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A review by spinesvines
The Women by Kristin Hannah
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
Oh Kristin Hannah - why do you do this to me? 😭 What a read! #TheWomen will definitely be one of my top reads of the year. I don’t have a physical copy and I regret not purchasing this beautiful UK edition when I visited Lutyens & Rubinstein last month. I listened to the audiobook and it was fantastic. Julia Whelan’s narration was superb!!
First and foremost, Kristin Hannah can write her tail off. She knows how to tell a good darn story. From the moment I started listening to this audiobook, I was consumed. It takes some really good writing, especially when listening to a book, for the reader to feel the true essence of the setting and time period. Kristin Hannah nails this!! Not only do you get the feeling surrounding the war but you also see how little rights women had. There were also reflection points as I was reminded that we actually smoked cigarettes on planes and in hospitals.😏 My heart ached, I teared up, I was angry, I yelled at several of the characters and laughed a little. My emotions were all over the place but when the story ended I felt thankful. Thankful for women who time and time again show up and serve in many capacities!!
“There were no women in Vietnam.” Imagine serving as a U.S. combat nurse in the Vietnam War and coming home to a country who completely ignores your existence or service in the war. This is the story about the women, the combat nurses who served during the Vietnam War. Frankie, oh Frankie. I loved Frances ‘Frankie’ McGrath’s vulnerability and spirit. She was human in every way possible. I yelled at her a couple of times. More than anything, I loved her friendship with Barb and Ethel. This story is so well crafted. I’m still in my feelings. If y’all have read this one, I need to talk to someone about this book.
Expect to see a book & wine pairing (or a gin cocktail) when I get a copy of this book! Additional thoughts continued in comments.
🪖🎖️
I know this story is about the women who served during this time but this book stirred my emotions in so many ways. Particularly it made me think about my father and his 30+ years in the Army. I had the absolute best relationship with my dad. We talked about a lot of things but one thing he would never (and I mean never!) talk about was the Vietnam War. When he passed away in 2013, I remember going through his things with my sister and we came across several service medals that we never knew about. The ones that instantly caught my eye were the Bronze Star Medal and the Vietnam Service Medal. It was the strangest feeling but in that moment, as I was reading the certificates, it was if all of my questions were answered. I was asking my dad to relive and tell me stories from a painful and traumatic period in his life. A young Black man fighting for his country in a foreign land, (it’s safe to say he had never been out of the country before going to Vietnam) and yet he didn’t have basic human rights in the segregated America he was fighting for.
I remember the first time we visited the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. As a young girl not fully understanding what was going on, I watched my parents find the names of classmates and family friends, and use a penicl to rub their names onto a sheet of paper. As a young man, my dad loved taking photos. He has an amazing photo album collection that spans decades. Now that I’m older, I realize that some of his stories were told through photos and not words. There are days when I drive past the memorial and my understanding deepens. 🥹
First and foremost, Kristin Hannah can write her tail off. She knows how to tell a good darn story. From the moment I started listening to this audiobook, I was consumed. It takes some really good writing, especially when listening to a book, for the reader to feel the true essence of the setting and time period. Kristin Hannah nails this!! Not only do you get the feeling surrounding the war but you also see how little rights women had. There were also reflection points as I was reminded that we actually smoked cigarettes on planes and in hospitals.😏 My heart ached, I teared up, I was angry, I yelled at several of the characters and laughed a little. My emotions were all over the place but when the story ended I felt thankful. Thankful for women who time and time again show up and serve in many capacities!!
“There were no women in Vietnam.” Imagine serving as a U.S. combat nurse in the Vietnam War and coming home to a country who completely ignores your existence or service in the war. This is the story about the women, the combat nurses who served during the Vietnam War. Frankie, oh Frankie. I loved Frances ‘Frankie’ McGrath’s vulnerability and spirit. She was human in every way possible. I yelled at her a couple of times. More than anything, I loved her friendship with Barb and Ethel. This story is so well crafted. I’m still in my feelings. If y’all have read this one, I need to talk to someone about this book.
Expect to see a book & wine pairing (or a gin cocktail) when I get a copy of this book! Additional thoughts continued in comments.
🪖🎖️
I know this story is about the women who served during this time but this book stirred my emotions in so many ways. Particularly it made me think about my father and his 30+ years in the Army. I had the absolute best relationship with my dad. We talked about a lot of things but one thing he would never (and I mean never!) talk about was the Vietnam War. When he passed away in 2013, I remember going through his things with my sister and we came across several service medals that we never knew about. The ones that instantly caught my eye were the Bronze Star Medal and the Vietnam Service Medal. It was the strangest feeling but in that moment, as I was reading the certificates, it was if all of my questions were answered. I was asking my dad to relive and tell me stories from a painful and traumatic period in his life. A young Black man fighting for his country in a foreign land, (it’s safe to say he had never been out of the country before going to Vietnam) and yet he didn’t have basic human rights in the segregated America he was fighting for.
I remember the first time we visited the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. As a young girl not fully understanding what was going on, I watched my parents find the names of classmates and family friends, and use a penicl to rub their names onto a sheet of paper. As a young man, my dad loved taking photos. He has an amazing photo album collection that spans decades. Now that I’m older, I realize that some of his stories were told through photos and not words. There are days when I drive past the memorial and my understanding deepens. 🥹
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Violence, Misogyny, and Death
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Racism