PARIS - As a hero of the French Resistance, Stephane Hessel was in exile with Charles de Gaulle in London, imprisoned in concentration camps, waterboarded by Nazis and saved from hanging by swapping identities with an inmate who had died of typhus.

Now, at 93, he is the author of a best seller in France. The thin, impressionistic pamphlet called “Indignez-Vous!,” held together by two staples, urges young people to peacefully resist the “international dictatorship of the financial markets” and defend the “values of modern democracy.”

In particular he protests France’s treatment of illegal immigrants, the influence on the media by the rich, cuts to the social welfare system, French educational reforms and, most strongly, Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians.

“When something outrages you, as Nazism did me, that is when you become a militant,” he writes.

Since its publication in October “Indignez-Vous!” has sold almost 1.5 million copies in France and has been translated into Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Greek. Editions are planned in Slovenian, Korean, Japanese, Swedish and other languages. In the United States, The Nation magazine published the entire English version in February.

At about 4,000 words “Indignez- Vous!” (or “Time for Outrage,” its British title), is hardly a book. Its French edition is 29 pages, including footnotes, an illustration and just 14 pages of text.

The French have embraced Mr. Hessel as one of the last living heroes of the darkest era of the 20th century.

“If it had been written by a young man, it would probably not have had the same impact,” said Mr. Hessel .

The book was inspired by a speech he gave in 2008 to commemorate the Resistance. Sylvia Crossman, a publisher, proposed a pamphlet based on his thinking, and after three interviews she turned his words into a text. He did a bit of editing. “My contribution was oral,” he said. He accepted no royalties.

The book has been criticized for offering no prescription for action, and for lacking literary value. More serious is that it has been branded anti-Semitic for its attack on Israel.

Mr. Hessel, born to a Jewish father, says: “I feel that I am completely in solidarity with Jews .”

In March another French publisher released a series of interviews with Mr. Hessel titled “Engagez- Vous!” (“Get Involved!”), in which he appeals to his readers to save the environment. He also stresses the importance of luck.

“History can bring luck,” he writes; “this is what we can call optimism.”


By ELAINE SCIOLINO