspect of her personality only spoken of which related to her childhood upbringing and relationship with her mother and father. Matzen explores this relationship and the impact it had on her life and interpersonal relationships. In this novel do you learn of Audrey’s parent's involvement as a Nazi agent and Nazi sympathizer and the experience she had dealing with this information as she lived. Overall the novel examines not only the Hollywood actress featured in Breakfast at Tiffany’s or Sabrina but a woman who lived through one of the global atrocities of the early 20th century. It is a story of resiliency and one that should be read if you are a fan of this woman and want more information to her experience pre-Hollywood. I highly recommend seeing the photos featured for many were from Audrey’s personal collection and were published for the first time. I give this novel 4 out of 5 stars.