When We Were Young & Brave: A Novel by Hazel Gaynor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I always like Hazel Gaynor books and I particularly enjoyed this one. Like many of her books, this one goes back in time. Nancy Plummer, now a grown woman, was a young girl at the time of WWII, when she was in a boarding school in China for children of missionaries. Elspeth Kent was one of her teachers and the leader of her Girl Guides group. Japan is at war with China, and takes over the school. The children and staff are sent to another school, and eventually, to an internment camp. I've read of the concentration camps in Germany, and of the Japanese interment camps here in the U.S., and I'd even read of the POW camps in which Japan held military prisoners. But I had not read of the interment of civilians by the Japanese, so I learned something new, a mark of good historical fiction!

One thing I really liked about the book is that while conditions were bleak and the Japanese soldiers were often cruel, the author also showed us that there is another side. Sometimes the guards could be quite humane! I also enjoyed how the prisoners pulled together to keep everyone's spirits up. I also appreciated that there was an epilogue to bring up up to date on some of the characters. I would like to have known the fate of some of the guards, but then that probably would have been unrealistic since the prisoners most likely didn't befriend the guards afterwards.

If you are looking for a quick read that may teach yo a little history, this is the book for you!

I received an advance copy of this book through the Library Think Early Reviewers program.

View all my reviews

Her Last Flight by Beatriz Williams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have read Beatriz Williams before, so I expected to like this book, but I did not expect to love it as much as I did! This book was fantastic! I’ve read and enjoyed many books about female aviators, but most have been about women in the WACS era. I’ve also always been intrigued by Amelia Earhart, who served as inspiration for this book, so this was a must read for me.

The story is centered around two women and the man they loved. The man, Sam Mallory was an early aviator. Irene Foster was his protege who disappeared on an attempted circumnavigation flight. Janey Everett is a young photojournalist who has always been a fan of Sam’s, and now wants to write a book about him, but to do that, she needs the story from Irene, who she finds living in Hawaii.

The book is written in alternating times; present day 1947 and the years from 1928 until Irene disappeared. I found it interesting one chapter tells the present day story from Janey's point of view, then the next chapter is a chapter from Janey's book telling Irene's story from her point of view. Until I figured this out, I did have a little bit of an issue because the voice of Irene and the voice of Janey was very similar, but I think that is because the women were so similar; both strong women who knew how to get what they wanted.

The story had so many twists! I can’t tell you how many times I put the book down for a moment to say “Wow! I did NOT see that coming!” I can’t think of a thing I would have changed about this book. It’s early in the year, but I won’t be at all surprised in December if I say that this is the best book I read in 2020!

I won an advanced copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

View all my reviews

Review: The Eulogist

The Eulogist by Terry Gamble
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

For me, this book was ‘meh’; ok, but nothing special. I didn’t quite get what I was expecting. I thought the book was going to be about the immigrant experience in the early 1800s. This was a family who immigrated from Ireland ca 1819. The mother immediatedly died in childbirth, and the father abandoned the remaining children soon after. From here, the story could have been about any family of struggling orphans of that time, whether or not they were recent immigrants. Instead the main focus of the story was about slavery; the injustice, the people risking their lives to either escape or aid escape. It was interesting, but I’d been looking forward to the immigrant story.

The focus aside, I found the book difficult to get through. At times the story would pick up steam, only to veer off again into a s-l-o-w moving portion. There were a lot of characters in the story; some with no real purpose. One example — after one brother attains some financial and social success, a cousin comes over from Ireland with proposition. It really didn’t add much to the story, and could have been omitted, allowing the story to progress more smoothly.

There was an epilogue of sorts; a chapter that jumped several decades into the future. Much of it was a rehash of the story, and much of it was confusing. It wasn’t satisfying in the way most epilogues are, but just made me antsy to get through it.

This wasn’t a terrible book; it just wasn’t one I was in the mood for. It may hit you differntly than it did me and become your ‘book of the year’ so give it a try!

I won a copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

View all my reviews

Review: A Nantucket Wedding

A Nantucket Wedding by Nancy Thayer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a good beach read that I was able to finish in a day. Tt was an easy read, with plenty of time spent at the beach or relaxing watching the ocean. Of course not everything was easy for the characters; most of them had problems they were dealing with. But since this was a ‘feel good’ type of story, you knew it would all turn out.

