From the movie inspired by this book (starring screen lover Charles Boyer), I was expecting a romance. Good reviews made me give it a chance. Far from being a romance, Ketti Frings has written a moving portrayal of people caught in a time and situation I had never heard of before.
Hold Back The Dawn was written in (and takes place in) 1939 as war is breaking out in Europe. Those trying to leave for America await applied for travel visas, while those who cannot obtain them (for many reasons) try another costly and strenuous route. Travel to Mexico via boat, then travel across the country to Acapulco by train, and further to Tijuana by boat where they can re-apply to enter the U.S. easier. What they aren't told is that once in Mexico, the application to the States is expensive and long, taking up to two years without guarantee of success. This novel is the story of their wait in Mexico.
Some of the heartbreaking stories are the Polish couple who applied for a visa and when it was discovered they plan to live in the US permanently, their visas are stamped invalid to prevent them. There is Klaus, a German married to an American who is mistakenly labeled a perjurer in France and denied a visa. It's a little easier for him, as his wife can travel back and forth on the weekends from her Los Angeles journalism job to the small enclave of foreigners, bringing supplies. The others are Czechs, Austrians and Russians, all caught in limbo without Mexican work visas and trying to find out what their entry status is. They all reside at Colonia Gomez, a small group of ranch guest houses where they support and commiserate with each other.
It's melancholy and rather bleak, as their plans and dreams while waiting to leave are usually dashed by crooked lawyers, ineffectual government agents and the simple desperation of poverty. All a part of daily life they have somehow gotten used to. Since it was written in 1939, it has a true and realistic feeling for the characters. It's not an uplifting story, rather exasperating actually, but I kept hoping for them to achieve.
Ketti Frings is an accomplished writer, having won the Pulitzer Prize in 1958 for her adaptation of Look Homeward, Angel and was named the Woman of the Year by the Los Angeles Times. Her screen writing includes Come Back Little Sheba and The File On Thelma Jordan.
The 1941 film of Hold Back The Dawn is quite different than the novel. Charles Boyer plays a French gigolo who meets schoolteacher Olivia DeHavilland in a Mexican border town and attempts to marry her to gain access to the USA, where he will desert her. With a screenplay written by Billy Wilder, it earned Olivia an Oscar nomination (She lost to her sister Joan Fonatine). Filming the original story might be a downer, but I'm sure Frank Capra or Preston Sturges could have made it work.
I have a 1939 Triangle hardcover of the novel. This is probably hard to find, but it was a very touching novel of human experience and resiliency. Enjoyed it very much.
1939 / Hardcover / 338 pages
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