The Belgian Girls: A Q & A with Kathryn Atwood
It was inevitable that Kathryn Atwood and I would find each other because our interests overlap. She has written multiple books of historical non-fiction for young adults on women and war. In her newest book, The Belgian Girls, she shifts to fiction, using her deep knowledge to create a vivid picture of life in occupied Brussels in the two world wars. She intertwines stories of two young women, a generation apart, who play similar roles in resisting the Germans to create a work that is thrilling, bittersweet and heart rending.
I am delighted to have Kathryn back on the Margins to talk about The Belgian Girls
Photo credit: Helen Van Essendelft
You have written several collective biographies on women and war, including Women Heroes of World War I and Women Heroes of World War II. What inspired you to make the leap from non-fiction to fiction?
Kate Quinn. She utilized my World War I book a bit while writing The Alice Network and sent me a signed copy as a thank-you. I had not read historical fiction since my 20-something Leon Uris phase, but I was completely enthralled with Kate’s portrayal of Louise de Bettignies. It made me wonder if I could similarly illuminate the life of another First World War spy, Gabrielle Petit, my favorite subject in Women Heroes of World War I. I hope I have succeeded!
Is your research process different for fiction than for non-fiction? What types of sources do you rely on to create rich fictional characters from obscure, or poorly documented historical figures?
I wrote the Gabrielle Petit chapters first, using the 2015 biography by Dr. Sophie de Schaepdrijver as a reference. But much of the basic setting for each timeline was already clear in my mind because of my familiarity with both German occupations of Belgium.
What was slightly different was the necessity of using maps: I wanted to move my characters around realistically, hoping I could avoid what I often see in Chicago-set films: a northbound character driving south on Lake Shore Drive, etc.
What was completely different about writing The Belgian Girls was the freedom to create new characters and to imagine what a historical figure might have said or done, the freedom to fill in the blanks with plausible scenarios, thoughts, and conversations.
Are the two young women at the heart of The Belgian Girls based on real life characters?
Gabrielle Petit was a real woman who spied on the Germans for British Intelligence during the First World War. Second World War-era Julienne is fictional.
How do you walk the line between historical fact and fiction in a novel?
I tried to provide each scene and character with a solid historical foundation but once inside the room (or the character’s head), I was free to let my imagination flow. It was great fun attempting to access what very well might have happened, what might have been said within a specific historical framework.
What is most challenging or exciting about researching women in the first half of the 20th century?
Their capabilities were largely underestimated by their male peers. It’s not easy to fulfill your potential when the men in your life don’t believe in you, so the non-domestic accomplishments of women during the two world wars is inspiring and really quite astonishing. Their governments obviously found it so, which is why a plethora of nations gave female citizens the right to vote immediately following the First World War.
What was the most surprising thing you learned working on this book?
I’d received compliments on the quality of my nonfiction, but I didn’t realize how natural fiction writing would feel. I didn’t do this on my own though; I greatly benefited from some excellent editorial suggestions. Every novelist needs beta readers and a good developmental editor!
Before Kathryn wrote six award-winning young adult books on women and war for the Chicago Review Press, her poetry and book reviews appeared in a wide variety of print and electronic journals, including Afterimage: A Journal of Arts and Cultural Criticism, PopMatters, and War, Literature, and the Arts. Her admiration for the European resisters of both world wars inspired her to write her first novel, The Belgian Girls.
Interested in learning more about Kathryn and her work? Check out her website at: https://kathrynjatwood.com/
The Miniature Painter Revealed: A Q & A with Kathleen Lagone
The Miniature Painter Revealed: Amalia Kussner's Gilded Age Pursuit of Fame and Fortune by Kathleen Lagone is another story of a woman who was famous in her own time and subsequently forgotten.
No other female portrait artist had the notoriety or esteemed clientele that Amalia Kussner enjoyed. From the mid-1890s to 1910, having a Kussner miniature was much of a status symbol as owning fine jewelry or a mansion in Newport.
Although photography was on the rise during the late 1800s, miniatures had a feeling and soul to them that photos could not capture. Amalia’s portraits provided a grandeur that presented Gilded Age elites as American royalty. Her subjects included reigning social queen Mrs. Caroline Astor, Mrs. John Jacob Astor, Consuelo Vanderbilt, Mamie Fish, “dollar heiress” Minnie Paget, Edward VII of England, Czar Nicholas II and Alexandra of Russia, and diamond magnate Cecil Rhodes.
I am pleased to have Kathleen here on the Margins to talk about Kussner and writing the book.
What path led you to the story of Amalia Kussner?
I am distantly related to her and grew up seeing three of her miniatures in my grandmother’s glass cabinet and had only heard that she had painted the Prince of Wales (who was soon to be Edward VII). I had free time during 2020 and started to research her and found she had painted the shining stars of the Gilded Age - and led a bold and unconventional life.
Kussner was a famous artist during her lifetime but is largely forgotten today. Why do you think stories like hers disappear from history?
There’s no denying that often women artists don’t get the historical legacies that their male counterparts do. But I think her getting lost in history was also that she was never a part of miniature artist societies. These sprang up around 1900, as there started to be numerous artists doing miniatures. Those societies provided awards and publicity and a certain level of respect that was missing for Kussner. I don’t think she saw the need to be in these societies, since she was getting fame and business without them. Furthermore, in the later part of her career in the 1900’s, she spent much of her time in Europe so she received less acknowledgements in America. What is still fascinating to me is that newspapers and magazines - covered her artwork and amazing life more than any of her contemporaries. Unfortunately, very few museums have her work now.
Why miniatures rather than full-length portraits? How did Kussner’s work fit into the larger art world of her time?
