| Tania Szabó, author of Young Brave and Beautiful, and daughter of Violette |
Tania Szabó is Violette’s daughter, although, as she says, she is of an age to be her mother’s grandmother by now. On her ninth birthday, in June 1951, she sailed for Australia with her grandparents, Charles and Reine Bushell, on the £10 ticket. After college in Armidale, NSW and a stint as a psychiatric nurse in Sydney, she returned to England in the New Year of 1963. It was so very cold.
After working as a secretary, croupier, office administrator in various companies, completing a course in computing in the late 60s (cards with holes and no electronics) and spending a year in Beverley Hills studying Spanish while continuing her studies in the humanities, she returned to England and finally moved to Jersey in April 1976 where she opened her Language Studio with the help of Paul Emile Francis Holley, a friend of Violette’s. He also trained her in the recognition of German armaments and uniforms as he was a British Intelligence Officer during WWII.
Tania is an author as well as a professional multilingual translator and private tutor. The author, Avv. Mario Zacchi of Florence and author of Il Mastino Napoletano - the Italian Mastiff, the Standard and History of this amazing dog commissioned Tania to translate it. It is now lodged with the British Library. Zacchi's writing in his native Italian immediately draws you into the mystery, fierce loyalty and funny antics of this Cerebus of dogs and it was a sheer delight for Tania to translate into English bringing his love and erudition of this remarkable breed to an anglophone readership.
On 29 April 2009, Paul Holley, the Intelligence officer, who had trained Violette in German armaments and uniforms, and was Tania's friend and mentor, died one month into his 90th year. She continues to miss his friendship and invaluable support. She has closed her Language Studio and now retired could no longer afford to live in Jersey and now lives in a lovely 17th century cottage just outside Builth Wells in Wales. She is still sorting out all the books and archives before completing her paperback version of Young Brave and Beautiful and getting back down to writing Etienne's amazing life's story.
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| Tania Szabo at home in Jersey Nov 07 |
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| Like a star by Tania Szabo |
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In 1995, at the Liberation 50-years festivities graced by Prince Charles, she met Leslie Jackson who ordered his mine sweeper to sail into dangerous Jersey waters on that May-Day, 9 May 1945, to rid them of enemy mines, thus assisting in the liberation of the Island from German occupation.
His autobiography is Pawn on a Chessboard - from Minesweepers to Mayfair, published by The Book Guild. After commanding minesweepers in WWII, he became a highly successful hotelier, owning the Devere Group of Hotels, founding the Chicken Inns (which bright young things of 60's flower power may remember!) and purchasing the great Mirabelle Restaurant among many memorable moments of hostellery wheeling and dealing with his then partner.
From this encounter with Tania, some time later, Leslie started the ball rolling by financing a good proportion of the research and writing of this book through a small Jersey registered limited association called V & E a.r.l. os which, presently, Tania is the sole shareholder and director.
A group of extremely generous sponsors then enabled Tania to continue to research and conclude the writing of Young Brave and Beautiful.
As a tribute to her mother and in order to put right inaccuracies of a detrimental nature to the memory of Violette, Tania spent at least three years working on the book, while Paul E F Holley kept the Language Studio ticking over.
His dedication to Violette and her memory has meant a huge amount of work and responsibility that he did not perhaps expect to be undertaking in his 8th decade.
Tania will forever be indebted to him although he demanded nothing.
He died exactly one month into his 90th year after stoically and stubbornly fighting all the way.
He will be remembered not only by Tania but by many who were touched by his wisdom, kindness, careful suggestions and total loyalty.
He will also be remembered by many around the world of Amateur Boxing where he had been flyweight boxing champions, coach, judge, referee, founder of amateur boxing clubs especially The Jersey Dinner and Sporting Club which presented International Boxing Tournaments in Jersey, manager for England twice and sat on the Committee of the British Amateur Boxing Board of Control.
Tania exhaustively researched and endeavoured to double-source her findings to dramatically recreate the fascinating, funny and, at times, sad two missions that Violette undertook in 1944, using flashbacks to describe how Violette became the young, brave and beautiful woman she was.
Tania is deeply grateful to everyone (wherever they may be in our world - and they are many) who helped her in so many different ways in her endeavour.