I can’t say this is a story that will stick with me for a long time, but i did enjoy it. I tired sometimes of the descriptoins of the food served at meal times, but I enjoyed the descriptions of the beach; the sounds, the smells, and the colors. While I enjoyed the story, i did find the last chapter, where we finally got to the wedding, was a little anti climactic. The book could have easily ended a chapter early and I wouldn’t have felt that I’d missed anything. If you are lookinig to get away to the beach, but can’t work it in right now, this book may provide a taste of the beach until you get there!

I won a copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

View all my reviews

The Chilbury Ladies' Choir by Jennifer Ryan
My rating: 2½ of 5 stars

I received a copy of this book through there Library Thing Early Reviewers program. I read this one almost two years ago and have yet to review it. I just didn’t know what to say about it. I read it, but it was a very slow read and I never really connected to it. I’m not sure why, because it gets high ratings on the review sites.

It wasn’t a particuarly memorable story for me. The story reminds me a lot of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society—The setting is a small town in Great Britain during World War II. The people are facing hardship. They bond together and prove to be resilient. But still, there is a difference. I can’t put my finger on it, but I connected much more to ‘Guernsy’ and enjoyed it. ‘Guernsey' was a book club selection and often a good discussion improves how I feel about a book, so that may be part of why I feel that was a better book.


I won a copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

View all my reviews

Review: My Name Is Venus Black

My Name Is Venus Black

by Heather Lloyd

Why did you choose this book? The synopsis intrigued me

When did you read this book? March 2018

Who should read this book? Readers who enjoy contemporary fiction of people making hard choices

Source: Library Thing Early Reviewers

My Rating: ★★★★  4½ Stars

Here is a synopsis of My Name Is Venus Black from Goodreads

Venus Black is a straitlaced A student fascinated by the study of astronomy—until the night she commits a shocking crime that tears her family apart and ignites a media firestorm. Venus refuses to talk about what happened or why, except to blame her mother. Adding to the mystery, Venus’s developmentally challenged younger brother, Leo, goes missing.

More than five years later, Venus is released from prison with a suitcase of used clothes, a fake identity, and a determination to escape her painful past. Estranged from her mother, and with her beloved brother still missing, she sets out to make a fresh start in Seattle, skittish and alone. But as new people enter her orbit—including a romantic interest and a young girl who seems like a mirror image of her former lost self—old wounds resurface, and Venus realizes that she can’t find a future while she’s running from her past.

My Review

I chose this one because the synopsis intrigued me. A straitlaced A student teen has done something that lands her in prison for five years—but what did she do? And why does she blame her mother? And why won’t she try to explain what she has done? Those are the questions that I had to have answered!

This was a quick read that I finished in a weekend, and could have easily have finished in one day had I not had book club, theater tickets, and other commitments over the weekend! It was hard to be on time to these things because I did NOT want to stop reading!

I loved the characters in this book. Yes, Venus is a criminal, but she is also a good person. I loved her interactions with her autistic brother, Leo. I also loved Leo, and the way the author let us into his head. There are two other characters that I particularly enjoyed because they were so good-hearted; Tessa and Tony. I’m not going to spoil the story by telling you who they are though!

The story ended satisfactorily and yet there were a couple of storylines I felt were kind of left hanging; the Danny storyline and the Piper storyline. Read the book to find out what I am talking about!

This book is classified as Young Adult, however, I’m not sure I agree with that classification. Labeling the book as Young Adult cause many adults who typically avoid books labeled young adult to skip it, and.this is too good a book to be overlooked because of its label!

To learn more about the book and the author, visit the author’s website where you will also find a reader’s guide.

I won a copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

Review: The Only Woman In The Room

The Only Woman In The Room

by Eilleen Pollack

Why did you choose this book? A book about women and sciende

When did you read this book? March 2017

Who should read this book? People who enjoy memoirs

Source: Library Thing Early Reviewers

Here is a synopsis of The Only Woman In The Room from Goodreads

A bracingly honest exploration of why there are still so few women in the hard sciences, mathematics, engineering, and computer science

In 2005, when Lawrence Summers, then president of Harvard, asked why so few women achieve tenured positions in the hard sciences, Eileen Pollack set out to find the answer. In the 1970s, Pollack had excelled as one of Yale’s first two women to earn a bachelor of science degree in physics. But, isolated, lacking in confidence, and starved for encouragement, she abandoned her lifelong dream of becoming a theoretical physicist. Years later, she thought back on her experiences and wondered what had changed in the intervening decades, and what challenges remained. Based on six years of interviewing dozens of teachers and students and reviewing studies on gender bias, The Only Woman in the Room is an illuminating exploration of the cultural, social, psychological, and institutional barriers confronting women in the STEM disciplines. Pollack brings to light the struggles that women in the sciences are often hesitant to admit and provides hope that changing attitudes and behaviors can bring more women into fields in which they remain, to this day, seriously underrepresented.

