The Chilbury Ladies' Choir, by Jennifer Ryan

An excellently written novel of women in a war-torn English village bravely carrying on, uniting as part of the Home Front. The plot was driven by a series of journals and letters, as the main characters each wrote of her own personal challenges, triumphs, and setbacks, and gave her own unique perspective on the events they all experienced. The Ladies' Choir was begun as a response to the absence of most of the men of the village, due to World War II. They did surprisingly well - even surprising themselves when they won a regional contest. Other complications to the plot included two infants born on the same day; one to the schoolteacher whose husband was in the military, and the other to the wealthy family whose only son had recently been shot down and killed in battle. It was very necessary that they have a son to carry on the family name and fortune. A newcomer to town raised suspicions. An artist, he had no visible means of supporting himself, and engaged in some very dubious dealings with shady characters. Two young girls, sisters, come of age in these perilous times, and learn about love and loss. A middle-aged widow, whose only son has just gone off to war, agrees to host one of the Senior Staff of the nearby War Center. A Jewish child refugee is housed with the Winthrops.

This is one of my favorite books, and I plan to keep it awhile and reread it. I highly recommend it, and I will look for more books by this author. This book was sent to me as part of the Early Reviewers program on LibraryThing. I was asked to provide an honest review in exchange.

Evergreen, by Belva Plain

Having finished and enjoyed one Belva Plain book, I was eager to read another.

A great family saga, following Anna Friedman from her childhood in a 19th century Polish village through her immigration to America. Anna's life encompasses World Wars I and II, marriage, family, the depression, her husband's successful business, and many tragedies and joys.She lives to see grandchildren and a great granddaughter some fifty-odd years after her arrival.
Ever since her service as a maid in the Werner household, Anna has kept her attraction to the handsome young son of the family to herself, and after an incident several years later, she has even more devastating secrets to keep.

Night Ride Home, by Vicki Covington

I have mixed emotions about this book. It was fairly interesting to read, but none of the characters really "grabbed" me. What I liked best about it, I think, is that it was set near Birmingham, Alabama, where I lived for 34 years. I recognized many of the places, and the one trip into the city was particularly interesting for that reason.

Set in a coal mining community in Jefferson County, Alabama west of Birmingham, this is a story of the events before and during a mining disaster.

Keller is about to marry Laura, the daughter of the owners of a service station and general store, against her father's wishes. Her mother manages the store, and her father works occasionally at the nearby steel mill, but mostly just hangs around the store drinking, shooting clay pigeons, "skeets," and getting drunker and angrier by the hour. He threatens his future son-in-law with a shotgun, so they secretly delay the wedding by a day. As it turns out, the new wedding date is December 7, 1941. However, the Pearl Harbor attack and World War II are only mentioned in passing. The young man, Keller, is afraid he will have to go to war.

On Christmas Eve that year, a wall falls at the No. 3 mine, trapping Keller's father and his crew. Men work around the clock, trying to dig them out. Meanwhile, Keller's mother fulfills a singing engagement at the Catholic Church in Birmingham, and the pregnant camp prostitute goes into labor. (The identity of the baby's father is the topic of much gossip and speculation in the community.)

Vicki Covington and her husband Dennis Covington live and work in Birmingham, Alabama. Both are authors and have been newspaper columnists.

Mrs. Miniver, by Jan Struther

A book from the public library, read and reviewed on LibraryThing in January, 2014

Mrs. Miniver is an imaginative and thoughtful woman, a loving wife and mother. This is a gentle and easy reading book with little plot. Each chapter is a different episode of Mrs. Miniver's life, with her thoughts and observations.

Mrs. Miniver was strong in time of war and preparation for war (WW II). She tried to keep things as normal as possible for her children, preparing them without alarming them. She volunteered with First Aid and took in seven refugee children to her country house in Kent. Written with sympathy and humor, and plenty of human interest.

The Paris Architect: A Novel, by Charles Belfoure

Read and reviewed in January, 2015

I don't remember where I got this book, or when. It is a new trade paperback, marked down to $9.64 from $14.99. It's possible that it was part of a 3 for $10 deal at the grocery store.

It is a fictional account of the German Occupation of Paris during World War II. I can't say I enjoyed it, but I'm glad I read it. A very thrilling and exciting story, as well as very disturbing. I had to put it down several times, as it was so intense.
Lucien Bernard, the Parisian architect, accepts an unusual commission from a wealthy industrialist. Design hiding places for Jews so clever that the Nazis will never find them, and in exchange, be rewarded with important commissions to build bigger and more efficient factories for German weapons. As the story develops, Lucien grows in character and compassion.

