The Porcelain Maker By Sarah Freethy

Publication Nov.7, 2023-St. Martin’s Press-Historical Fiction-Romance-416pp

Book Summary

Two lovers caught at the crossroads of history.
A daughter’s search for the truth.

Germany, 1929. At a festive gathering of young bohemians in Weimar, two young artists, Max, a skilled Jewish architect, and Bettina, a celebrated avant-garde painter, are drawn to each other and begin a whirlwind romance. Their respective talents transport them to the dazzling lights of Berlin, but this bright beginning is quickly dimmed by the rising threat of Nazism. Max is arrested and sent to the concentration camp at Dachau where only his talent at making exquisite porcelain figures stands between him and seemingly certain death. Desperate to save her lover, Bettina risks everything to rescue him and escape Germany.

America, 1993. Clara, Bettina’s daughter, embarks on a journey to trace her roots and determine the identity of her father, a secret her mother has kept from her for reasons she’s never understood. Clara’s quest to piece together the puzzle of her origins transports us back in time to the darkness of Nazi Germany, where life is lived on a razor’s edge and deception and death lurk around every corner. Survival depends on strength, loyalty, and knowing true friend from hidden foe. And as Clara digs further, she begins to question why her mother was so determined to leave the truth of her harrowing past behind…

The Porcelain Maker is a powerful novel of enduring love and courage in the face of appalling brutality as a daughter seeks to unlock the mystery of her past.

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

This dual timeline novel carries all the emotional and physical burdens of World War ll, the Holocaust, and the impact of these events on relationships and families. The porcelain figurines found at auction in Cincinnati,1993, represent the tension and anxiousness fired into Sarah Freethy’s characters. From the opening of the novel in Germany,1929 when the main characters meet, through America, 1993, when Clara is searching for clues to her past, readers will experience love and marriage consequences, the Allach Porcelain Factory and the concentration camp in Dachau, along with frightening rescue attempts.

The climax of the plot is set in the basement of the porcelain factory. As an escape plan is formed Freethy’s chilling descriptions, plot twists, and courageous characters keep suspense at a peak. The porcelain making techniques and regimens of the prisoners, aside the brutal treatment and plight of the Jews makes this an emotionally challenging and demanding novel. Sarah Freethy’s The Porcelain Maker is a work of art. And as “The Porcelain Maker of Dachau” believes, “Art should serve a purpose beyond beauty.”

Allach porcelain (pronounced ‘alak’) a.k.a. Porzellan Manufaktur Allach was produced in Germany between 1935 and 1945. After its first year of operation, the enterprise was run by the SS with forced labor provided by the Dachau concentration camp. The emphasis was on decorative ceramics —objets d’art for the Nazi regime. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allach_(porcelain)

**Available for purchase on Amazon**-Book Description below:

“For the first time, the brief nine year history of SS Allach Porcelain (1936-1945), the infamous nazi run porcelain factory, is presented in this new two volume reference. Explored in detail is the fascinating array of sculptures made by Allach, and also the historical significance as to why each category of porcelain was established. Close-up views of figures show the skilled artistry of some of Germany’s greatest sculptors, potterers and painters including Theodor Karner, Ottmar Obermaier and Richard Forster. And why this little known porcelain factory named Allach may be considered the producer of some of the finest porcelain the world has seen to this day. This two volume reference is the result of many years of painstaking research and collecting. No expense was spared to bring the facts to all Allach Porcelain collectors and porcelain aficionado’s alike. The books feature over 600 photographs, including many never before seen porcelain figures, and comprehensive text.” From Amazon site.

The Other PRINCESS a novel of Queen Victoria’s Goddaughter by Denny S. Bryce

Publishing October 3, 2023- William Morrow-Historical Fiction-400pp

Book Summary

A stunning portrait of an African princess raised in Queen Victoria’s court and adapting to life in Victorian England—based on the real-life story of a recently rediscovered historical figure, Sarah Forbes Bonetta.

With a brilliant mind and a fierce will to survive, Sarah Forbes Bonetta, a kidnapped African princess, is rescued from enslavement at seven years old and presented to Queen Victoria as a “gift.” To the Queen, the girl is an exotic trophy to be trotted out for the entertainment of the royal court and to showcase Victoria’s magnanimity. Sarah charms most of the people she meets, even those who would cast her aside. Her keen intelligence and her aptitude for languages and musical composition helps Sarah navigate the Victorian era as an outsider given insider privileges.