Eileen Pollack is the author of the novels Breaking and Entering (a New York Times Editor’s Choice selection) and Paradise, New York, as well as two collections of short fiction, an award-winning book of nonfiction, and two creative-nonfiction textbooks. Her work has appeared in Best American Essays and Best American Short Stories. She is a professor on the faculty of the Helen Zell MFA Program in Creative Writing at the University of Michigan. She divides her time between Manhattan and Ann Arbor, Michigan.

My Review

It’s taken me a long time to get to the point where I can write a review of this book and not a lengthy rebuttal, because this is a book that caused me to shake my head frequently. I went through school just a few years before this author, and I have to say, my experiences as a science major were nothing like hers! I could go on, but…

I think the main thing to know about this book is that despite the synopsis, this is not really a study or analysis of the role of women in science and how that may have changed. This is really a memoir about the author’s experience as a science major and her explanations for her failed expectations. Ellen grew up thinking she wanted to be a scientist, but for all the wrong reasons. Though she never seems to realize this herself, her passion is not science, but is writing. Her motivation for studying science at an ‘elite’ university seems to be that it makes her feel like she is better than the ‘common’ people. Obviously she feels that writers are second class citizens compared to scientists. Her arrogance and elitism really annoyed me, particularly when she mentioned a ‘public Midwest university’ with a tone of disdain.

Another thing that was extremely annoying to me was that she assigned her difficulty with math to the prevalence of sports-related examples in math books. She seems to imply that interest in sports is gender-based, which I assume we all know is not true — at all!

If you enjoy memoirs, you may enjoy this one, but it is important to realize that this is a story of one woman’s experiences in her quest to become a scientist, and the way she has dealt with the might-have-been and if-only. The experiences should not be generalized or assumed to reflect the experiences of all, or even most, women. If you are looking for that book you need to keep looking!

My Rating:  ★★★    3 Stars

I received a review copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

Review: The Sworn Virgin

The Sworn Virgin

by Kristopher Dukes

Why did you choose this book? The concept of a sworn virgin being given the rights of a man

When did you read this book? August 2017

Who should read this book? Readers of historical fiction

Source: Library Thing Early Reviewers

My Rating:  ☆☆☆½    3½ Stars

Here is a synopsis of The Sworn Virgin from Goodreads

Dukes's gripping historical novel tells the tale of a desperate Albanian woman who will do whatever it takes to keep her independence and seize control of her future...even if it means swearing to remain a virgin for her entire life.

When eighteen-year-old Eleanora’s father is shot dead on the cobblestone streets of 1910 Albania, Eleanora must abandon her dream of studying art in Italy as she struggles to survive in a remote mountain village with her stepmother Meria.

Nearing starvation, Meria secretly sells Eleanora into marriage with the cruel heir of a powerful clan. Intent on keeping her freedom, Eleanora takes an oath to remain a virgin for the rest of her life—a tradition that gives her the right to live as a man: she is now head of her household and can work for a living as well as carry a gun. Eleanora can also participate in the vengeful blood feuds that consume the mountain tribes, but she may not be killed—unless she forsakes her vow, which she has no intention of ever doing.

But when an injured stranger stumbles into her life, Eleanora nurses him back to health, saving his life—yet risking her own as she falls in love with him...

My Review

This one is a hard one for me to rate, because I liked it a lot….right up until it ended! The ending alone is enough for me to recommend it to book clubs….just so I have someone to discuss it with!

Other than the ending, I really enjoyed the story. It was interesting to read about the tradition of the ‘sworn virgin’ being given the rights of a man. This reminded me a lot of the bacha posh of Afghanistan, which I read about in The Underground Girls of Kabul and The Pearl That Broke Its Shell. The descriptions of the mountain country and the markets in Albania pulled me right into the story. To be honest, had I not been told at the beginning that the story was set in 1910, I would have easily have believed that this took place a few hundred years ago!

Eleanora is a complicated young woman — spoiled and self-centered — who gets herself into a lot of trouble by thinking about she wants and going after it impulsively, without ever considering the consequences of her actions or how they may affect others. Without giving any spoilers, I can tell you that almost everything Eleanora does is done impulsively and without a lot of thought; she is thrust into circumstances and just reacts. She never seems fully invested in her status as a sworn virgin, which is probably good, because it doesn’t last very long. You can probably tell that I didn’t like the character of Eleanora very much.

