Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
Although written for young adults, I found this a very powerful book. The story is fictional, but it is drawn from real experiences of men and women on the Western front in World War I. It can be difficult to read at times; 'grim', as the author herself describes it. Her writing is sensitive and honest, never maudlin.
Lest we forget.
Lest we forget.
I bought this book while I was in Australia. I happened to be in Australia for ANZAC day (Australia and New Zealand Army Corps), so I thought it was fitting. This book was beautifully written. I've read several books about WWII, but none, really, about WWI. It was heart-breaking, touching, and simply gorgeous. The characters drew me in to their lives and I was sad to see it end.
Jackie French’s insightful novel, A Rose for the ANZAC Boys, explores the changing attitudes of war and of societal roles during the Great War. French discusses how attitudes to war altered throughout the duration of the worldwide conflict, with characters in the novel viewing war as an adventure and a positive experience in the beginning, and those characters altering their views of war as the novel progresses. Alongside this, the novel explores the changing roles and responsibilities of women during the 1900s. Due to the war, women begun to contribute to a meaningful role in society by assisting in the war effort. French’s novel perceptively highlights the drastic changes that occurred due to the Great War.
French’s novel discusses the changing attitudes of war. The novel portrays war in a positive light to persuade young men to serve. There is a profound sense of duty in the beginning of the novel, where characters are adamant on ‘doing [their] bit’ (French 2008, p. 23) to serve their country. British, Australian and New Zealand societies portrayed the war as being a ‘great cause’, an ‘adventure’ full of ‘glory’ (French 2008, p. 12). The media, government and society at large portrayed war in a positive light, and thus soldiers – especially Australian and New Zealand young men who had never left their country – would be enticed into contributing to the war effort. This duty and romanticism manipulated people into contributing to the war, which unfortunately resulted in tens of thousands of deaths.
However, as soldiers experienced the war first-hand, their attitudes to war changed drastically. French employs the protagonist of the novel, Midge Macpherson, to illustrate these changing views of war. Midge was originally eager to serve in the war, however her attitudes change after assisting in a French canteen for eighteen months serving coco to injured soldiers. She often becomes speechless by the ‘horror’ stories of what soldiers ‘must have seen [and must] have done’ and finds ‘no words’ to comfort them (French 2008, p. 90). Midge later reflects on her romantic ideals of the war, where she ‘long[ed] for excitement’ and to be a ‘part of it’, to realising her life now consisted of an ‘aching repetition of cutting, stirring, serving and unloading’ (French 2008, p. 98). The war did not provide a glorious adventure, but rather a repetitive, horrific, frightening and stressful experience. Midge extends her duty by becoming a driver and a nurse which brings her more suffering as she experiences the repercussions of war immediately. The trauma Midge experiences leaves an imprint that makes Midge feel as if she will never be the same again. Midge believes that people serving in the war are ‘part of a world the people back at home can never understand’ (French 2008, p. 196). The Great War imprinted lasting trauma that for many people, they were never able to heal from. These people were manipulated into contributing to a war that was romanticised, and consequently were thrown into months – and years – of unimaginable pain and suffering. If these men and women were lucky to survive, they would have to live the rest of their lives with their trauma. For some, they had to experience it all again in a few decades.
In summary, I can only give this novel 2 stars due to it not being very engaging. As a year 9 text, this novel appeals to teenage girls as the protagonist is a love-struck young female. I did not particularly enjoy the floury, romanticised writings as it is not my preferred genre. This is a good text study to illustrate the archaic societal roles of women, and how these responsibilities changed during and after the war. Furthermore, the novel highlights the naivety of young soldiers with their outlook to the war, and how these attitudes change through the real experience of the atrocious war. A Rose for the ANZAC Boys is an insightful novel and a worthwhile read for all.
French’s novel discusses the changing attitudes of war. The novel portrays war in a positive light to persuade young men to serve. There is a profound sense of duty in the beginning of the novel, where characters are adamant on ‘doing [their] bit’ (French 2008, p. 23) to serve their country. British, Australian and New Zealand societies portrayed the war as being a ‘great cause’, an ‘adventure’ full of ‘glory’ (French 2008, p. 12). The media, government and society at large portrayed war in a positive light, and thus soldiers – especially Australian and New Zealand young men who had never left their country – would be enticed into contributing to the war effort. This duty and romanticism manipulated people into contributing to the war, which unfortunately resulted in tens of thousands of deaths.