But embedded in Sarah’s past is her destiny. Haunted by visions of destruction and decapitations, she desperately seeks a place, a home she will never run from, never fear, a refuge from nightmares and memories of death.

Grateful Reader Review & Companion Read by Dorothy Schwab

This four-part saga is told in first person and based on the life of Sarah Forbes Bonetta, an African princess who became the ward of Queen Victoria. Author Denny Bryce has completed impeccable research to bring this little-known historical figure to life. Bryce uses a blue pendant throughout the novel as a tangible, emotional touch point connecting readers to the haunting, tragic loss of the royal family of the princess. Bryce’s vivid descriptions of West Africa, Windsor Castle, Sierra Leone and Lagos Colony take the reader from the brink of seven-year-old Princess Aina’s execution to Queen Victoria’s death almost six decades later. Fans of the PBS series, Victoria, will appreciate the vivid details of Queen Victoria’s household, including the death of Prince Albert, and the wedding of Princess Alice. The superb storytelling, analogies, and wisdom expressed through Sarah’s thoughts and travels across continents reveals the rich history and political situations in Africa and England spanning 1843-1900. Denny S. Bryce has created a gripping account of an intelligent young girl with no choices who becomes a royal insider; a bold woman fighting for independence, love, family, and home.

Denny S. Bryce is a best-selling, award-winning author of historical fiction. A former dancer and public relations professional, Denny is an adjunct professor in the MFA program at Drexel University, a book critic for NPR, and a freelance writer whose work has appeared in USA Today and Harper’s Bazaar. She is also a member of the Historical Novel Society, Women’s Fiction Writers Association, and Tall Poppy Writers. Originally from Ohio, she likes to call Chicago her hometown but currently resides in Savannah, Georgia. You can find her online at DennySBryce.com.

Companion Read: At Her Majesty’s Request: An African Princess in Victorian England by Walter Dean Myers-139pp

A perfect companion read would be At Her Majesty’s Request: An African Princess in Victorian England, by Walter Dean Myers, published by Scholastic, Inc. in 1999. I purchased this at the completion of The Other Princess after reading the author’s note. At Her Majesty’s Request, is based on letters, filled with illustrations, photos and even a map, which is always appreciated! This book-4th-8th grade, is a great example for teaching first and secondary sources in research. Due to the audience, the descriptions of the attack on the royal family are much less graphic. Here are a few pictures from the book. I highly recommend The Other Princess by Denny S. Bryce and At Her Majesty’s Request by Walter Dean Myers.

Walter Dean Myers: August 12, 1937 – July 1, 2014) was an American writer of children’s books best known for young adult literature. He was born in Martinsburg, West Virginia, but was raised in Harlem. A tough childhood led him to writing and his school teachers would encourage him in this habit as a way to express himself. He wrote more than one hundred books including picture books and nonfiction. He won the Coretta Scott King Award for African-American authors five times.^[1] His 1988 novel Fallen Angels is one of the books most frequently challenged in the U.S. because of its adult language and its realistic depiction of the Vietnam War. From Wickipedia

The Summer of Songbirds by Kristy Woodson Harvey

Publishes July 11, 2023-Gallery Books-Women’s Fiction-368pp

Book Summary

Four women come together to save the summer camp that changed their lives and rediscover themselves in the process in this moving new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Wedding Veil and the Peachtree Bluff series.

Nearly thirty years ago, in the wake of a personal tragedy, June Moore bought Camp Holly Springs and turned it into a thriving summer haven for girls. But now, June is in danger of losing the place she has sacrificed everything for, and begins to realize how much she has used the camp to avoid facing difficulties in her life.

June’s niece, Daphne, met her two best friends, Lanier and Mary Stuart, during a fateful summer at camp. They’ve all helped each other through hard things, from heartbreak and loss to substance abuse and unplanned pregnancy, and the three are inseparable even in their thirties. But when attorney Daphne is confronted with a relationship from her past—and a confidential issue at work becomes personal—she is faced with an impossible choice.

Lanier, meanwhile, is struggling with tough decisions of her own. After a run-in with an old flame, she is torn between the commitment she made to her fiancé and the one she made to her first love. And when a big secret comes to light, she finds herself at odds with her best friend…and risks losing the person she loves most.

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

The Summer of Songbirds is an homage to summer camp memories, childhood joys and forever friendships. The setting is Camp Holly Springs where three little girls, now three young women, have returned to relive their childhood summers and try to save the beloved camp from developers.