Other than the ending, my major quibble with the book is the synopsis. The synopsis led me to believe that Eleanora’s father was killed and she became a sworn virgin almost immediately at the beginning of the book, and that she spent some time in this role before she stumbled upon the injured stranger. The truth is that I was almost halfway through the book before Eleanora made her vow and then very little time passed before she broke it. I was a little disappointed not to have learned more about the life of a woman as a sworn virgin. And as I mentioned, I was very disappointed in Eleanora at the end of the book. However, I did enjoy the book and think it will make a good selection for book clubs!

You can visit the publisher’s website to read an excerpt or listen to a sample.

You can see an interview with the author here.

You can read an article about sworn virgins living in current day Albania here.

I won a copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

Review: Our Short History

Our Short History

by Lauren Grodstein

Why did you choose this book? The drama of the synopsis

When did you read this book? April 2016

Who should read this book? Readers who enjoy stories of family

Source: Library Thing Early Reviewers

My Rating:  ☆☆☆½    3½ Stars

Here is a synopsis of Our Short History from Goodreads

Karen Neulander, a successful New York political consultant, has always been fiercely protective of her son, Jacob, now six. She’s had to be: when Jacob’s father, Dave, found out Karen was pregnant and made it clear that fatherhood wasn’t in his plans, Karen walked out of the relationship, never telling Dave her intention was to raise their child alone.

But now Jake is asking to meet his dad, and with good reason: Karen is dying. When she finally calls her ex, she’s shocked to find Dave ecstatic about the son he never knew he had. First, he can’t meet Jake fast enough, and then, he can’t seem to leave him alone.

With just a few more months to live, Karen resists allowing Dave to insinuate himself into Jake’s life. As she tries to play out her last days in the “right” way, Karen wrestles with the truth that the only thing she cannot bring herself to do for her son--let his father become a permanent part of his life--is the thing he needs from her the most. With heart-wrenching poignancy, unexpected wit, and mordant humor, Lauren Grodstein has created an unforgettable story about parenthood, sacrifice, and life itself.

My Review

I almost didn’t pick this one up. The synopsis really grabbed me, but I’d had a previous experience with this author a few years ago when The Explanation For Everything left me so disappointed. In the end, however, the pull of the synopsis was just too much and I requested a review copy though the Library Thing Early Reviewers program. I’m glad I did.

Karen was an interesting woman with some complex issues to work through, but luckily she had a very supportive family to help her through. Her little sister Allie and her family were at first glance too good to be true, but though there wasn’t a lot of time spent on the family dynamics, there was enough to let you know they really weren’t perfect. And while I didn’t always agree with Karen’s decisions her justifications, it was easy to understand why she felt as she did. And though we didn’t get to really know Dave well, he was a likeable guy, even if Karen felt differently. The story was written from Karen’s point of view, and often a ‘he said - she said’ story about the birth of little Jake, so we really don’t know which version is correct. The star of this story, by the way, is Jake, a cute, energetic six-year-old with all the characteristics that come with being six! My only real issue is where the story ended — I would have liked to have known more about the evolution of Karen’s relationship with Dave and his wife, Megan. But ending it where it did prevented the story from being a tear-jerker, and it’s pretty easy to guess how it all ended, so I’m not really disappointed.

This was a quick read and will be great for a lazy, rainy weekend. Even better will be to get your book club to read and discuss it as there is so much to discuss.  I’ve not been able to find discussion questions, but groups should find it easy to discuss with questions like how will Karen’s relationship with the father of her child evolve? Does she stick to her original plan to live out her remaining days with her sister? What choices SHOULD Karen make? And so much more!

You can read a short excerpt of the book on the publisher’s website.

I won a copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

Review: The Revelation of Louisa May

The Revelation of Louisa May

by Michaela MacColl

Why did you choose this book? The synopsis interested me

When did you read this book? March 2017

Who should read this book? Readers who enjoyed Little Women

Source: Library Thing Early Reviewers

My Rating:  ☆☆☆½    3½ Stars

Here is a synopsis of The Revelation of Louisa May from Goodreads

Louisa May Alcott can't believe it—her mother is leaving for the summer to earn money for the family and Louisa is to be in charge of the household. How will she find the time to write her stories, much less have any adventures of her own? But before long, Louisa finds herself juggling her temperamental father, a mysterious murder, a fugitive seeking refuge along the Underground Railroad, and blossoming love. Intertwining fact, fiction, and quotes from Little Women, Michaela MacColl has crafted another spunky heroine whose story will keep readers turning pages until the very end.

