🙌 A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
“Demetrios tells this fascinating story in an uber-modern narrative voice that is snarky AF, LOL, with plenty of hits to the patriarchy and a glorious sense of celebrating Dindy’s badassery. It’s breezy and lighthearted in tone but meticulously well-researched, including interviews with Dindy’s surviving family. A remarkable telling of an extraordinary woman. ”
“Badass hardly seems adequate to describe Virginia Hall or this book! Heather Demetrios has found a tragically under-known World War II icon and not only brought her story to life, but done it in vivid, meticulous, fantastic detail. I devoured this book.”
“A ripping spy story with a generous side of stand-up comedy - a fresh twist on history.”
“...a conversational recounting of Hall’s heroism. Frequent first-person asides and ample pop culture references make even the more mundane details highly readable, while enabling Demetrios to call out the sexism and ableism Hall experienced both during the war and later at the CIA.
...Demetrios provides a thoroughly researched history of “La dame qui boite,” and those just discovering Dindy will be convinced that she was, in fact, a badass. ”
“Bringing together rigorous research and a vibrant writing style...With relevant references to today’s culture of espionage (clandestine operations, misinformation), the author does not hide her dissatisfaction with male-dominated politics, nor her endearing and genuine admiration for Hall.
She creates a solidarity rooted in feminism (“girls are pretty good at watching our backs”) and affectionately breaks the fourth wall (“Personally, I think Dindy would have enjoyed The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck”)...
It’s a creative liberty, reminiscent of Jason Reynolds’s Stamped. The flippant tone is a tribute to Hall’s unconventional life: it’s breezy but not shallow, informative but lighthearted.
This is a fun, illuminating read. VERDICT: A delightful account of an epic spy.”
““Demetrios shines a bright light on a spy whose heroic life has been in the shadows for far too long. Like Virginia, Code Name Badass is irreverent, brash, smart and true. It’s the real deal. Get it.””
“😂 Replete with expletives…which might…turn off traditionalists…an enlightening account of a heroine worth knowing.”