"A Unique Perspective on The World Wars"
Reviewed by Carol Pennington
Posted January 21, 2021
Historical
When I was Yours is a very moving historical fiction novel. Vivienne is from London and has endured not one, but both World Wars. During the Great War, she served as a volunteer ambulance driver in France. During the Second World War, she was part of the Women’s Voluntary Service and she hosted a child evacuee from London named Pearl. Her story is one of courage and tenacity.
Several characters in this story are based on real people. I so enjoyed learning about women who were a very important part of history, but who faded into obscurity over time. Thank you to author Lizzie Page for giving these women the credit they so rightly deserve. It was also very interesting to see the perspective of someone who survived both of these horrendous wars. The author really brought this time period to life for me.
For those who love romance, you will be pleased to know it can be found in this story as well. My heart went out to Vivi as she patiently awaited the man of her dreams to finally ask her to marry him. When their life together didn’t turn out to be all she hoped, my heart once again went out to her. I admired her tenacity for trying to make the best of her situation.
For those who like a bit of a “wild child” character, you will find that in Olive. She tends to buck the norms and do her own thing.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading Historical Fiction. This is a clean book but does have a few adult situations (though none of them graphic) so I only recommend this to the young reader with that caution.
SUMMARY
An emotional and unforgettable historical novel, perfect for fans of Natasha Lester and Lisa Wingate.
We stand in the back of the hall as the children troop in. Big ones, little ones. Straggly hair, cropped hair, curls... the adults surge forward to choose and soon there is just one child left, a little girl sitting on the floor. She is thin as a string bean and her sleeve is ragged and damp - like she's been chewing it.
1939: War has broken out -- hundreds of children are evacuated to the countryside to keep them safe from the bombs raining down on the cities. Wrenched from her family in the East End and sent more than a hundred miles away, seven-year-old Pearl Posner must adapt to a new life away from everything familiar.
Vivienne didn't ask for an evacuee child. In fact, she's not sure her heart can take it. So many years, so many disappointments . . . Vivi's ability to feel love left her the day she learned the truth about her husband, Edmund, and when she made the worst decision of her life and left her cherished sister to her fate. But like it or not, Pearl is here to stay, and with the rumors about what's happening to children in mainland Europe, it might be the last safe place for her.
As Pearl and Vivi learn how to live together, they discover that they have a connection that runs more deeply than they could ever have guessed -- from before Pearl was born and deep into Vivienne's past. And will it be Pearl -- the little girl who says so little and sees so much -- who forces Vivi to finally confront what happened in her marriage . . . and to the long-lost sister she loved so dearly and let fall so far?
Includes a book club guide.
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