May 1, 2023
Based on the true story of the 1940 Nazi torpedoing of a ship carrying British children to Canada, Gaynor tells an emotionally compelling tale of two women whose choices in the early war years change their lives. When the British government offers to evacuate 20,000 children, Lily Nelson makes the agonizing decision to send Georgina and Arthur from Blitz-ravaged London to Canada. Alice, a former teacher in rural Kent, signs on to accompany the children on their ocean voyage. When their ship is torpedoed, Alice is in the last lifeboat with 6 boys--including Arthur--and 33 men. As they drift in the ocean, they must fight to survive the storms and hunger. After Lily learns of her daughter's survival and Arthur's death, grief and guilt propel her to demand answers from the program officials. The vivid and accurately portrayed war details give this powerful story a very different perspective on WWII, one that will keep readers riveted and avidly turning pages. Suggest Gaynor's novel to patrons who love strong female characters, authentically nuanced historical fiction, and emotionally compelling stories.
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June 1, 2023
Gaynor's latest historical (after When We Were Young & Brave) is a well-written novel about taking chances and facing loss and fear during a time of uncertainty. It's based on a real organization, the Children's Overseas Reception Board (CORB), created during World War II to evacuate children out of England to other countries, including Canada and Australia. Thinking of the future of her children, Lily Nicholls, a widowed London mother, must make the tough decision to send them off with CORB. Alice King is one of the volunteers hired by CORB to escort children on these dangerous voyages, and on her first voyage she is put in charge of Lily's children. During their Atlantic passage, the ship is torpedoed, forcing passengers into lifeboats, where their hopes of survival dwindle the longer they go without rescue. VERDICT Gaynor's immersive novel pairs well with Jessica Mann's nonfiction book Out of Harm's Way: The Wartime Evacuation of Children from Britain, in which firsthand accounts and extensive research relate the experiences of children who were removed from their families and taken to foreign countries. Similarly, Julia Kelly's novel The Lost English Girl takes place at the very beginning of the war when children were being evacuated to the countryside.--Victoria Kollar
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