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Original poster

Book recs please - easy but lovely reads maybe wartime fiction

61 replies

Grockle · 24/05/2011 07:01

I haven't read book I loved in ages. I need something light & easy to read. Not Marian Keyes and such but something similarly easy with a little more weight. As a teen, I loved wartime romance type books and think I'd like to read some again Blush but am open to anything that I can read whilst dealing with 3 small boys, a huge workload and poor health. TIA

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mrswoodentop · 29/05/2011 19:45

Elizabeth Howards Cazelet series,Noel Barber Farewell to France (one of my comfort reads !),Carries's war ,Olivia Mannings Balkan Trilogy

FreeButtonBee · 29/05/2011 10:56

Nancy mitford - the pursuit of love is excellent. And if you enjoy thatbthere is a whole world of Mitford-alia out there to satisfy your longings.

stleger · 28/05/2011 21:30

The Camomile Lawn, Mary Wesley. And Delderfields, any of them.

Original poster
Grockle · 28/05/2011 21:22

The only book I could get was Charlotte Gray so I bought that this morning. I'm surprised at how hard it has been to find any of these. I guess they're a bit dated and only appeal to a few?

I'd forgotten about A Town Like Alice (I always want to say 'called Alice' too) Blush

Thank you all

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VivaLeBeaver · 28/05/2011 21:06

Agent Zigzag is very good.

ColonelBrandonsBiggestGroupie · 28/05/2011 20:21

A Town LIKE Alice!

ColonelBrandonsBiggestGroupie · 28/05/2011 20:20

I forgot 'A Town Called Alice' but I bet you've already read it - worth a revisit though, if so.

Mr Pip was v good but upsetting - I'd expected it to be quite lightweight and it took me by surprise!

TotalChaos · 28/05/2011 20:13

Fortunes of War - Balkan and Levant Trilogies by Olivia Manning are excellent. Not dead easy but worth it.

Easier but a bit creepy in parts - Five Quarters of An Orange by Joanne Harris

fustyarse · 28/05/2011 20:09

Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian, it is AMAZING

Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay, also fantastic and incredibly sad

The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons, one of my all time favourite books. One of the greatest love stories I've ever read, I loved it. Starts out pretty light and becomes gripping, and the best part is that there are 2 sequels - Tatiana and Alexander and The Summer Garden. All fabulous.

Most of Paullina Simons books are fabulous, as are Chris Bohjalian's, he's not that well known here but pretty poplularn the States.

Original poster
Grockle · 27/05/2011 21:12

Thanks so much for all the recommendations. It turns out that none of the local libraries have any of them (there are one or 2 copies of some of the books but dotted throughout the borough and are on loan or 'unavailable') so I'll have a browse in Waterstones in the morning. Smile

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iamabadger · 25/05/2011 14:17

I'm just finishing Little Gods by Anna Richards, it's a good read partly set in the war but not "about" the war. It's a little bit different but not a challenging read.

aliceliddell · 25/05/2011 14:13

Oh, Piebald! How did I forget about Charlotte Gray? Great book. cried myself to sleep, woke up crying. (I do enjoy a good weep)

Lilymaid · 25/05/2011 12:59

I'll second the recommendation for the Cazalet Chronicles by Elizabeth Jane Howard - story of a wealthy family from 1937-47. I've just re-read the 4 books on my Kindle and wished there were more ...

MoniDubai · 25/05/2011 12:35

maybe The Story of Edgar Sawtelle or Mr Pip, some of my faves reveiwed on www.doindubai.com but also loved Nothing to Envy Barbara Demick non fiction but actually reads like fiction and very poignant, romantic

elkiedee · 25/05/2011 11:41

I second the recommendation of The Invisible Bridge - it's not so light, either physically or in content, though the new paperback edition is much more compact than the one I read from the library, but it's a very good read!

piebald · 24/05/2011 20:12

Charlotte Gray by Sebastion Faulks

bonnetarte · 24/05/2011 19:46

You might enjoy Pam Jenoff
here mostly have a wartime setting or indeed
April in Paris

Original poster
Grockle · 24/05/2011 19:45

I really didn't expect so many responses, thank you. Goodnight Mr Tom is one of my all time favourite books. I cry every time. And The Diary of Anne Frank and the Silver Sword. Children's books can be great.

I am so looking forward to going to the library. I might see how quickly stuff from Amazon will arrive too Grin

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BoattoBolivia · 24/05/2011 19:45

Following on from Goodnight Mr Tom, all the books by Michelle Magorian are brilliant. They are technically children's books, beautifully written, very powerful and mostly do to with the end of the war, evacuation and returning soldiers. Can't recommend them enough!

VoldemortsNipple · 24/05/2011 19:37

Can I recommend The Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer.

Paris, 1937. Andras Levi, an architecture student, has arrived from Budapest with a scholarship, a single suitcase, and a mysterious letter he has promised to deliver to Clara Morgenstern a young widow living in the city. When Andras meets Clara he is drawn deeply into her extraordinary and secret life, just as Europe's unfolding tragedy sends them both into a state of terrifying uncertainty.

From a remote Hungarian village to the grand opera houses of Budapest and Paris, from the despair of Carpathian winter to an unimaginable life in forced labour camps and beyond, The Invisible Bridge tells the story of a marriage tested by disaster and of a family, threatened with annihilation, bound by love and history.

Ive just finished this book and really enjoyed it.

bagelmonkey · 24/05/2011 19:25

Robert Goddard - Take No Farewell

jimswifein1964 · 24/05/2011 19:14

Oooo, there's an Anita Shreve one thats fantastic and heart-wrenching at the end; about a woman who hides a stranded enemy ?pilot... I cant think of the title.....

Original poster
Grockle · 24/05/2011 19:10

Oh wow, what a great list, thank you. I'll play on amazon later. I read Fair Stood the Wind for France for my English GSCE and really enjoyed it. I think that may be what started my interest in WW2 fiction. Thank you so much Smile

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ColonelBrandonsBiggestGroupie · 24/05/2011 19:09

Read Goodnight Mr Tom - it's a children's book but a superb one.

Also I read one called The Welsh Girl a couple of years ago which was okay and iirc was set in the 2nd World War.

Also, try Evelyn Waugh perhaps.

candytuft63 · 24/05/2011 16:04

Anything by Mollie Panter-Downs.Have just read "The Postmistress" by Sarah Blake - really involving, couldn't put it down.