Kristy Woodson Harvey tells the story from four points of view. The three campers who are now grown: Daphne-a lawyer, Lanier-a bookstore owner, Mary Stuart- a master at public relations and the Camp Holly Springs owner, Daphne’s Aunt June. KWH’s vivid descriptions of the camp, cabins, dining hall and all the daily activities will rekindle readers’ memories of campouts, talent shows, friendship bracelets, and stories around the campfire. Friendship dilemmas now involve career crossroads, trouble with a fiancé, a wedding rendezvous with an Ex, and family secrets between friends. KWH creates anticipation, disappointment, and finally hope surrounding each character. Her prose includes a poignant analogy that the river is like humans, carrying secrets, scars, joy, and hope. Added is the wisdom that we can’t control the wind, but we can adjust the sails, and of joy and sadness; you cannot have one without the other. This is “a book to lose yourself in, then find yourself again.” Welcome to Camp Holly Springs and The Summer of Songbirds. As Kristy Woodson Harvey says, “It’s always summer somewhere!”

Kristy Woodson Harvey is the New York Times, USA Today and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author of ten novels including Under the Southern Sky, The Peachtree Bluff Series, The Wedding Veil and The Summer of Songbirds. Her Peachtree Bluff Series is currently in development with NBC with Kristy as co-writer and co-executive producer. She is the winner of the Lucy Bramlette Patterson Award for Excellence in Creative Writing, a finalist for the Southern Book Prize, and her books have received numerous accolades including Southern Living’s Most Anticipated Beach Reads, Entertainment Weekly’s Spring Reading Picks, and Katie Couric’s Most Anticipated Reads.

But in spite of their personal problems, nothing is more important to these songbirds than Camp Holly Springs. When the women learn their childhood oasis is in danger of closing, they band together to save it, sending them on a journey that promises to open the next chapters in their lives.

Hello Stranger by Katherine Center

Publishes July 11, 2023-St. Martin’s Press-Romance-336pp

https://katherinecenter.com/hello-stranger/

Book Summary

Love isn’t blind, it’s just a little blurry.

Sadie Montgomery never saw what was coming . . . Literally! One minute she’s celebrating the biggest achievement of her life―placing as a finalist in the North American Portrait Society competition―the next, she’s lying in a hospital bed diagnosed with a “probably temporary” condition known as face blindness. She can see, but every face she looks at is now a jumbled puzzle of disconnected features. Imagine trying to read a book upside down and in another language. This is Sadie’s new reality with every face she sees.

But, as she struggles to cope, hang on to her artistic dream, work through major family issues, and take care of her beloved dog, Peanut, she falls into―love? Lust? A temporary obsession to distract from the real problems in her life?―with not one man but two very different ones. The timing couldn’t be worse.

If only her life were a little more in focus, Sadie might be able to find her way. But perceiving anything clearly right now seems impossible. Even though there are things we can only find when we aren’t looking. And there are people who show up when we least expect them. And there are always, always other ways of seeing.

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

A humorous yet poignant view of a struggling portraitist and her startling diagnosis after brain surgery. Readers will “see” Katherine Center’s Sadie though the foggy lens of face blindness. Through therapy with Dr. Nicole, Sadie and readers learn about confirmation bias, how to let friends help, and how to face tough truths about life, ourselves and healing family hurts.

Another recognizably memorable reminder of Katherine Center’s ability to help us see ourselves in the reflections of others. Find truth and hope in Hello Stranger.

Katherine Center is the author of How to Walk Away and Things You Save in a Fire—both instant New York Times bestsellers—as well as The Lost Husband (now a movie starring Josh Duhamel), and five other bittersweet comic novels. She writes laugh-and-cry books about how life knocks us down—and how we get back up. Katherine has been compared to both Nora Ephron and Jane Austen, and the Dallas Morning News calls her stories, “satisfying in the most soul-nourishing way.” Katherine lives in her hometown of Houston, Texas, with her husband, two kids, and their fluffy-but-fierce dog.

The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies by Alison Goodman

Secrets of the Italian Island by Barbara Josselsohn

Publishes May 11, 2023-Bookouture-Historical Fiction-Sisters of War-Book #1-393pp.

