The Postmistress by Sara Blake

About the book: In 1940, Iris James is the postmistress in coastal Franklin, Massachusetts. Iris knows more about the townspeople than she will ever say, and believes her job is to deliver secrets. Yet one day she does the unthinkable: slips a letter into her pocket, reads it, and doesn't deliver it.
Meanwhile, Frankie Bard broadcasts from overseas with Edward R. Murrow. Her dispatches beg listeners to pay heed as the Nazis bomb London nightly. Most of the townspeople of Franklin think the war can't touch them. But both Iris and Frankie know better...
The Postmistress is a tale of two worlds-one shattered by violence, the other willfully naïve-and of two women whose job is to deliver the news, yet who find themselves unable to do so. Through their eyes, and the eyes of everyday people caught in history's tide, it examines how stories are told, and how the fact of war is borne even through everyday life.

First line: It began, as it often does, with a woman putting her ducks in a row.

My thoughts: This historical novel left me wanting more. Like the people who listened to Frankie's radio reports and wondered what happened next I want to know what happened next to the three women in this story.

This story takes place from the points of view of three different women: the postmistress Iris James who believes in her job and takes pride in the order she brings to it, Frankie Bard who broadcasts the news from Europe and Emma Trask whose husband, a doctor, has gone to London to help in the hospitals.  As the story goes along it becomes emotional, more interesting, more compelling. The author did a wonderful job winding the three stories together and bringing a great sense of time and place to her novel. I recommend this to you but bring some tissues.

Rating: A

The Soldier's Wife by Margaret Leroy

About the book: This is the story of Vivienne de la Mare and how she lives her life during the German occupation of  her home, the small Channel Island of Guernsey. She is left alone to care for her two young daughters and mother-in-law while her husband is away at war. As the times grow tougher, the food and other resources scarcer, the horrors of war closer, Vivienne finds comfort in the one place she never thought she would: with one of the German soldiers who moved into the house next door.

First line: 'Once upon a time there were twelve princesses...' My voice surprises me."

My thoughts: I quite enjoyed this low key, gentle, thought provoking historical novel. The sense of time and place, the Guernsey occupation, was wonderfully written. The prose at times was beautiful. I was drawn into the everyday lives of these people as they tried to maintain normalcy in the face of deprivation, horror and the need for self-preservation. My favorite character has to be Millie, the youngest daughter. She is a smart, playful child with a big heart. Vivienne's struggle with survival was compelling. The picture drawn, of the prisoners and their treatment, while not a big part of the novel, was horrific.

I would have liked to have known more about Gunther, I felt his character was rather flat as was the romance. The fear of discovery was a black cloud that hung over the whole story, yet the romance, the feelings of the two were not fleshed out.

I recommend this book to anyone who likes historical fiction.

Rating: B

Quote: "There is a hole in the wire," he says. "There are guards who will not notice if we leave the camp at night. They look in the other direction. If we are there for the morning roll-call, some of them turn a blind eye. there is little food in the camp. They give us only water with a bit of turnip in it."

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

D-Day: The Battle for Normandy by Anthony Beevor

Synopsis: The Normandy Landings that took place on D-Day involved by far the largest invasion fleet ever known. The scale of the undertaking was simply awesome. What followed them was some of the most cunning and ferocious fighting of the war, at times as savage as anything seen on the Eastern Front. As casualties mounted, so too did the tensions between the principal commanders on both sides. Meanwhile, French civilians caught in the middle of these battlefields or under Allied bombing endured terrible suffering. Even the joys of Liberation had their darker side. The war in northern France marked not just a generation but the whole of the post-war world, profoundly influencing relations between America and Europe. Making use of overlooked and new material from over thirty archives in half a dozen countries, "D-Day" is the most vivid and well-researched account yet of the battle of Normandy. As with Stalingrad and Berlin, Antony Beevor's gripping narrative conveys the true experience of war.

First line: Southwick House is a large Regency building with a stucco facade and a colonnaded front.

My thoughts: D-Day has received the Prix Henry Malherbe in France and the Duke of Westminster Medal from the Royal United Services Institute. I am not much of a reader of war history and have not read any other books on this subject so I know next to nothing about D-Day. Which isn't something I am proud of. One thing that was driven home was the horror of war. The huge death tolls in the bloody battles including the loss of an unimaginable number of French civilians is inconceivable. This book was not just dry facts, there were many quotes from journals, diaries, scripts of meetings etc. incorporated into this retelling of this important event. The author tells, in detail, what happened from several perspectives, from the thinking of the leaders down to the experiences of ordinary soldiers and civilians. It was enlightening to hear of the many attempts on Hitler's life and of the feelings of some of the German regular army types compared to Hitler's SS. D-Day: the Battle for Normandy followed the fight from the June 6th landings throught the battles centered around Caen and through the hedgerows of Normandy and on to the liberation of Paris.

I listened to this book. What was good was that the narrator was wonderful. What wasn't so good: I didn't have access to the maps, pictures, illustrations and glossary.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to know more about this time in history.

Rating: A