Ihr kennt mich nicht

What makes a young French woman a Nazi collaborator? "You Don't Know Me" by French author Julie Héraclès is a fictional biographical novel inspired by a true event that took place on August 16, 1944, in Chartres.

"Today they shaved my head and branded me, and now they insult me. But you will not destroy me. For I am equipped with an invaluable treasure. A treasure that many of you seek for a lifetime and never find. I have loved. And I have been loved. It doesn't matter what happens to me at the end of this day. I pity those who hate me, for they know nothing about me."

This could have been the reality: a moving historical novel inspired by the world-famous photograph "La Tondue de Chartres" (The Shorn Woman of Chartres). On August 16, 1944, 24-year-old Simone Touseau is shaved bald, branded with a swastika on her forehead, and then paraded through the streets of Chartres. She is accused of "horizontal collaboration" with the Nazis. War photographer Robert Capa captures the moment as Simone carries her baby through a jeering mob.

But what does the woman in the photo think and feel? How did she become a collaborator? And what secret does she keep? Julie Héraclès explores these questions without judgment or simple answers.

Engaging with depth for readers of Mechtild Borrmann and Susanne Abel. Julie Héraclès offers a remarkably nuanced perspective on a time that demanded everything from many people. In France, her historical novel has already received numerous literary awards.

"This book excuses nothing. It condemns nothing. It merely highlights the complexity of motivations for human actions in uncertain times." - Le Parisien.