The miniature portrait - many of them less in size then four inches wide - are really a more intimate type of portraiture. They sometimes were used as jewelry - such as a the portrait of a loved one worn around the neck. And the size made them simply made them more portable. As I detail in my book - one of Kussner’s miniatures was that of a young man’s girlfriend - taken by him to the Alaskan Gold Rush. Along with his equipment and supplies, this small and precious portrait traveled with him across the country. Kussner was really the leading miniature artist in the 1890’s in America - then very popular in the 1900’s in England. Having a Kussner miniature became a status symbol - and these leading figures of the Gilded Age, Mrs. Astor and Alva Vanderbilt used Kussner’s services. In England, for a brief while, she was viewed “on par” with John Singer Sargent.
The Gilded Age has caught the popular imagination over the last few years. Kussner’s story is very much part of that world. Why do you think people are drawn to that period today?
There will always be a fascination with glamorous and opulent lifestyles. And the extravagant balls held in the 1880’s and 1890’s were almost beyond imagination. But what was also interesting was the power that the wives of these industrial tycoons had - in using their wealth. These lavish events were both to advance their husband’s careers and their own standing on the Gilded Age society. But in parallel - you had the “dollar heiresses” - who were sometimes forced into marriages with titled men of England, who were in need of money from these wealthy American families. The marriages would then bring British royalty into their family, further elevating their position in the Gilded Age. The most famous marriage was that of Consuelo Vanderbilt, who was forced to marry the Duke of Marlborough, by her mother Alva Vanderbilt. Kussner painted her shortly after Consuelo’s arrival to England, at Blenheim Palace.
What was most challenging or exciting about researching women in this period of history?
I knew of the “rise” of the Suffragists during this time but what I didn’t realize was that there were the books written about women’s careers in a wide variety of fields as early as the 1900s. One book in particular was: The Part Taken by Women in American History by Mrs. John A. Logan. There was a whole chapter titled: Women in Professions and of course Amalia was listed in the section on artists. Other professions listed were composers, playwrights, religious leaders, etc.
What was the most surprising thing you learned working on this book?
The more I researched her professional life, I was very surprised to learn of her popularity in Europe and the fact that she painted not just British royalty and titled women but royal families from Spain and Germany.
What work of women’s history (fictional or non-fiction) have you read lately that you loved? Or for that matter, what work of women’s history have you loved in any format?
In learning more about British Royalty, especially while Amalia was in England, I read: The Quest for Queen Mary, edited by Hugo Vickers. This queen was the wife of George V and grandmother to Elizabeth II. She was fascinating to me - how she navigated her royal life - somewhat marching to her own standard. Her sister-in-law was Princess Maud of Wales, to become the Queen of Norway in the 1900’s. In learning of their friendship, I learned more about Maud, who Amalia painted twice, in England and Norway. I will add that Queen Mary’s later life was nicely portrayed in the series, The Crown.
How do you view Amalia Kussner’s character, and do you think you understand who she was as a person?
After intensive research over five years, I still can’t pin down who she was as a person. I know she was very dedicated to her family but her relationship with Charles du Pont Coudert remains a mystery. Though at times she seemed like a ruthless social climber, I do think she genuinely cared about some that she painted, such as with Czarina Alexandra. I keep researching and hope to find more personal writings that can help decipher her character.
Kathleen Langone is a freelance writer and historical researcher whose work has been published in regional New England publications such as Boston magazine and various newspapers. She is also the host of People Hidden in History, a podcast series that highlights fascinating people in the arts and politics who are unknown to the general public, spanning three-hundred years of history. She has been a speaker at museums, historical societies, libraries, the New York Adventure Club, and History Camp, and she frequently presents on Amalia Kussner. She lives in Middleton, Massachusetts with her husband.
Interested in learning more about Kathleen and her work?
Visit her website at https://www.kathleenlangone.com/
Follow her on Instagram at @phihpod and on Bluesky
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Heads up! Kathleen has started a book give-away through May 25th, for two copies of The Miniature Painter Revealed. Check out her recent posts at her Instagram site (@phihpod) for instructions on how to enter.
Reading my way through Asian American Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
Back in February, as I began to read my way through Black History month, I swore to myself that I was going to do the same thing for the other history and heritage months this year as a small way of shaking my fist at the current attacks on studying/teaching/valuing diversity.* Now it’s Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage month and I’m setting off on a new reading adventure. I will admit going in, I have no clue.
I had obvious choices in February: I simply pulled books from the To-Be-Read shelves and told stories that I had been hoarding. May is less clear. There are no books on my shelf. There are no books on my list. And I feel like I don’t know much.
Here are the historical bits I know something about:
• Chinese laborers on the transcontinental railroad
• Japanese internment camps in World War II
• South East Asian refugees into the United States at the end of the Vietnam War.
• Changes at various times in immigration law
I know even less about the history of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders.
Looking at that list, and at the lumpy, portmanteau nature of the month itself, I think that part of the problem is that this is a story of different groups, with different histories. It may well be that the common thread is immigration law.
I’m starting with a Big Fat History Book that looks at the histories of Asian Americans as a whole. We’ll see where it takes me. In the meantime, if you have books to recommend, please let me know.***
*As I sit down to write this, I learn that I missed Arab-American history month in April because I didn’t know it existed. Which in some ways sums up the need for such months. I’ve marked my editorial calendar for 2026.
**There will be a couple of interruptions for Q & As with authors who have books coming out in May.
***To be clear, I’m always happy to learn about a good book, but I’m not actively looking for books about Asian history to read this month. I have plenty of those on the shelves.
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To start us off, here's an article from the Washington Post about the children who came to American as part of the Vietnam War's "Operation Baby Lift" Hard to believe it's been fifty years!