I had actually heard about this book
when it first came out several years ago, but never got the chance to
read it. A few months ago, I was approved for an ARC of the sequel --
since I'm the type who MUST read books in a series in order (even if the
books can technically be read as stand-alones), I of course had to go
back and read book one first before picking up the second one. Overall,
I found this one to be a quick read that was both delightful and fun
but also serious when it needed to be (not an easy feat given the fact
that the story is set against the backdrop of World War II) -- though
having said that, I did have some issues with parts of it (which I will
get into later).
The
story revolves around a young woman named Emmeline (Emmy) Lake who,
with all the men off fighting the war, wants to do her part to help the
war effort. She volunteers at the call center for the Fire Brigade, but
what she really wants to do is become a journalist reporting on the war
(or, as she puts it, a "Lady War Correspondent"). When she sees an
advertisement in the newspaper for a part-time Junior at the publishing
house for the newspaper The London Evening Chronicle, she jumps
at the opportunity to interview, thinking this will be her big
opportunity to finally get her foot in the door for her dream job. But
it turns out the job is actually for one of the magazines managed under
the publishing house -- a small publication called Woman's Friend
that is already on its last legs. What's worse though is that the
position is specifically to go through letters sent in to the magazine's
problem page Henrietta Helps, run by the formidable Mrs.
Henrietta Bird, who refuses to answer any letters that fit into the
category of what she feels is "Unpleasantness" (there is actually a long
list with very specific words and topics that are off-limits --
basically the only "safe" topics are things like asking for knitting
instructions or beauty advice). Emmy is disappointed and constantly
chides herself for not listening during the interview, causing her to
accept a job that's a far cry from what she expected -- but with her
cheery and optimistic personality, she decides to make a go of it. As
she immerses herself in her job, she reads the letters of some of the
readers (mostly women) and starts to feel genuinely sorry for them,
seeing all they have to deal with during this trying time. She wants to
help them, but unfortunately, nearly every single letter falls into the
Unpleasantness category (which means Mrs. Bird won't bother responding
and the letters get thrown in the trash bin) -- so Emmy takes matters
into her own hands and starts writing back to the readers herself
(though still signing all the letters with Mrs. Bird's name). She even
manages to sneak a few of the "Unpleasant" letters and her responses to
them into the magazine itself. Will she be found out though and if so,
what will happen to her? This is a question that lingers over Emmy
throughout the story (which of course, gets resolved in the end).
There
was actually a lot to like about the story and I feel like the author
A.J. Pearce did a good job with the writing, using the language of the
particular time and place to make the story more immersive (I definitely
felt transported to 1940s England). Also, all the characters were
likable, the overall mood of the story was heartwarming and hopeful, the
historical elements were well-incorporated, and the letters were a fun
read. I also appreciated the way the story paid tribute to the women of
that era and their efforts during the war. With all that said though,
my main complaint is that I felt the story was a bit too saccharine and
overdone in some areas, to the point of being somewhat cringe-worthy (to
me at least). In terms of the characters, while I did like them for
the most part, I didn't really feel any connection to them -- especially
the main character Emmy, whom I found to be charming at first, but then
when she kept endlessly inserting herself into everyone's business (in a
way that I felt was a bit pretentious and self-righteous), I started
becoming annoyed with her. I mean, I get that she has good intentions
and always wants to help people, but the way she goes about it is too
over-the-top, for one, and two, it just didn't seem realistic (meaning
how she is able to get away with it time and time again and it's all
still "fine and dandy" with everyone). I think Emmy herself put it best
during one scene in the story when she mentions (in her mind, since the
story is told from her first-person perspective) that she was trying "desperately to look like a sensible grownup rather than a petulant child"
-- that's pretty much exactly how Emmy came across throughout the
entire story: like a naive, petulant child even though she was very
much an adult. Unfortunately, this is exactly the type of character
(adults acting like children) that I often can't stand in books, so with
the main character being that way throughout the entire story pretty
much (plus the story being told from this character's first person
perspective didn't help), it definitely detracted from the reading
experience for me.
Having
said all that, I still want to read the sequel, since I did like the
story overall as I mentioned earlier. At least this time around, I know
what to expect in terms of Emmy, so I can refocus my reading if needed
(and hopefully become less annoyed).
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