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lindsaystenico8821's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
sarahlreadseverything's review against another edition
2.0
My mission to read books that have been languishing on my kindle for years continues. Unfortunately The Last Telegram had a major case of the tell-not-shows which became increasingly irritating. Also random time leaps are never a great idea.
gvillasenor19's review against another edition
3.0
A nice read and good to sit down with a story. I think one of my gripes is that a lot happened in the book and it kind of felt like whiplash. We went from one situation to another, from one tragedy to another and it felt like we didn’t really get to explore the death of all of them.
machadofam8's review against another edition
3.0
I really loved the plot of this book. Good strong characters, and I enjoyed all the information about silk and the making of parachutes.
tessisreading2's review against another edition
3.0
This one had all the pieces in the right place but they were put together kind of ineptly, I guess. The writing was good and the sections on silk-making were interesting, but the characters never really came alive for me and the framing device just puts too much weight on the WWII-era plot - it hints at Serious Doings Afoot. And the serious doings were so serious! The terrible things that happened just felt somewhat overwrought - so for example I also disliked the character of Robbie: on the one hand he is presented as What? If you're going to inflict this much melodrama on a reader, you can't revert to understated realism at the end. That encapsulates my whole issue with the book: it can't quite decide whether to be a realistic look at the silk industry in WWII or a dramatic family saga of lust, love, and loss.
Spoiler
not only does the narrator's father die, but he is killed by a falling building while attempting to rescue a co-worker who is trying to recover the company records while the narrator screams at him to be careful, and she is herself knocked unconscious. The framing and foreshadowing made it pretty obvious, as soon as Stefan/Stephen accepted a secret assignment, that he was going to be a paratrooper and die.Spoiler
an over-the-top caricature of a bullying, frightening near-rapist... but he never really did anything absolutely horrific, and at the end he basically says he doesn't remember being a jerk and that seems to be the end of his plotline.minseigle's review against another edition
4.0
Good book......4 1/2 stars....touching and emotional.
jude_hoo's review against another edition
5.0
Liz Trenow has such a magical way with words. The Last Telegram is a coming-of-age story set over the course of WW2. We meet Lily Verner as she leaves school for the last time and follow her story over a period of about 6 years, following her journeys in love, friendship, loyalty, work. The war throws a spanner in her plans from the very beginning and forces most of the twists and turns in her adventures, taking her in unexpected directions over and over again.
I absolutely fell in love with Lily and her family. All the information about the silk was so interesting and made a lovely foundation for the story, with new facts throughout the book.
As a word of warning, I was in tears at the end of the book, so if you're a crier, don't read the last 50ish pages on the train!
I absolutely fell in love with Lily and her family. All the information about the silk was so interesting and made a lovely foundation for the story, with new facts throughout the book.
As a word of warning, I was in tears at the end of the book, so if you're a crier, don't read the last 50ish pages on the train!
anawilson05's review against another edition
5.0
On of the best historical fiction books I've read. I laughed, sobbed, cheered and grieved at every juncture.
An absolute must read, get fhe tissues!!
An absolute must read, get fhe tissues!!
skyneu's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars: Compelling story with an interesting setting that felt distinct from other stories about WWII, but I do feel that the events in the last third of the novel all played out a bit too obviously, exactly as I predicted they would. Gwen deserves the world tho.