Adrienne Thomas was the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

of Hertha A. Deutsch, ''nee'' Strauch (1897–1980), a German autobiographical novelist.

Life

Hertha Strauch was born in St Avold in Alsace-Lorraine, then part of Germany, on June 24, 1897. She grew up bilingual in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

and French, going to school in

Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand E ...

, where her family owned a small

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...

. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

she became a nurse for the

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...

, at first in

and later in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, where her family moved. During the 1920s she trained as a singer and actor at the Clara Lion Conservatory in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

. Writing as Adrienne Thomas, she drew on her Red Cross experiences for her semi-autobiographical anti-war novel ''Die Katrin wird Soldat'' (Katrin Becomes a Soldier), the diary of a young Jewish girl serving behind the German lines as a relief worker. Published in 1930, the book was translated into sixteen languages. When

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

came to power in 1933 Thomas was forced to go into exile and her writings banned. After living in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, she eventually settled in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

in 1947.

Works

* ''Die Katrin wird Soldat: ein Roman aus Elsass-Lothringen' (Katrin Becomes a Soldier: a novel from Alsace-Lorraine). Berlin: Propyläen-Verlag, 1930. ** Translated by Margaret L. Goldsmith as ''Cathérine joins up'', London: E. Mathews & Marrot, Ltd., 1931; ''Katrin becomes a soldier'', Boston, Little, Brown, 1931. * ''Dreiviertel Neugier: Roman'', 1934 * ''Katrin! Die Welt brennt!: Roman'', 1936. ** Translated by Marguerite Wolff as ''Child of Unrest'', London: Hutchinston & Co., 1937. * ''Andrea: eine Erzählung von jungen Menschen '', 1937 * ''Von Johanna zu Jane: Roman'', 1939 * ''Reisen Sie ab, Mademoiselle!'', 1940 * ''Ein Fenster am East River'', 1947 * ''Wettlauf mit dem Traum: Roman'', 1949 * ''Da und ort'', 1950

References

1897 births 1980 deaths People from Alsace-Lorraine German autobiographers German Red Cross personnel Writers from Vienna 20th-century German novelists 20th-century German women writers Women autobiographers Date of death missing 20th-century pseudonymous writers Pseudonymous women writers {{Germany-writer-stub