My Review

This has been sitting on my shelf for quite some time, and I’m not sure why it has taken me so long to read it — I won a copy from the Library Thing Early Reviewers program nearly two years ago! I was sure I’d started it earlier and couldn’t get into it, but if I did, my experience was completely different this time. I read half the book in one sitting and finished it off the next time I had time to pick it up!

The story itself is fiction; a murder-mystery involving Louisa May Alcott and the work of the Alcott family for the pre-civil war era underground railroad. However, the author has brought many of the details of the real-life Louisa May Alcott into the story. Some of these details were familiar to me from reading The House of Hawthorne by Erika Robuck, which also told of the Alcotts and their neighbors, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. I really enjoyed the interactions of these famous authors. I also enjoyed watching Louisa deal with the ethical dilemmas that were thrown at her.

One thing I really appreciated about the book is the author's notes at the end. I read the book, planning to do a lot of googling when I finished to sort out fact from fiction. The author used her end notes to do that for me, being very clear on what came from her imagination and where fact and fiction parted. I found after reading her comments, I had no questions left!

This book is classified as young adult and probably geared toward middle school readers. Though I only rated the book 3½ Stars, I think a reader in the upper middle school to high school age group, particularly one who had read and loved Little Women, would rate this one much higher. (Disclosure: I've never read Little Women!)

You can visit the author’s website to learn more about the book, read an excerpt, or view a discussion guide for teachers. And if you want to learn more about the Alcotts, Stuff You Missed in History Class has a couple of very good podcasts you can for you . I’m linking to the show notes. You can find the links to the episodes inside.

• Louisa May Alcott
• Two Other Alcotts: Bronson and May

I won an advanced review copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

Review: From Ashes Into Light

From Ashes Into Light

by Gudrun Mouw

Why did you choose this book? The synopsis interested me

When did you read this book? December 2016

Who should read this book? Readers who enjoy mystical or spiritual stories

Source: Library Thing Early Reviewers

My Rating:  DNF

Here is a synopsis of From Ashes Into Light from Goodreads

From Ashes into Light is a transpersonal tale of epic tragedy, spirituality, family, and personal redemption. It is told through three distinct voices: the hauntingly tragic story of Ruth, a Jewish adolescent during Kristallnacht in Austria, Saqapaya, a stalwart Native American from coastal California during the time of the Spanish conquest, and Friede Mai.

My Review

I received a copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers last fall. I’m sorry to say that this one was just not for me. The synopsis sounded great, but even though I tried I just could not finish it. I got almost all the way through — chapter 36 of 44 chapters — when I realized that I was not going to come away from this with a good reading experience whether or struggled through and finished the book or whether I set it aside to move on to something else.  I chose to set it aside.

I'm not sure why this was such a negative experience for me. The synopsis was promising, but I never was able to relate to any of the characters, and I never really understood what was going on. I know it was supposed to be spiritual, but for me it was confusing. I felt that somehow I was supposed to feel a connection between the characters and the the author was trying to deliver a message that I never connected with.

I've seen good reviews from other readers, and the book rates 3.44 stars on Goodreads, so there is obviously an audience for this book — I’m just not part of that audience. Hopefully your experience with the book will be much better if you choose to read it.

I won a copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

Review: Gunpowder Girls

Gunpowder Girls

by Tanya Anderson

Why did you choose this book? Civil War events that I was previously unaware of

When did you read this book? October 2016

Who should read this book? readers who want to learn about women’s efforts during the Civil War

Source: Library Thing Early Reviewers

Here is a synopsis of Gunpowder Girls from Goodreads

Gunpowder Girls is a story of child labor and immigrant hopes and the cruel, endless demands of an all-consuming war. Tanya Anderson (Tillie Pierce: Teen Eyewitness to Gettysburg) combines meticulous research and moving narrative to tell the true stories of three appalling Civil War disasters involving girls as young as ten.

With thousands of men off fighting in the Civil War, the government hired women and girls-some as young as ten-to make millions of rounds of ammunition. Poor immigrant girls and widows paid the price for carelessness at three major arsenals. Many of these workers were killed, blown up and burned beyond recognition. Hidden history comes alive through primary-source research and page-turning narrative.

