1--What is the title of your latest release?
THE AIR RAID BOOK CLUB
2--What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
London, 1938. Bookseller Gertie Bingham is facing difficult times after the death of her beloved husband, Harry. She decides to sell up and move to the coast but then her husband’s best friend, Charles asks if she would be willing to take in a young Jewish refugee from Germany. Gertie agrees and when fifteen-year-old Hedy Fischer arrives, she fears she has nothing left to give the troubled girl. But as war begins and the lights go out over London, Gertie and Hedy realize that joining forces will make them stronger, and that books have the power to bring young and old together and unite a community in need in its darkest hour.
3--How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
I always set my books in and around south-east London where I live so my local town became the imagined location because the community is just as friendly as Beechwood’s!
4--Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?
Definitely! I used to be a bookseller so would love to work in Gertie’s bookshop.
5--What are three words that describe your protagonist?
Determined, fair, kind.
6--What’s something you learned while writing this book?
I learned an unbelievable amount about the Second World War and particularly in relation to the book club, people’s spending on books more than doubled between 1938 and 1945 with War and Peace being the most requested book of 1942.
7--Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
I correct as I go and try to push through to the end and then do a big edit!
8--What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
Eggs. I love them. Poached eggs and avocado on sourdough toast is probably my favorite.
9--Describe your writing space/office!
I’m lucky enough to have a writing room with a vintage dressing table for a desk, a bookcase behind me full of my favorite books and noticeboard in front of me covered with the plans for whichever book I’m working on. I also have a comfy chair in the corner for those moments when I need to read rather than write.
10--Who is an author you admire?
Anne Tyler. Everything she writes is perfection.
11--Is there a book that changed your life?
One Day by David Nicholls made me want to be a writer.
12--Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be published)/Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish.
It was an e-mail to tell me that an Italian publisher wanted to buy translation rights for The Air Raid Book Club, and then my US publisher bought it, followed in quick succession by German, Dutch, UK, Spanish, Finnish, Portugese and Brazillian publishers. It was a very exciting month!
13--What’s your favorite genre to read?
Anything that makes me laugh and cry.
14--What’s your favorite movie?
It’s a Wonderful Life
15--What is your favorite season?
Winter because I love Christmas!
16--How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
I always take the day off and it usually revolves around food, a dog walk, games, more food, and a movie if we can fit it in!
17--What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
I’ll give you one of each! Ted Lasso for TV, Broker for the movie, A Terrible Kindness for the book and The Take podcast for movie reviews and news.
18--What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
Italian
19--What do you do when you have free time?
Play tennis, do yoga, go to the movies, sing in a choir and read!
20--What can readers expect from you next?
I am writing another novel set in the Second World War about two young women from very different backgrounds who are thrown together working in the publications department of the Ministry of Information and who end up producing books which will change the course of the war.
From the USA Today bestselling author of The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett comes a heartwarming story of found family, love, and making connections through books set against the bombing of London during WWII.
London, 1938: The bookstore just doesn’t feel the same to Gertie Bingham ever since the death of her beloved husband Harry. Bingham Books was a dream they shared together, and without Harry, Gertie wonders if it’s time to take her faithful old lab, Hemingway, and retire to the seaside. But fate has other plans for Gertie.
In Germany, Hitler is on the rise, and Jewish families are making the heart-wrenching decision to send their children away from the growing turmoil. After a nudge from her dear friend Charles, Gertie decides to take in one of these refugees, a headstrong teenage girl named Hedy. Willful and fearless, Hedy reminds Gertie of herself at the same age, and shows her that she can’t give up just yet. With the terrible threat of war on the horizon, the world needs people like Gertie Bingham and her bookshop.
When the Blitz begins and bombs whistle overhead, Gertie and Hedy come up with the idea to start an air raid book club. Together with neighbors and bookstore customers, they hold lively discussions of everything from Winnie the Pooh to Wuthering Heights. After all, a good book can do wonders to bolster people’s spirits, even in the most trying times.
But even the best book can only provide a temporary escape, and as the tragic reality of the war hits home, the book club faces unimaginable losses. They will need all the strength of their stories and the bonds they’ve formed to see them through to brighter days.
Women's Fiction Historical [William Morrow, On Sale: July 11, 2023, Hardcover / e-Book, ISBN: 9780063296190 / ]
After a career in bookselling and publishing, Annie Lyons published five books in the U.K., including the bestselling Not Quite Perfect. When not working on her novels, she teaches creative writing. She lives in south-east London with her husband and two children.
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