Dear Mrs. Bird
By A J Pearce
Recently my husband and I watched The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society on Netflix. I had previously raved about the novel in an earlier review and watched the movie the day it was available. I was not disappointed. If that style of writing and story appealed to you, then you’ll definitely enjoy this debut novel by A J Pearce.
London, 1940 and like everyone involved in the war effort, Emmeline Lake is determined to make her mark in the journalism world covering the war. When she answers a newspaper advertisement for what she thinks is a position as a Lady War Correspondent, she ends up a typist for Mrs. Henrietta Bird of the Woman’s Friend magazine. Although her grand dreams of writing about daring missions in the depths of the war zone are dashed, she muckers on and gives the job a try.
Mrs. Bird is famous for her advice column; as long as her readers enjoy her ‘buck up and carry on’ during this war attitude. Then when Emmy discovers some of the ‘unacceptable’ letters that are callously discarded by her employer, she becomes determined to find a way to reach out to the readers who she knows are suffering from real problems and need a kind word.
This is another great novel about how women survived under horrendous circumstances beyond their control. With a lot of vigor, a good dose of humor and much stamina during the loss of loved ones during a war, you’ll find this a great read. I thoroughly enjoyed Pearce’s debut novel and look forward to more from this author.