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cheerful_elephant's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
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
4.0
Very lighthearted easy read
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Antisemitism, Genocide, and Violence
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Miscarriage
laheath's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
An emotional story of a widowed bookseller who takes in a young Jewish girl evacuated from Germany to England at the beginning of WWII. The cast of characters support each other through the difficult war years and become family to each other, celebrating joyous times as well as buoying up each other during heartache. Throughout the book, titles of important works of literature are mentioned as the book club makes selections relevant to their current lives.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Antisemitism, Genocide, Pregnancy, Grief, and War
Minor: Homophobia and Confinement
kwichris's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I picked this book up on a whim from the new shelf section at my library, and I'm just delighted it caught my eye. I've always found stories revolving around the holocaust and this time period intriguing, but this perspective is wholly unique amongst available literature I've read. The civilian view from an outskirt of London and the adopting a Jewish child effort are quite interesting, plus the way characters deal with grief, perseverance, and every day challenges is well written. While there are plenty of tropes in here regarding some topics and it seems a little funny after a while that every time Gertie and company get together for a meal a bombshell occurs (both literally and figuratively) that even the characters joke about it at one point. Overall, a lovely novel I couldn't put down and recommend to people wanting a different perspective and take on the events of this time period.
*As an aside to address anyone staying away from this book due to the LGBTQ tag thinking that's a core aspect of this story, it's a very small plot point addressed once that doesn't affect the key points of the overall story. But either way, that shouldn't stop you from reading this amazing book! :)
*As an aside to address anyone staying away from this book due to the LGBTQ tag thinking that's a core aspect of this story, it's a very small plot point addressed once that doesn't affect the key points of the overall story. But either way, that shouldn't stop you from reading this amazing book! :)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death, Antisemitism, and War
Moderate: Genocide, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Violence
Minor: Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, Death of parent, Chronic illness, Alcohol, Blood, and Medical content
kellyeweber's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- 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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: War and Antisemitism
reading_ladies_blog's review
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infertility and Antisemitism
jjohnston_05's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Oh this was precious. It can be a bit dauting when the book aims to cover multiple years, but I believe Annie Lyons was successful at telling Gertie, and the town's, story. There were a few moments early in the book with a time jump backwards that I was not prepared for and I had to read to make sense of what year I was in. However, other then that I think it flowed incredibly well and it was fantastically heartwarming, but was able to relay that stress and sadness of war for those that were home.
This is a homefront book so it can feel a bit disjointed from the fighting and no one knows the horrors that are going on. But the stories that the cities and villages in England provide us with are still so worth knowing! I loved the sense of community in the book and being able to see the characters grow and mature before my eyes.
This is a homefront book so it can feel a bit disjointed from the fighting and no one knows the horrors that are going on. But the stories that the cities and villages in England provide us with are still so worth knowing! I loved the sense of community in the book and being able to see the characters grow and mature before my eyes.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Antisemitism
Minor: Infertility
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