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I really enjoyed this memoir of the author's experiences during WWII. I appreciated that she did not hide the heartbreak, deprivation and horrors of the war but at the same time could also convey the humour and ridiculousness of some of the situations she found herself in.

I‘ve been MIA from our reading groups for a while as we‘re still travelling around in our trailer (it‘s time to head home now though as the leaves are falling!) I‘ve managed to read all three and heartily enjoyed them.

The Native Heath : a fun and frothy slice of village life
The Children Who Lived in a Barn: nice try, Mr and Mrs ‘We Forgot to Come Home to Our Children‘ 😆
Spam Tomorrow: a witty and heartfelt exploration of life on the Homefront

I enjoyed this, especially Verily‘s attitude of “just getting on with it.”

I‘m including the “cosy, silvery barrage-balloons” because they reminded me of my mom telling me that she and her girlfriends walked by some every day on their way to school. They each picked one and named it after a movie star; my mom‘s was Humphrey, for Humphrey Bogart. 😄

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I thoroughly enjoyed that romp through one woman‘s WWII experiences and I appreciated the “jolly hockey sticks” tone. It may seem flippant to present war time like that, but I think it was representative of the way the British, particularly Londoners, maintained morale on the home front both during the war & in its aftermath. The descriptions of air raids were very evocative, I almost felt like I was there.

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Enjoyed our latest #FurrowedMiddlebrowClub read. I was charmed by Verily and found her wartime experiences as wife and mother fascinating. A big “eek!” to the farmhouse part about mice running over their faces during the night.

This got me wanting to rewatch the pictured reality series where “one modern family takes on the challenge of domestic life on Britain‘s home front.” Thankfully my library had a copy!

I really enjoyed VA‘s writing style - the dry humor made me laugh out loud a few times, and her characterizations were great. She captured the tumultuous back +forth & the challenges of WW2 Britain &the Blitz so well. I particularly enjoyed Verily & Julie‘s guest house adventures with all the folks who came to stay. Few mentions of Spam, but 1 of my kids likes to make Spam onigiri, so I suppose that‘s enough recipes for me.
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There was disappointingly only one reference to Spam on the whole book! 😂

This was fun, but not quite as fun as I anticipated. The book is Verily Anderson‘s experiences in London and in the countryside during WWII. Kicked out of the FANY, she marries and raises children in some pretty adverse and sometimes ridiculous circumstances. She seems to have been the kind of person who is able to find humor in any situation.

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Once I got used to the somewhat scattershot writing style, I really enjoyed World War II homefront memoir, which puts you right in the thick of a very different way of life--which was often quite thick indeed, especially several ghastly hospital visits, but at other times as cozy as wartime allowed.

I like how the author lets it all hang out--she's not always as patriotic as she might be, or as lawful.

cont.

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I'm in England during World War II -- twice.

Read this on the treadmill, so I don‘t know if my exhaustion is from the exercise or reading about the chaos & tribulations of war?! 😅 Verily‘s experience is not to be envied, though I have the impression because of her privilege others fared much worse. Still, her memoir is a glimpse into the domestic lives of women during the war.

I applaud her marriage for love! ♥️

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Reposting for @ruthiella
https://www.litsy.com/web/post/2770091

Hello #FurrowedMiddlebrowClub members! Because of the holiday weekend in the US, I‘m getting a jump on announcing our September scheduled read. Looks like it‘s going to be a fun one! 🤞

Please read at your own pace and post at will. Be sure to tag everyone so we can like and comment.

All are welcome to join, so if you‘re reading this and want to be tagged in November, let me know.

First step in my posting for our September #FurrowedMiddlebrowClub read vote is to post the back cover for this title since Litsy has very few words for a description!

Thank you so much, @BookishTrish for this perfect #LittleChristmasSwap package! 😍😍 A #FurrowedMiddlebrow book that‘s been on my wish list for ages, lovely chocolates, and Murchie‘s tea. I‘m set up for a cozy day and I love it all!

Thanks for hosting, @bookish_wookish ! This is always such a wonderful swap.

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#LittleChristmasSwap unwrapping: photo outtake.

The bag crinkled and must be inspected. Immediately. 😆 #JohnnyBergen

@BookishTrish @bookish_wookish

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