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

Barbara Josselsohn’s foray into historical fiction begins with Secrets of the Italian Island. Based on a true story, this dual timeline is book #1 in the Sisters of War series. Main character Mia, grieving her grandmother Lucy’s recent passing in 2018, receives a letter claiming her grandmother is connected to an object of historical significance stolen from a castle on an island off the coast of Italy in the early 1940’s. Known as the Castle of the Poets for centuries, it had become a sanctuary for inventors, scientists, writers, and artists from all over the world. In the 1940’s the castle was stormed and overtaken by Nazis to house high ranking officials. The dual timeline continues with the saga of three sisters on a quest in 1943 to save their dying father. Papa, a Jewish tailor, should be leaving Italy, but due to his health must remain at home in his small village south of Rome. Annalise, oldest sister at 18 years old, has devised a daring plan to travel to the island, secure jobs in the castle kitchen, and find the owner, Patricio Parissi, who she hopes will help save her father.

Barbara Josselsohn’s well developed characters bridge the timelines for readers. In the current timeline, Mia’s boyfriend, Ryan, lacks empathy for her search to understand how the grandmother that raised her is somehow connected to a wedding dress found in a closet. When Mia travels to Italy, Ryan’s questioning phone calls and lack of support creates tension and distrust as the story progresses. Mia’s island tour guide, Leo, links readers to the latter timeline, as he shares the Parissi’s family history of the castle and the gruesome details of the Nazi takeover. Readers will also appreciate the impressive head of the castle kitchen, Signora Russo, and her intricate system of record keeping for guests in the castle.

Josselsohn’s prose is filled with anticipation, hope and fear in the sisters’ plan and her dialogue evokes emotions ranging from infuriating reactions to soul-stirring feelings shared on a dance floor. Along with analysis of the grandmother/granddaughter relationship readers can follow the sisters for an historic discovery and the threads of connection between artists and musicians of years past. Notes in walls and secrets leading to a love story on the Isola di Parissi, will be discovered in Secrets of the Italian Island.

All the Pretty Places by Joy Callaway

Publishes May 9, 2023-Harper Muse-Historical Fiction-400pp.

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

Joy Callaway’s All the Pretty Places transports readers to the Gilded Age of extravagant Fifth Avenue, New York mansions surrounded by elaborately landscaped gardens and terraces overflowing with palms, roses, peonies, and lilacs. The setting is Charlie Fremd’s Rye Nurseries, famous on the East Coast for rare and exotic plants but as the result of an economic downturn known as the Panic of 1893, his nursery is in peril. Main character Sadie Fremd is Charlie’s 22-year-old daughter, whose love and lifelong study of horticulture has prepared her to take over the nurseries when he retires. At the center of the family business crisis is that neither of Sadie’s brothers is interested in running the nurseries. The oldest son Charlie Jr., an adventurer, has been lured to Florida to design gardens for Hotel Royal Poinciana, and younger Freddie has gone to Chicago to follow political aspirations. Sadie’s father does not see her as a viable successor, believing “men should be about men’s work,” and she should be about getting married.

Meanwhile, Sadie develops her own strategies to save the family business. Stubborn and loyal, she rejects the debutante’s duty to marry and refuses several matches. Her heart belongs to Sam, a nursery worker who shares her love of horticulture, but left the area after a heartbreaking decision. Readers will cheer Sadie on as she boldly confronts and rebuffs suitors her father continues to present. Anger literally seeps through the prose as he issues an ultimatum for her to marry or be sent to family in Germany until she consents.

Callaway creates emotional and familial conflict as true love, Sam, returns to Rye Nurseries. After life-changing experiences and much soul-searching Sadie confronts the fact that a mere five miles from the 5^th Avenue mansions are tenements reeking of garbage and sewage. The vivid descriptions of the sights and smells capture the vast contradictions in the lifestyle and beauty surrounding the privileged as exquisite gardens and greenhouses bring their owners and readers a quiet, calming peace. But Sadie empathizes with those in the tenements dying of hopelessness. Don’t they deserve to appreciate the beauty of gardens in public parks?

The revelation that gardens and parks are beacons of hope for everyone blooms verdantly in the hearts of readers of All the Pretty Places.

Rebecca Lukens –**Pioneering Industrialist**

SPOTLIGHT / EXCERPT: SHADOWS WE CARRY By Meryl Ain

Publishing April 25, 2023-SparkPress-Historical Fiction-296pp

“In this eagerly anticipated sequel to Meryl Ain’s award-winning post-Holocaust novel The Takeaway Men, we follow Bronka and JoJo Lubinski as they find themselves on the cusp of momentous change for women in the late 1960s. With the United States in the grip of political and social upheaval, the twins and a number of their peers, including a Catholic priest and the son of a Nazi, struggle with their family’s ancestry and how much influence it has on their lives. Meanwhile, both young women seek to define their roles as women, and as individuals.

