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No Place to Lay One's Head by Francoise Frenkel

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An extraordinary story of one woman's attempt to survive the horrors of Vichy France. From the oppressive scenes of 1930's Berlin where Franpoise Frenkel had established her French language bookshop, to her escape back to Paris and on through the south of France, this is the story of her dignified yet increasingly desperate attempts to flee from France as the Nazi noose tightens. It is her story - but it is also the story of every refugee fleeing persecution, clinging to every shred of dignity as they are left with no choice but to rely on the kindness of strangers. Franpoise Frenkel, a Jewish woman born in Poland and educated in Paris and enamoured of all things literary and French. In 1921 she sets up the first French language bookshop in Berlin, recognising the craving for French culture in that city in the wake of WWI. Her business is a success - she hobnobs with diplomats and celebrities, authors and artists. But life in Berlin for a Jewish business owner becomes untenable despite her desire to stand sentinel by her bookshop to the end. Frenkel is forced to flee to Paris. Her husband fled earlier and was rounded up in Paris and sent first to Drancy and then to Auschwitz where he was murdered in August 1942. Like so many others, Frenkel is compelled to keep moving, spending time in Avignon, Vichy, Nice and Grenoble, as she attempted to survive in a world disintegrating around her. Her observations of and interactions with the French, both those who denounce her and those who themselves brave denunciation in offering her refuge, provide us with an insight into how humanity strives to assert itself in the dark interstices of a society imploding. Frenkel's attempts to flee across the Alps into Switzerland were ultimately successful and she published her story in 1945 in Geneva. But only recently was a copy of this forgotten work discovered in Nice, and a decision made at French publishers, Gallimard, to republish it, seventy years later in October 2015. Nobel-prize winning author, Patrick Modiano, has written a moving preface, in which he writes- The uniqueness of No place to lay one's head lies in the fact that we are unable precisely to identify its author. This account of the life of a woman who is hunted down in the south of France and the Haute Savoie during the Occupation is all the more striking for its apparent anonymitya Very little is known of Franpoise Frenkel's subsequent life, except that she returned to live in Nice where she had spent much of her time during the war before her escape, and where she died in 1975. Frenkel's book is the story of refugees, those fleeing terror, the world over.
Publication Details

Title: No Place to Lay One's Head

Author(s):

  • Francoise Frenkel

Illustrator:

Binding: Paperback

Published by: Random House Australia: , 2017

Edition:

ISBN: 9780143784111 | 0143784110

304 pages. 23.2 x 15.5 x 3 centimetres (0.3

  • ENG- English
Book Condition: Very Good
3193ah

Pickup currently unavailable at Book Express Warehouse

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Product information

What does the Book Condition Very Good mean? Good? Fair?
See our descriptions of book descriptions here: book's conditions.
What does ffep stand for?
Front-facing endpaper - the first page of a book inside the cover. This page is typically blank. Often people will write their name on this page at the top, or a gift message - which is why you will see ‘owner’s name on ffep’ in some of our book descriptions.
What does dj stand for?
Dust Jacket - the outer paper wrapping on a hardback book. If we mention a book is ’No dj’ this means it should have a dust jacket but it is missing.
What is foxing?
Foxing is an age-related process of deterioration that causes spots and browning on old books. The causes of foxing are not well understood, but high humidity may contribute to to foxing. 
Foxing - Wikipedia
What is tanning?
Age tanning, or browning, occurs over time on the pages of books. This process can show up on just the edges of pages, when this occurs it is sometimes referred to as "edge tanning." This kind of deterioration is commonly seen in books printed before the advent of acid-free paper in the 1980s.
r/BookCollecting - Is this mold or normal aging for a well used book?
 
Where do you get your books from?
We buy books from the public and also take donations. We travel regularly around the Wellington/Manawatu region, and will go further afield to collect larger quantities in our big van. We also like to go to book fairs and other charity events and buy books that catch our eye.
Are your photos of the actual books being sold?
It depends - we have sometimes used stock images for very common books but are in the process of photographing our entire inventory. This will take awhile to finish! If we have 10 copies of the Da Vinci code all in Very Good condition, we will just photograph one and use that to represent all 10 in stock. However if the next copy of worn and only in Fair condition, we will photograph that separately and create a new listing for it.
What is the most expensive book you have sold?
To date it was a first edition first printing copy of JRR Tolkien’s The Two Towers. It was in very poor condition but still was worth over NZ$1000.
What is your favourite book to sell?
I love seeing anything written by Stephen King - they just do not stay in our inventory for very long before someone spots it and buys it. And Alison Holst’s book on muffins will not stay in inventory very long either - too cheap at $7 maybe?
Why do you also sell mailing supplies?
We had a lot of trouble sourcing the right sort of bubble mailer to send our books out in, and eventually found a supplier of high quality mailers in China to import them from. We figured other sellers of small items in New Zealand might like to also use them.
Are you open to the public?
Unfortunately our books are all stored in a large warehouse in boxes so they are not easily browsable. The SKU number for a book tells us where to find it in the warehouse, but there is absolutely no order to where things are stored! We do allow pickups so if you find what you like online you can order it and drop in to pick up p, saving on shipping.

 

New Zealand Delivery

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We endeavour to ship the following day after your order is made and to have pick up orders available the same day. We ship Monday-Friday. Any orders made on a Friday afternoon will be sent the following Monday. We are unable to deliver on Saturday and Sunday.

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Warehouse Pick Up Hours

  • Monday - Friday: 9am-5pm
  • 35 Nathan Terrace, Shannon NZ

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Please allow up to 5 working days for your order to arrive within New Zealand before contacting us about a late delivery. We use NZ Post and the tracking details will be emailed to you as soon as they become available. There may be some courier delays that are out of our control. 

International Delivery

We currently ship to Australia and a range of international locations including: Belgium, Canada, China, Switzerland, Czechia, Germany, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, United Kingdom, United States, Hong Kong SAR, Thailand,  Philippines, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Sweden & Singapore. If your country is not listed, we may not be able to ship to you, or may only offer a quoting shipping option, please contact us if you are unsure.

International orders normally arrive within 2-4 weeks of shipping. Please note that these orders need to pass through the customs office in your country before it will be released for final delivery, which can occasionally cause additional delays. Once an order leaves our warehouse, carrier shipping delays may occur due to factors outside our control. We, unfortunately, can’t control how quickly an order arrives once it has left our warehouse. Contacting the carrier is the best way to get more insight into your package’s location and estimated delivery date.

  • Global Standard 1 Book Rate: $37 + $10 for every extra book up to 20kg
  • Australia Standard 1 Book Rate: $14 + $4 for every extra book

Any parcels with a combined weight of over 20kg will not process automatically on the website and you will need to contact us for a quote.

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Contact Details

  • Trade Name: Book Express Ltd
  • Phone Number: (+64) 22 852 6879
  • Email: sales@bookexpress.co.nz
  • Address: 35 Nathan Terrace, Shannon, 4821, New Zealand.
  • GST Number: 103320957 - We are registered for GST in New Zealand
  • NZBN: 9429031911290

       

      We have a 30-day return policy, which means you have 30 days after receiving your item to request a return.

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