As Steve Sheinkin did with The Port Chicago 50, Tanya Anderson in Gunpowder Girls tells an amazing war story that finally gives its subjects their due.

My Review

One of my favorite periods of history to learn about is the Civil War era. I wanted to read this book because it seemed to cover new territory that I, as least, was unaware of. The book is written at perhaps a middle school level which may cause the reader to think there isn’t much ‘meat’ in the book, but that reader would be mistaken. I couldn’t ask for more in a book — I learned so much. Though a quick read, there is plenty of ‘meat’ in this book, with numerous illustrations and notes to enhance the material. One example; I now know how cartridges were assembled and loaded into muskets to be fired. A well-trained soldier could load and fire 2-3 times per minute, which really puts into perspective what our forefathers had in mind when they wrote the 2nd amendment! And while I knew women had served as spies, nurses, and even soldiers during the war, I did not know how widespread the employment of women in the war effort was at that time!

Learning about these girls and women and their work also brought to mind my aunt, who worked in the ‘lab’ at Olin on ‘Powder Mill Road’ shortly after WWII. I was young and though I knew there were dangers of explosion (and even knew that whistle codes that indicated what building had the fire!) and that Olin was associated with ammunition, I always thought she was a chemist. I now have to wonder if the ‘lab’ she worked in assembled cartridges!

Even though the book is written for young adults, the author has included an extensive bibliography and recommended reading for those who want to learn more. This should satisfy adults who read the book.

You can read an excerpt on the publisher’s website. Below is a book trailer for Gunpowder Girls.

My Rating:  ★★★★★    5 Stars

I received a review copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

Review: The Girl From The Paradise Ballroom

The Girl From Paradise Ballroom

by Alison Love

Why did you choose this book? a WWII story with an Italian connection

When did you read this book? June 2015

Who should read this book? readers of WWII fiction

Source: Library Thing Early Reviewers

Here is a synopsis of The Girl From Paradise Ballroom from Goodreads

The first meeting between Antonio and Olivia at the Paradise Ballroom is brief, but electric.

Years later, on the dawn of World War II, when struggling Italian singer Antonio meets the wife of his wealthy new patron, he recognizes her instantly: it is Olivia, the captivating dance hostess he once encountered in the seedy Paradise Ballroom. Olivia fears Antonio will betray the secrets of her past, but little by little they are drawn together, outsiders in a glittering world to which they do not belong. At last, with conflict looming across Europe, the attraction between them becomes impossible to resist--but when Italy declares war on England, the impact threatens to separate them forever.

The Girl from the Paradise Ballroom is a story of forbidden love and family loyalties amid the most devastating war in human history.

My Review

I received a copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers earlier this year, but for many reasons, put off reading it. I’m really sorry I did! Why did I put it off so long? I’m not sure, but I think it was because I read the synopsis; I was interested in the Italian connection, but the ‘brief, but electric’ meeting did nothing to make me want to read this book! Even after picking it up, the book did not draw me in immediately. It’s not that I dislike ‘romance’ but I don’t want that to be the main theme in the book. Luckily for me, in this book it was not! This is a war-time story and a story of family, and the romance just happens to be one minor part of that story.

What I really enjoyed about this story was the story of the Italian immigrant experience during WWII. While Antonio was born in Italy, his family immigrated to London while he was still a young child and he was very much assimilated. All the same, when war broke out, he was looked at with suspicion. This resonated with me because I’d heard similar stories about my Italian immigrant ancestors in the US, who were monitored as ‘enemy aliens’ during the war even though they’d entered the US over 30 years ago as young children! This alone made the book interesting to me. Beyond that, the stories of the London bombings, the rationing and deprivation of basic foods and clothing that civilians experiences really came to life for me in this book.

Though I wasn’t a fan of the romance between Antonio and Olivia, I did enjoy some of the other relationships characters formed. At times Bernard, Olivia’s husband, came off as a bit pompous, but overall I came to like him very much. In the end, he was a good-hearted person and I enjoyed his interactions with both Antonio and his sister Filomena.

The book is a little slow-paced, so if you are looking for action, this is not the book you are looking for. You will also be disappointed in the ‘romance’ if you have read the synopsis and are expecting something of epic proportions. However, if you are looking for a good family story set during WWII, this may be just your thing. I just wish it had a more appropriate synopsis!

My Rating:  ★★★★½    4½ Stars

I received a review copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program.

SaveSave