{"product_id":"the-surgeon-and-the-shepherd-two-resistance-heroes-in-vichy-france","title":"The Surgeon and the Shepherd: Two Resistance Heroes in Vichy France","description":"Of the thousands of people who escaped through the Pyrenees during World War II, at least one hundred owe their lives to a daring scheme that Belgian Charles Schepens masterminded in Mendive, a remote Basque village near the French-Spanish border. The story of this near-miraculous resistance effort, an epic undertaking carried out in plain view of the Nazis, is recounted in full for the first time in \u003ci\u003eThe Surgeon and the Shepherd\u003c\/i\u003e, an incredible, true tale of wartime heroism. \u003cbr\u003eIn 1942, in coordination with the Belgian resistance, Schepens stage-managed a highly secret information and evacuation service through the counterfeit operation of a back-country lumbering enterprise. This book traces Schepens's gradual transformation from an apolitical young ophthalmologist into double agent \"Jacques Pérot,\" and his emergence in the postwar period as a modern folk hero to the residents of Mendive. Woven into the account are the stories of a remarkable international cast of characters, most notably the Basque shepherd Jean Sarochar, regarded as a local misfit, with whom Schepens formed his most unlikely partnership and an enduring friendship.\u003cbr\u003ePart biography, part spy tale, part cultural study, \u003ci\u003eThe Surgeon and the Shepherd\u003c\/i\u003e is based on more than ten years of oral history research. The saga of a Belgian \"first resister\" who, by posing as a collaborator, successfully duped both the Germans and the local French Basque population, it offers a powerful and illuminating picture of moral and physical courage.","brand":"Bison Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51944132870375,"sku":"9780803236417","price":18.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0449\/4075\/5096\/files\/imageloader_ca366d5b-7bcf-4191-88b6-b252a1be0daa.jpg?v=1775353440","url":"https:\/\/arvidabookco.com\/products\/the-surgeon-and-the-shepherd-two-resistance-heroes-in-vichy-france","provider":"Arvida Book Co.","version":"1.0","type":"link"}