Enlightening and evocative, Shadows We Carry explores the experience of navigating deeply held family secrets and bloodlines, confusing religious identities, and the scars of World War II in the wake of revolutionary societal changes.”

EXCERPT: SHADOWS WE CARRY- p. 102-104

“So, Miss Lubinksi, you want to be a journalist?” he asked after they sat down.

“Yes, very much, Dean Atkins.”

“Well, I have to say you would make a very attractive journalist. Do you have any clips?”

While always pleased with a compliment, Bronka wondered what her physical appearance had to do with her skills as a journalist. She took out the red faux-leather scrapbook where she had lovingly scotch-taped all her articles — beginning with her piece on President Kennedy’s assassination in the high school newspaper and the one on the space program that landed in the Long Island Press. The dean looked through pages of her work, including all of our contributions to the Queen’s College newspaper and literary magazine.

“Well, you certainly are a prolific writer. But do you think you have what it takes to be a journalist? Do you think you’re assertive enough — actually aggressive enough to do what it takes to chase down a story?

“Yes, I do,” Bronka answered, mustering every bit of confidence she had. “I’ve done it numerous times on many assignments for the school newspaper. And I’m also very competitive; I want to be the first one with the breaking news.”

She knew — deep in her heart — that she absolutely would be able to get over her shyness when pursuing a lead. Even in school, when she was on an assignment for the paper, it enabled her to do and ask things she couldn’t do in real life. Sitting in the dean’s office at the Journalism School made her forget Ned and all her troubles. When she was running after a story and writing it, nothing else mattered.

“Well, you are a very impressive young woman, Miss Lewinsky. And your credentials are top notch — stellar grades and a track record of performance in the field. And I did mention earlier that you’re easy on the eyes. I do have to tell you, though, we only admit 100 graduate students a year — that’s from the whole country — actually the entire world; you know, we have foreign students too, Out of the 100, we have a quota for women — it’s about 20 percent. So, we will only be admitting 20 women this year. So, here’s my last question. I ask every woman this question — and I must ask it of you too.

“Do you plan on getting married and having a family? You see, because our enrollment is so limited, we want the women we admit to stay in the field. It’s been our experience that women don’t have the same staying power as men in the profession once they have a family. It’s a fact.”

“But things are changing,” Bronka retorted.

“Maybe so dear, but change is always slow. And right now, that’s what the statistics tell us. We make a serious investment in all of our students and we want to see the results. So please answer the question. “Do you plan on getting married and having a family?”

Bronka’s face turn red, and she scowled. This is patently unfair, she thought to herself.

About Meryl Ain-Author-New to the Grateful Reader!

Meryl Ain is a writer, author, podcaster, and career educator. The Takeaway Men, her award-winning post-Holocaust debut novel, was published in 2020. Her articles and essays have appeared in numerous publications and she is the author of two nonfiction books. A member of The International Advisory Board for Holocaust Survivor Day, she is the host of the podcast People of the Book, and the founder of the Facebook group “Jews Love To Read!” She holds a BA from Queens College, an MA from Columbia University, and a doctorate in education from Hofstra University. She and her husband, Stewart, a journalist, have three married sons and six grandchildren and live in New York. https://merylain.com/

The Golden Doves by Martha Hall Kelly

Publishes April 18, 2023-Ballantine Books-528pp.-Historical Fiction

The Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

Martha Hall Kelly once again explores the astounding, haunting, immeasurable consequences of World War ll, the Holocaust, and experimentation at the Ravensbrück concentration camp. Readers of Kelly’s Lilac Girls will recall the horrific experiments to which women and children were subjected at the all-female camp where Dr. Herta Oberheuser was working. The saga continues as two female spies known as the Golden Doves are arrested and sentenced to Ravensbrück to endure unspeakable things. The Golden Doves are Josie Anderson, an American whose mother is a famous Jewish singer and Arlette La Rue, a Parisian. The survival of Josie’s mother and Arlette and her son, Willie from the Kinderzimmer, are central to the plot set at Ravensbrück. A decade later Josie’s mission for the U.S Army is to track down an infamous Nazi doctor and Arlette is led to believe her son, Willie, may have survived. The former Doves risk their lives to seek justice for Josie’s mother and hopefully reunite Arlette with her son.

