In this, episode 3 of Susan Travers, I give you Yankee Fighter. John "Jack" Hasey was mentioned in her memoir, and I was intrigued by his story. What caused this American to join the Free French Foreign Legion?
Jack doesn't really feel like he fits in until he spends time in France. He doesn't speak the language well, but he decides that spending more time there might help with that. The more time he spends there, the more he feels that France is his home. When the threat of war comes to France, he wants to help. But with America being neutral, his options are limited. He starts out trying to organize an ambulance corp, but he eventually makes his way to England and meets Charles de Gaulle.
I enjoyed this book. With the help of Joseph Dineen, the story of Jack's life during the early part of the war is told here in an engaging way. You can tell this book is written during the war since Jack is reluctant to reveal how he gets from one place to another when the borders are closed. Eventually, he makes his way to the desert and sees action until he's seriously injured and taken away from his men and the action.
This isn't the end of Jack's story, but it is the end of the book. The book only covers until early 1942 when Jack makes his way home after the injury to his face and neck. I was pleased to discover that in August of 1943, he became the personal assistant to General Koenig for the next year. After that, he joined the CIA and lived to the age of 88. I would've loved to have had the whole story of Jack's life, but what I got was well worth the read. Good Book!
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