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The Last Time I Saw Paris, by Lynn Sheene

Read and reviewed in December, 2013. Released later

Not entirely my cup of tea because of the many explicit sexual descriptions, but was interesting and fast moving. A young woman leaves her loveless marriage for romance in Paris, just as the Nazis invade. Unable and unwilling to return home, and without proper identification she finds it hard to live. With the help of new friends, she manages as well as she can, and becomes a valuable asset to the Resistance movement.

Levi's Will, by W. Dale Cramer

Read and reviewed in November, 2013. Released later.

I'm very glad I picked this up at the church garage sale, even though I had not heard of this author. It is a very well written story of a run-away son who, after many years, attempts reconciliation with his stern, tradition-bound elderly father. It also includes his experience in the Army during World War II, his romance with his future wife and his relationships with his own sons, especially with his exceptionally gifted but rebellious second son.

I couldn't help but compare this with The Chosen by Chaim Potok, which I recently read. Both books deal with similar themes: a stern, tradition-bound father and an exceptionally gifted but rebellious son.

The Hiding Place, by Corrie Ten Boom, John Scherrill, Elizabeth Sherrill

Read, reviewed, and sent to another Bookcrosser in August, 2009

An autobiography of a World War II concentration camp survivor, written with the help of friends. Corrie ten Boom of Haarlem, the Netherlands, and her family provided sanctuary for dozens of Dutch Jews during the Nazi occupation. They were betrayed, arrested, and imprisoned. Corrie's father and sister, and other family members, died in the camps, but Corrie lived to tell, and to witness to God's amazing love and the strength given her to get through. The title of the book refers not only to the Secret Room in the ten Boom home, but also to Jesus Christ, who gives us peace in our hearts in all circumstances. She was a missionary for Jesus Christ until well into her eighties.

There are parts of it that I didn't remember from 30 years ago when I first read it, and parts that I understand better now, since my own faith has grown.

In 2001, my husband and I visited Haarlem, the Netherlands, and toured the ten Boom home and watch shop. (They still sell watches and clocks, but they no longer make them there. I bought a Delft blue miniature grandfather-style clock.) We went up the narrow stairs to the Secret Room, where six people, Jews and resistance workers, survived the search and subsequent guarding of the house, and were later sent to safer quarters. The house looks exactly as described in the book and shown in the movie (it must have been filmed there).

We stayed on the Grote Markt (at the Hotel Amadeus), and toured St. Bavo's Cathedral, both mentioned in the book, so I could picture as I read how it must have been for the ten Boom family.

Corrie ten Boom has written other books, too, including In My Father's House, telling of her early years before the war, and Tramp for the Lord, telling of her work giving talks and raising money for the homes she founded for WWII survivors in the Netherlands and in Germany.

Click here to read Bookcrosser hotflash's review.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, by Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows

Read, reviewed, and released as part of a bookring in July, 2009

A wonderful book! I thoroughly enjoyed it. I felt so close to the characters that I want to meet them. It expresses a triumph of the human spirit over the adverse conditions of enemy occupation during wartime. Warmth and humor prevail. I hope there will be a sequel some day; I would like to know what happens to Kit as she grows older.

Read other Bookcrossers' reviews here.

The Hiding Place, by Corrie Ten Boom

I read and reviewed this book in September, 2002; then gave it to another Bookcrosser. She read and reviewed it, then sent it to a third Bookcrosser who did the same! This is what Bookcrossing is all about, reading and sharing books, and perhaps learning if others enjoyed it as well!
Bookcrossing reviews

Corrie ten Boom and her family lived in Haarlem, the Netherlands, during the first half of the 20th century. Part of the Dutch Resistance during World War II and the Nazi occupation, they hid and rescued many Jews, and subsequently were arrested. Most of Corrie's family died in Nazi prisons and concentration camps, but Corrie survived to tell her story of God's grace through terrible times. She spent the rest of her life traveling and telling her story, and spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, until her death in 1983, at the age of 91.
My husband and I were able to visit the Ten Boom clock shop, home and museum while visiting in Haarlem, the Netherlands in 2001. It was an unforgettable experience!
Ten Boom House information