This novel is based on an inordinate amount of research, so typical of MHK’s previous books. There’s an unbelievable amount of history that’s certainly not taught in schools or revealed in many World War ll novels. She seamlessly weaves an introduction to “Operation Paperclip” here in the U.S. and the Ratline in Germany to give readers a host of nonfiction reading and research to pursue after The Golden Doves. The emotional tension, fear, and guilt are palpable on every page as the plot alternates from 1944 (Before) to 1952, taking readers from Ft. Bliss in El Paso, Texas where Josie is stationed, to Arlette’s Parisian café, and then following them both to South America to Camp Hope. Readers may not be aware of Colonia Dignidad, an entire “world in the aftermath” of World War ll.

From camp experiments at Ravensbrück to working on vaccines to alleviate a ‘germ bomb’ by the World Health Organization in French Guiana, readers will be spellbound by this compelling narrative and mesmerized by the revelations based on an inconceivable time in our history.

OPERATION PAPERCLIP: In a covert affair originally dubbed Operation Overcast but later renamed Operation Paperclip, roughly 1,600 of these German scientists (along with their families) were brought to the United States to work on America’s behalf during the Cold War. The program was run by the newly-formed Joint Intelligence Objectives Agency (JIOA), whose goal was to harness German intellectual resources to help develop America’s arsenal of rockets and other biological and chemical weapons, and to ensure such coveted information did not fall into the hands of the Soviet Union. More information here:

https://www.history.com/news/what-was-operation-paperclip

RATLINES were systems of escape routes for German Nazis and other fascists fleeing Europe from 1945 onwards in the aftermath of World War II. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ratlines_(World_War_II)

There are many more references and books to read if searching Ratlines, World War ll.

The Lost English Girl by Julia Kelly

Publication March 7, 2023; Gallery Books, 416pp, Historical Fiction

“An epic saga of love, motherhood, and betrayal during World War II“

https://www.juliakellywrites.com/the-lost-english-girl

The Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

The Lost English Girl by Julia Kelly is based on a family story handed down through her British mother’s side of the family. Set in Liverpool, England, on the brink of World War ll, Kelly examines the daily life and choices of Viv Byrne, Catholic, and Joshua Levinson, Jewish, in alternating points of view. Viv wants to escape her strict mother’s scrutiny and Joshua dreams of playing saxophone in a band, not becoming a tailor like his father.

At the emotional core of the novel readers are immersed in the social and religious situations facing Viv and Joshua. Each family plays a prominent role in how independent decisions impact others as Viv and Joshua deal with responsibility and duty. The internal and external conflict of Kelly’s characters builds as the war continues. Viv is dealing with separation, becoming a “bread winner” and finding her voice while Josh copes with being a foreigner in the U.S. and guilt related to his decisions.

Beginning September 1, 1939, approximately 1.5 million children were relocated to the English countryside for protection from bombing strikes. Known as Operation Pied Piper this political and historical account of parents sending their children away connects readers to Viv as she is faced with making gut wrenching decisions. Kelly explores the psychological impact of the evacuation on children through the lens of Catholic and Jewish families. She sites abandonment issues, including anger, rejection, disappointment, and the pains of family reunification after years of separation.

Through the war years Viv and Joshua grow and change in many ways readers will appreciate. Kelly introduces conflict between characters that creates emotional angst; specifically, a priest that Viv’s family relies on and actions of Viv’s sister, Kate. Their questionable choices are in direct contrast to Joshua’s father. Kelly’s depiction of Mr. Levinson’s empathy and extreme sensitivity to Viv and her feelings makes him an absolute role model and a bridge to current social and religious climates.

Through this harrowing story readers will feel empathy for families fleeing the Ukraine when Russia invaded in 2022. The Lost English Girl– a story of choices and how much the human spirit can withstand to find ways back to those we love.

OPERATION PIED PIPER

#1: The children assembled at school at 5am on Friday 1 September 1939. This photograph shows evacuees and adults walking along a street carrying suitcases and gas mask boxes. Some of the adults are wearing arm bands which identify them as volunteer marshals. © IWM (D 1939A)

#2: A small boy carrying his luggage as he left London for the country with a party of other evacuees on 5 July 1940. © IWM (HU 55936)

#3: Evacuees wearing their gas masks in Montgomeryshire, 1939

EXPLORE MORE!

The evacuation of children during the Second World War: https://www.thehistorypress.co.uk/articles/the-evacuation-of-children-during-the-second-world-war/

Child Evacuees in the Second World War: Operation Pied Piper at 80: https://history.blog.gov.uk/2019/08/30/child-evacuees-in-the-second-world-war-operation-pied-piper-at-80/

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