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A review by marilynw
Yours Cheerfully by A.J. Pearce
4.0
Yours Cheerfully (The Emmy Lake Chronicles #2) by A.J. Pearce
It's London, November 1941, and Emmy Lake is thriving at her job. She loves the people she works with and she's been given many more responsibilities at Woman’s Friend magazine. Getting to attend a Ministry of Information meeting for journalists opens the door for Emmy to do articles on the wartime female workers, giving their all for the war effort. It's when Emmy really gets to know some of these women, and the hardships they are facing, that she knows the magazine not only needs to promote the war effort but more importantly, they need to highlight and attempt to remedy the real, life crushing, challenges that working women face when they also have children and the other responsibilities of wartime life hindering their every step. These women are doing the same jobs that men did for much less pay, working weekends and ever changing shift work, with no help or understanding from their employers.
Although this is wartime London, and from the first book, Dear Mrs. Bird, we know the challenges and threats that all of England faces, both books have a lighthearted feel to them. I enjoy these stories and self deprecating characters that are able to support each other and find humor in the everyday strangeness of this wartime life they are living. No one is allowed to forget the loss of life and also the loss of health for those who do return from war. Wartime rationing means creativity is a part of each day and the generosity of others is often what gets people from one hour to the next. Everyone has lost someone and, for the most part, Emmy and her friends try to put a good face on each minute because that's the only way to keep going.
I love these characters, Emmy's co-workers who really care about each other, her long time friends and her family, and the new friends she makes as she tries to help the women factory workers who get no leeway when it comes to understanding the hardships of finding constant childcare for their children. Whether it's subtle or faced directly, we are always made aware of the heavy weight that the war places on each person.
Pub: Aug 10th 2021
Thank you to Book Club Favorites, Scribner, and NetGalley for this ARC.
It's London, November 1941, and Emmy Lake is thriving at her job. She loves the people she works with and she's been given many more responsibilities at Woman’s Friend magazine. Getting to attend a Ministry of Information meeting for journalists opens the door for Emmy to do articles on the wartime female workers, giving their all for the war effort. It's when Emmy really gets to know some of these women, and the hardships they are facing, that she knows the magazine not only needs to promote the war effort but more importantly, they need to highlight and attempt to remedy the real, life crushing, challenges that working women face when they also have children and the other responsibilities of wartime life hindering their every step. These women are doing the same jobs that men did for much less pay, working weekends and ever changing shift work, with no help or understanding from their employers.
Although this is wartime London, and from the first book, Dear Mrs. Bird, we know the challenges and threats that all of England faces, both books have a lighthearted feel to them. I enjoy these stories and self deprecating characters that are able to support each other and find humor in the everyday strangeness of this wartime life they are living. No one is allowed to forget the loss of life and also the loss of health for those who do return from war. Wartime rationing means creativity is a part of each day and the generosity of others is often what gets people from one hour to the next. Everyone has lost someone and, for the most part, Emmy and her friends try to put a good face on each minute because that's the only way to keep going.
I love these characters, Emmy's co-workers who really care about each other, her long time friends and her family, and the new friends she makes as she tries to help the women factory workers who get no leeway when it comes to understanding the hardships of finding constant childcare for their children. Whether it's subtle or faced directly, we are always made aware of the heavy weight that the war places on each person.
Pub: Aug 10th 2021
Thank you to Book Club Favorites, Scribner, and NetGalley for this ARC.