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rosannacassidy's review
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
knaught's review
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
jillysmith's review
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
portybelle's review against another edition
4.0
Hooray – Emmy Lake is back Doing Her Bit for the war effort, continuing with her advice column and getting more involved with writing articles for the Woman’s Friend weekly magazine, while also putting in some shifts at the fire station. I so enjoyed Dear Mrs Bird and was pleased to discover that there was to be more about young Emmy.
It was lovely to be back with Emmy and the staff at the Woman’s Friend magazine, though I was not sorry to see the back of Mrs Bird. Emmy is a fabulous character who really cares about the people who write in for advice and wants to help everyone – an impossible task really but admirable. She’s not quite doing the war correspondent work she hoped she would be but she is still Doing Her Bit. In this book, she is given more responsibility and is tasked with writing articles to encourage women to take up war work. As she gets to know these women though, she realises there is a big problem for women who want to work, indeed who need to work, but who need childcare. She is torn between writing the articles required by the Ministry and supporting her new friends.
I really enjoyed the style of the writing in this book. It is quite formal, fitting well with the style of the time, and yet it’s also warm with gentle humour. The use of capital letters to show when something is Really Rather Important made me smile. I don’t want to say too much for fear of rather spoiling things – careless talk and all that you know. However, I so enjoyed reading about the friendship and resilience of the women munitions workers and the way they supported each other in such difficult and worrying times.
I can see this book making a lovely film and in my mind, Emmy would have to be played by Lily James! The closing scenes in particular were so heart-warming and I could picture them so clearly in my mind. Yours Cheerfully is quirky and charming, a gentle and enjoyable foray into the past. I’m looking forward to catching up with Emmy again and the book certainly ended in a way which suggests there is more to come. Yours Cheerfully is Really, Rather Good!
It was lovely to be back with Emmy and the staff at the Woman’s Friend magazine, though I was not sorry to see the back of Mrs Bird. Emmy is a fabulous character who really cares about the people who write in for advice and wants to help everyone – an impossible task really but admirable. She’s not quite doing the war correspondent work she hoped she would be but she is still Doing Her Bit. In this book, she is given more responsibility and is tasked with writing articles to encourage women to take up war work. As she gets to know these women though, she realises there is a big problem for women who want to work, indeed who need to work, but who need childcare. She is torn between writing the articles required by the Ministry and supporting her new friends.
I really enjoyed the style of the writing in this book. It is quite formal, fitting well with the style of the time, and yet it’s also warm with gentle humour. The use of capital letters to show when something is Really Rather Important made me smile. I don’t want to say too much for fear of rather spoiling things – careless talk and all that you know. However, I so enjoyed reading about the friendship and resilience of the women munitions workers and the way they supported each other in such difficult and worrying times.
I can see this book making a lovely film and in my mind, Emmy would have to be played by Lily James! The closing scenes in particular were so heart-warming and I could picture them so clearly in my mind. Yours Cheerfully is quirky and charming, a gentle and enjoyable foray into the past. I’m looking forward to catching up with Emmy again and the book certainly ended in a way which suggests there is more to come. Yours Cheerfully is Really, Rather Good!
rebeccasreadingrambles's review against another edition
5.0
Well I am now in tears thanks to this book. I did not think anything could top the emotional rollercoaster of the first book, but I was wrong. How does this author write the most lovely characters and story that makes you want to simultaneously smile and cry. I feel bolstered to carry on just by this series and I am not living through a war or saying goodbye to loved ones. This story is powerful and I love how it highlights the women who were trying to keep everything together at home during WWII. We hear about how women worked in factors to keep the war efforts going, but rarely about the struggles for them to do so. It was a monumental task and the fortitude it took for them to do this and take care of children, family, everything else on their own is astounding. I adored every character and I cannot wait for more because I am not ready to give them up!
hanxiety_in_pink's review
3.0
This was another seduction by spredges… who could resist this cute typewriter motif?! So honestly, I went into this one entirely unaware of what to expect. The quote on the cover said it was ‘full of wit, friendship and the uplifting knowledge that when people come together great changes can be made’… all of that sounded pretty good, so I was in.
The second instalment of The Emmy Lake Chronicles (I didn’t know this either, but it reads as a stand-alone novel so not to worry!), Yours Cheerfully is set in 1941… Emmeline Lake is working for ‘Woman’s Friend’ magazine, known for its knitting patterns and no-nonsense (read sometimes old-fashioned) advice pages. Emmy has aspirations of becoming a real war reporter, and when the media is called upon to encourage women into working to help the war effort she seizes the chance in a round-about kind of way.
Reporting from the munitions factories, on the real stories of real women, she learns of the struggles they face and sees an opportunity to tell their story. The friendships forged are real and deep and it was a joy to read about such strong young women, women who were determined and hardworking but also fun-loving and witty.
This was a lighter read than I’m used to but I did enjoy it. I’m not sure I would pick up any of the other Emmy Lake Chronicles, not because it wasn’t enjoyable but just wasn’t really my bag. For a fun, historical fiction with a good female protagonist (and supporting characters) I’d recommend it.
The second instalment of The Emmy Lake Chronicles (I didn’t know this either, but it reads as a stand-alone novel so not to worry!), Yours Cheerfully is set in 1941… Emmeline Lake is working for ‘Woman’s Friend’ magazine, known for its knitting patterns and no-nonsense (read sometimes old-fashioned) advice pages. Emmy has aspirations of becoming a real war reporter, and when the media is called upon to encourage women into working to help the war effort she seizes the chance in a round-about kind of way.
Reporting from the munitions factories, on the real stories of real women, she learns of the struggles they face and sees an opportunity to tell their story. The friendships forged are real and deep and it was a joy to read about such strong young women, women who were determined and hardworking but also fun-loving and witty.
This was a lighter read than I’m used to but I did enjoy it. I’m not sure I would pick up any of the other Emmy Lake Chronicles, not because it wasn’t enjoyable but just wasn’t really my bag. For a fun, historical fiction with a good female protagonist (and supporting characters) I’d recommend it.
books_and_smiles's review
It is not a good sequel. Very slow and repetitive read. From page 161 you can skip to last chapter and not miss a thing in between. Nothing exciting happens. Author should stop at her first book; Dear Mrs. Bird. I don’t plan on reading any more of the E. Lake Chronicles.
njw13's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25