However, as soldiers experienced the war first-hand, their attitudes to war changed drastically. French employs the protagonist of the novel, Midge Macpherson, to illustrate these changing views of war. Midge was originally eager to serve in the war, however her attitudes change after assisting in a French canteen for eighteen months serving coco to injured soldiers. She often becomes speechless by the ‘horror’ stories of what soldiers ‘must have seen [and must] have done’ and finds ‘no words’ to comfort them (French 2008, p. 90). Midge later reflects on her romantic ideals of the war, where she ‘long[ed] for excitement’ and to be a ‘part of it’, to realising her life now consisted of an ‘aching repetition of cutting, stirring, serving and unloading’ (French 2008, p. 98). The war did not provide a glorious adventure, but rather a repetitive, horrific, frightening and stressful experience. Midge extends her duty by becoming a driver and a nurse which brings her more suffering as she experiences the repercussions of war immediately. The trauma Midge experiences leaves an imprint that makes Midge feel as if she will never be the same again. Midge believes that people serving in the war are ‘part of a world the people back at home can never understand’ (French 2008, p. 196). The Great War imprinted lasting trauma that for many people, they were never able to heal from. These people were manipulated into contributing to a war that was romanticised, and consequently were thrown into months – and years – of unimaginable pain and suffering. If these men and women were lucky to survive, they would have to live the rest of their lives with their trauma. For some, they had to experience it all again in a few decades.
In summary, I can only give this novel 2 stars due to it not being very engaging. As a year 9 text, this novel appeals to teenage girls as the protagonist is a love-struck young female. I did not particularly enjoy the floury, romanticised writings as it is not my preferred genre. This is a good text study to illustrate the archaic societal roles of women, and how these responsibilities changed during and after the war. Furthermore, the novel highlights the naivety of young soldiers with their outlook to the war, and how these attitudes change through the real experience of the atrocious war. A Rose for the ANZAC Boys is an insightful novel and a worthwhile read for all.
An insightful novel that provides different experiences of people in WWI. I didn’t engage with this one as much as I wanted to. This could’ve been because of the writing style or just the fact that I wasn’t in the mood to read the book when I did. But this is definitely a book to read if you want a quick war related book to pick up.
Thank you to one of my students for recommending this to me.
I've read this three times now and each time I read it I only love it more. There's just something about the way the characters are written, the raw but not too gruesomely detail realities of war and the heartfelt story of three young women trying to do their bit while men are being slaughtered on the battle field. I always end up teary-eyed reading the letters Midge receives from the front.
Midge Macpherson is tired of studying French verbs and rolling bandages at school in England so her and her two best friends set up a canteen in France to feed the many men that pass through the train station on their way to and from the front lines. Soon, however, Midge finds herself in the thick of it in a field hospital amongst the wounded & dying soldiers.
In this short novel Jackie French takes pieces of your heart one by one only to put them back together by the end.
Go. Read. This. Now
Midge Macpherson is tired of studying French verbs and rolling bandages at school in England so her and her two best friends set up a canteen in France to feed the many men that pass through the train station on their way to and from the front lines. Soon, however, Midge finds herself in the thick of it in a field hospital amongst the wounded & dying soldiers.
In this short novel Jackie French takes pieces of your heart one by one only to put them back together by the end.
Go. Read. This. Now
This book tells the story of World War 1 from the perspective of the women working towards the war effort, mostly in a voluntary capacity. Movements of Midge (the main character) give us a broad glimpse into the main role of women during the war, as does the description of what those left in England were doing. The book also uses letters to and from Midge (she writes to 2 soldiers at the front, as well as her brothers, aunt, former teacher and friends) to give the reader a picture of the fighting and the general morale of those in different parts of the war. It is a fictional story but based on years of research and the letters are often actual letters written during the war .
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Grief, War, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
emotional
informative
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
informative
sad
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:
Complicated
Originally published on My Books Are Me
A thoroughly moving story about love, loss and friendship during such a tragic and horrendous time in world history.