Tania continues to live in Jersey, her haven and home thanks to Paul Holley, where her mother's exploits are on permanent display in the Szabó Room at The Jersey War Tunnels. And, too, in Jersey at the Town Hall of St. Helier, she has started collating the Violette and Etienne Szabo Archives where the Connetable of St. Helier, Simon Crowcroft, has kindly allowed her to establish the VS Archive Room where students of WWII, SOE, and related matters will be able to access an important resource to further their studies.
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| Early morning landing in Jersey by Tania |
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The publishers of Young Brave and Beautiful are Channel Island Publishing through their man-about-town, Simon Watkins - for sale within the Channel Islands. Their commercial interests lie only in these islands and not further afield.
The superb cover of the book was produced by Glen Smith and his colleagues at Image CI.
The Jersey War Tunnels purchased the entire first edition hardback of Young Brave and Beautiful for sale uniquely from their on-site Bookshop at the Tunnels in Jersey. Since then, however, it is now available through Jersey Waterstones, a few independent bookshops, the UK National Archives, Tangmere Military Aircraft Museum, the Leeds Royal Armouries in the UK and through this website, www.violetteszabo.org.
People have purchased copies of Young Brave and Beautiful through this website from as far afield as the UK, Channel Islands, Europe, Canada and the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, Saudi Arabia and the Middle East, as well as Europe and Southern Ireland.
The readers' reviews remain very out-of-date and Tania will put this right over the next month or so - however, those that are uploaded give a good indication of what they think of the book and the heroism of a lovely young woman, Violette.
Tania blushes much that she must add readers' comments as from March 2009 (!) of which there are many and with which she is absolutely delighted.
Tania puts right many inaccuracies in the media generally and presents much new material on France under occupation, WWII in relation to allied and clandestine operations in occupied France, SOE, the Resistance and, of course, on Violette but also French and American pilots, commanders and resisters who worked with Violette.
This is an important, new, carefully researched book on world famous WWII heroine, Violette Szabó, GC,
by her daughter, Tania Szabó.
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In 1995, at the Liberation 50-years festivities graced by Prince Charles, she met Leslie Jackson who ordered his mine sweeper to sail into dangerous Jersey waters on that May-Day, 9 May 1945, to rid them of enemy mines, thus assisting in the liberation of the Island from German occupation.
His autobiography is Pawn on a Chessboard - from Minesweepers to Mayfair, published by The Book Guild. After commanding minesweepers in WWII, he became a highly successful hotelier, owning the Devere Group of Hotels, founding the Chicken Inns (which bright young things of 60's flower power may remember!) and purchasing the great Mirabelle Restaurant among many memorable moments of hostellery wheeling and dealing with his then partner.
From this encounter with Tania, some time later, Leslie started the ball rolling by financing a proportion of the research and writing of this book through a small Jersey registered limited association called V & E a.r.l. of which, presently, Tania is the sole shareholder and director.
A group of extremely generous sponsors then enabled Tania to continue to research and conclude the writing of Young Brave and Beautiful.
As a tribute to her mother and in order to put right inaccuracies of a detrimental nature to the memory of Violette, Tania spent at least three years working on the book.
This, while Paul Emile Francis Holley kept the Language Studio ticking over.
His dedication to Violette and her memory has meant a huge amount of work and responsibility that he did not perhaps expect to be undertaking in his 8th decade.
Tania will be forever indebted to him although he demanded nothing.
Her book is dedicated to that sweet, stubborn and infinitely loyal and discreet friend who is loved by many.
She exhaustively researched and endeavoured to double-source her findings to dramatically recreate the fascinating, funny and, at times, sad two missions that Violette undertook in 1944, using flashbacks to describe how Violette became the young, brave and beautiful woman she was.
Tania is deeply grateful to everyone (wherever they may be in our world - and they are many) who helped her in so many different ways in her endeavour.
Tania continues to live in Jersey, her haven and home, where her mother's exploits are on permanent display in the Szabó Room at The Jersey War Tunnels.
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| Leslie Jackson, from his autobiography, Pawn on a Chessboard |
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| Paul Holley on right with CEO of JWT Paul Simmonds and the late much-loved Sir Henry Cooper OBE, close friend of Paul's. |
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| Leslie in the Navy and his minesweeper |
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Publishers interested in publishing and distributing Young Brave and Beautiful in the UK and/or further afield, please contact Tania Szabó in the first instance:
by email: ts@violetteszabo.org or by post to: Tania Szabó, Dollynwydd Mill, Builth Wells, Powys, LD2 3RZ, Wales.
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