Rick Rapp's Reviews > Sleeping with the Enemy: Coco Chanel, Nazi Agent

Sleeping with the Enemy by Hal Vaughan
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This is an extremely well-researched and well-written account of the vile collaborationist Coco Chanel. At the very least, she should have forfeited her empire, but it wouldn't have been a tragedy had she rotted in jail or been executed for her crimes. The French aristocracy of this period were selfish bigots who would feel anyone or anything out in order to avoid being inconvenienced. Chanel lied regularly, all the while loudly condemning Jews and homosexuals (while continuing to use those same people to further her business interests. Chanel did not come from privilege and, as a result, "never had enough." She was jealous of competitors and always felt she was being cheated. (Once, after a general strike closed her salon when workers wanted higher wages and paid vacations, she fired her two thousand of them and closed the business to spite them.) She was a morally bankrupt and dangerous woman. How many people suffered or died because of information she passed on to the Nazis. That she was given a "free pass" at the end of the war (in spite of some trials) is an affront to decency. As we see in our current society, there are no rules or repercussions to illegal and immoral behavior by the rich. She was cavalier in her lies and arrogant in her defense. The number of people who should have been held accountable for their actions during the War and slithered away (including the Duke and Duchess of Windsor) is appealing. These people stood for nothing, certainly not their country. She was a whore of the Reich who should rot in hell.
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Reading Progress

January 6, 2025 – Started Reading
January 6, 2025 – Shelved
January 6, 2025 –
page 25
8.96%
January 6, 2025 –
page 75
26.88%
January 7, 2025 –
page 110
39.43%
January 7, 2025 –
page 140
50.18%
January 8, 2025 –
page 175
62.72%
January 9, 2025 –
page 210
75.27%
January 9, 2025 –
page 250
89.61%
January 9, 2025 –
page 250
89.61%
January 9, 2025 – Finished Reading

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