In June 1915, Midge Macpherson receives a letter from her twin Tim, who is serving at Gallipoli, but soon learns that he is missing presumed dead. Sure it's all been a mistake and wanting to help the war-effort more, Midge and her friends Anne and Ethel decide to head to France to set up a canteen to serve soldiers heading to and from the battle line. Midge can also use this as a chance to ask anyone who may have served to Tim what had happened to him. But France and the war isn't as glorious as those back home are lead to believe - every night, ambulance after ambulance arrives at the train station, laying out stretchers of hundreds of injured men waiting for the hospital trains to take them away from the front. New Zealander Midge soon meets some Aussies and starts corresponding with Harry Harrison, a sheep farmer from Biscuit Creek. Soon, Midge is thrust into the carnage, first in as an ambulance driver, then in one of the causality camps, seeing the real horrors of the war. And when the day finally comes to go home, back to New Zealand, Midge realises how much the war has changed not only her, or her brother, but her entire country. But despite the hardship and loss, she manages to find love in it all.
This was an extremely beautiful and moving story that shows the role of women during the war. It wasn't just on the home front that wives, sisters and daughters were helping out the war-effort, but also very close to the front line. War novels always focus on those fighting on the front line, and so it's great to read about these same stories, but from the perspective of not only women, but those who aren't directly in the line of fire.
Reading this on the eve of Anzac Day really made the experience so much more moving and immersive. Jackie French has written such a beautiful story that's rich in history, looking at both the darkest times and the joyous moments of war. At no time does she glorify war.
I love that this story comes full circle, showing the importance of commemorating those who fought in all overseas conflicts, especially remembering those who didn't return home. Yes, this story is very sad, and there is a lot of loss - I definitely shed a few tears - but it's a story of the strength of those who fought. Even more, it shows the strength of the women who served during wartime, the forgotten army.
This is a perfect Anzac Day read, and I urge anyone in Australia or New Zealand to pick u this book. But of course, this isn't a book just for the Aussies or New Zealanders. Anyone can enjoy this story and the message behind it. I highly recommend it, and will definitely read it again around Anzac Day...
A thoroughly moving story about love, loss and friendship during such a tragic and horrendous time in world history.
In June 1915, Midge Macpherson receives a letter from her twin Tim, who is serving at Gallipoli, but soon learns that he is missing presumed dead. Sure it's all been a mistake and wanting to help the war-effort more, Midge and her friends Anne and Ethel decide to head to France to set up a canteen to serve soldiers heading to and from the battle line. Midge can also use this as a chance to ask anyone who may have served to Tim what had happened to him. But France and the war isn't as glorious as those back home are lead to believe - every night, ambulance after ambulance arrives at the train station, laying out stretchers of hundreds of injured men waiting for the hospital trains to take them away from the front. New Zealander Midge soon meets some Aussies and starts corresponding with Harry Harrison, a sheep farmer from Biscuit Creek. Soon, Midge is thrust into the carnage, first in as an ambulance driver, then in one of the causality camps, seeing the real horrors of the war. And when the day finally comes to go home, back to New Zealand, Midge realises how much the war has changed not only her, or her brother, but her entire country. But despite the hardship and loss, she manages to find love in it all.
This was an extremely beautiful and moving story that shows the role of women during the war. It wasn't just on the home front that wives, sisters and daughters were helping out the war-effort, but also very close to the front line. War novels always focus on those fighting on the front line, and so it's great to read about these same stories, but from the perspective of not only women, but those who aren't directly in the line of fire.
Reading this on the eve of Anzac Day really made the experience so much more moving and immersive. Jackie French has written such a beautiful story that's rich in history, looking at both the darkest times and the joyous moments of war. At no time does she glorify war.
I love that this story comes full circle, showing the importance of commemorating those who fought in all overseas conflicts, especially remembering those who didn't return home. Yes, this story is very sad, and there is a lot of loss - I definitely shed a few tears - but it's a story of the strength of those who fought. Even more, it shows the strength of the women who served during wartime, the forgotten army.
This is a perfect Anzac Day read, and I urge anyone in Australia or New Zealand to pick u this book. But of course, this isn't a book just for the Aussies or New Zealanders. Anyone can enjoy this story and the message behind it. I highly recommend it, and will definitely read it again around Anzac Day...