The Tree and the Vine [Library Binding]

Dola de Jong (Author), Lillian Faderman (Afterword)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1558611401 | ISBN-13: 978-1558611405 | Publication Date: June 1, 1996

   This courageous early work of lesbian fiction (1951) tells the gripping story of two women torn between desires and taboos in the years leading up to the Nazi occupation of Amsterdam. Erica, a reckless young journalist, pursues passionate but abusive affairs with different women. Bea, a reserved secretary, grows increasingly obsessed with Erica —yet denial and shame keep her from recognizing her attraction. Only Bea’s discovery that Erica is half-Jewish and a member of the Dutch resistance — and thus very much in danger — brings her closer to accepting her own feelings.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Univ. will be releasing a collection of short oral histories titled Days of Masquerade: Life Stories of Lesbian Women During the Third Reich, by Claudia Schoppman, trans. by Allison Brown, in June (cloth $24.50 ISBN 0-231-10220-8).

Copyright 1996 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

First published in 1955, this lesbian love story is set against a backdrop of the Nazi rise to power and eventual occupation of Amsterdam. Fairly risque for the 1950s, this is bound to find a much wider audience now.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Library Binding: 152 pages
• Publisher: The Feminist Press at CUNY (June 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558611401
• ISBN-13: 978-1558611405
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.7 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,627,220 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Unrealized desires, January 27, 2002

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"blissengine" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Tree and the Vine (Paperback)

Bea is a secretary in Holland in the late 1930s, where she meets a journalist named Erica. Bonding together and sharing an apartment, the two have a stormy relationship because of Bea's unrealized desire for Erica and her empty affairs with men, and because of Erica's self-destructive nature. As the Nazi influence in Holland grows, Erica lives in danger due to her half-Jewish heritage, but only Bea seems to recognize the danger. Erica does confess her same-sex relationships to Bea, but Bea can't seem to figure out where her own desires lie, and when Erica gets involved with the Dutch resistance, Bea finds it may be too late, in more ways than one. De Jong's groundbreaking work is further analyzed by Lillian Faderman's astute afterword. The story brings to mind such novels as "Aimee And Jaguar", Ebba Haslund's "Nothing Happened", and Erzsebet Galgoczi's "Another Love", all set around the same time, and all showing the limited possibilities for lesbian life in Europe during the mid-1900s.