Three Ordinary Girls

The Remarkable Story of Three Dutch Teenagers Who Became Spies, Saboteurs, Nazi Assassins and WWII Heroes

By: Tim Brady

Narrated by: David de Vries

Length: 7 hrs

Publisher's summary

May 10, 1940. The Netherlands was swarming with Third Reich troops. In seven days it's entirely occupied by Nazi Germany. Joining a small resistance cell in the Dutch city of Haarlem were three teenage girls: Hannie Schaft, and sisters Truus and Freddie Oversteegen, who would soon band together to form a singular female underground squad.

Smart, fiercely political, devoted solely to the cause, and "with nothing to lose but their own lives", Hannie, Truus, and Freddie took terrifying direct action against Nazi targets. That included sheltering fleeing Jews, political dissidents, and Dutch resisters. They sabotaged bridges and railways, and donned disguises to lead children from probable internment in concentration camps to safehouses. They covertly transported weapons and set military facilities ablaze. And they carried out the assassinations of German soldiers and traitors - on public streets and in private traps - with the courage of veteran guerilla fighters and the cunning of seasoned spies.

Tim Brady offers a never-before-seen perspective of the Dutch resistance during the war. Of lives under threat; of how these courageous young women became involved in the underground; and of how their dedication evolved into dangerous, life-threatening missions on behalf of Dutch patriots - regardless of the consequences.

©2021 Tim Brady (P)2021 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

A Wonderful Book

Truth is stranger--and much more interesting--than most fiction, IMHO. And this book epitomizes my thinking. These 3 young women did extraordinary things: they killed Nazis and traitors, set up bombs, learned information from loose-lipped Nazis, hid Jewish friends, transported Jews, and were basically superheroes. Their contributions to the resistance in The Netherlands cannot be overstated.

(I wish Hollywood would look at my book list and start making movies about the amazing women in history that I have read about. They deserve recognition!)

Read this book! History is not just about those whom the history books have previously glorified, but the women, the POC, the outsiders, and the non-mainstream people who were (willfully or not) forgotten. Happily, writers like Tim Brady bring these stories to us, and we should take advantage and learn the full scope of history.

Most worthy narrative

Compelling story read by a narrator effortlessly reading Dutch proper nouns. Highly to be recommended..;

Good

Not great but very good. Narrator was a bit too flat/American. Not much by way of ptsd from their actions. The overturned boat scene had no follow up.

Engaging and educational read about the Dutch Resistance

The worst of times provide occasion for bravery, commitment, and selflessness. Three Ordinary Girls tells how WW2 did just for 3 Dutch teenagers and their resistance peers. Also a revealing read for comparing nuance of various countries under the Third Reich.

Amazing Story of Youth during WWII

A little hard to get into but towards the end I kept thinking that I hope I would be this brave if the situation presented itself. So interesting to learn of just another way, ordinary people battled the Nazis.

Little known history

I hadn’t heard of any of these women prior to this book. Their courage was inspiring

The Innocent Assassins

Good look at the resistance in the Netherlands. Compared to France the geography required them to use different tactics. Like innocent looking girls and assassins.

Important story of the Dutch resistance

I learned about an important piece of history that honored these patriots. I enjoyed this book very much.

Brave strong women in hard times

History on the edge of your seat! Young women put their lives on the line for their for country honor and freedom.

Moving portrait of Dutch resistors

Three Ordinary Girls provided a moving account of the dangerous exploits and courage of Dutch socialist anti Nazi resistance. It was very well performed, and deserves to be highly recommended.The bittersweet but tragic elements of the ending left me in tears.