wwii
76 books.
read
The Swiss Courier
by: Tricia Goyer
read
The Secret Keeper
by: Kate Morton
"Although a little slower paced than Morton's other novels, it delivers the same depth of character and twisting plot lines I love so much. The ending was also very heartwarming, compared to the other endings of her novels which are generally tragic in nature."
- katelynn
08/05/2014
- katelynn
08/05/2014
read
Vienna Prelude (Zion Covenant, #1)
by: Bodie Thoene
Sophie’s Choice
by: William Styron
read
Winter Garden
by: Kristin Hannah
"I loved reading about a time / period / place I know nothing about: 1930s/40s Russia and the siege of Leningrad. It was a truly harrowing moment in history.
Unfortunately, that was only about 2/5 of the book. The rest was a modern story framework setup to allow the telling of the other story. It felt weak and unnecessary. I'd rather have focused in on the historical story, even if it was super grim, than be dragged along with modern characters I never came to care for."
- katelynn
02/04/2019
Unfortunately, that was only about 2/5 of the book. The rest was a modern story framework setup to allow the telling of the other story. It felt weak and unnecessary. I'd rather have focused in on the historical story, even if it was super grim, than be dragged along with modern characters I never came to care for."
- katelynn
02/04/2019
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption
by: Laura Hillenbrand
The Yellow Bird Sings
by: Jennifer Rosner
Resistance Women
by: Jennifer Chiaverini
The Zookeeper's Wife: A War Story
by: Diane Ackerman
The World That We Knew
by: Alice Hoffman
no image available
Weyward
by: Emilia Hart
The Right Sort of Man (Sparks & Bainbridge Mystery #1)
by: Allison Montclair
From Sand and Ash
by: Amy Harmon
A Bridge Across the Ocean
by: Susan Meissner
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
by: Winifred Watson
The Zookeeper's Wife
by: Diane Ackerman
no image available
read
The Last Green Valley
by: Mark T. Sullivan
A Town Like Alice
by: Nevil Shute
read
The Things We Cannot Say
by: Kelly Rimmer
The Paris Architect
by: Charles Belfoure
The Nightingale
by: Kristin Hannah
read
Number the Stars
by: Lois Lowry
"I'm giving this a 4 largely for the sake of my child-self. It was really hard to read this and try to re-capture how I felt about it as a child. It just doesn't hold up like some children's books do. I would've honestly given it 3 stars, but I just feel like I'm betraying my younger self."
- katelynn
03/10/2017
- katelynn
03/10/2017
Enchanted Islands
by: Allison Amend
no image available
The King of Warsaw
by: Szczepan Twardoch
read
Winter Passing
by: Cindy McCormick Martinusen
no image available
The Last Bookshop in London
by: Madeline Martin
I'll Be Seeing You (I'll Be Seeing You, #1)
by: Suzanne Hayes
no image available
All the Broken Places (The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, #2)
by: John Boyne
White Rose, Black Forest
by: Eoin Dempsey
The Paris Library
by: Janet Skeslien Charles
Code Name Hélène
by: Ariel Lawhon
Be Not Afraid
by: Robert L. Wise
The Time in Between
by: María Dueñas
The Storyteller
by: Jodi Picoult
read
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
by: Mary Ann Shaffer
"Wish I could give more stars - so fantastic! History and funny characters and romance."
- katelynn
10/30/2013
- katelynn
10/30/2013
read
Beneath a Scarlet Sky
by: Mark T. Sullivan
"I waffled a lot on the rating for this one, so I'll break it down here.
In terms of this man's story, Pino Lella, definitely 5 stars. It is unbelievable what he experienced. Completely fascinating! I especially loved hearing the followup about what happened to everyone after the ending. I even liked that you are left with questions, some unknown details that make it feel more like real life. I liked reading about Milan and the specific struggles and tragedies they endured during the war.
HOWEVER.
The writing itself was just not good. I feel like I need to apologize for having/expressing this opinion, especially about a WWII story, but I won't. Honestly, I almost stopped reading it. The story picked up enough in the end to justify me finishing it, but I would not recommend it to friends. It's painful to read bad writing."
- katelynn
05/21/2018
In terms of this man's story, Pino Lella, definitely 5 stars. It is unbelievable what he experienced. Completely fascinating! I especially loved hearing the followup about what happened to everyone after the ending. I even liked that you are left with questions, some unknown details that make it feel more like real life. I liked reading about Milan and the specific struggles and tragedies they endured during the war.
HOWEVER.
The writing itself was just not good. I feel like I need to apologize for having/expressing this opinion, especially about a WWII story, but I won't. Honestly, I almost stopped reading it. The story picked up enough in the end to justify me finishing it, but I would not recommend it to friends. It's painful to read bad writing."
- katelynn
05/21/2018
read
The Women in the Castle
by: Jessica Shattuck
"3.5"
- katelynn
01/01/2022
- katelynn
01/01/2022
Those Who Save Us
by: Jenna Blum
no image available
A Place to Hang the Moon
by: Kate Albus
read
The Orphan of Salt Winds
by: Elizabeth Brooks
"What I was hoping for was gothic, not child-molester creepy. Those two things are not the same. I had the heeby-jeebies for most of this book.
There were certain things I liked, so it wasn't a total loss."
- katelynn
06/29/2020
There were certain things I liked, so it wasn't a total loss."
- katelynn
06/29/2020
read
All the Light We Cannot See
by: Anthony Doerr
read
Secrets of a Charmed Life
by: Susan Meissner
Three Hours in Paris (Kate Rees, #1)
by: Cara Black
Lilac Girls
by: Martha Hall Kelly
no image available
The Son and Heir: A Memoir
by: Alexander Münninghoff
The Rose Code
by: Kate Quinn
Lilac Girls (Lilac Girls, #1)
by: Martha Hall Kelly
no image available
read
In Farleigh Field
by: Rhys Bowen
read
The Jane Austen Society
by: Natalie Jenner
"4.5
This was a surprise hit for me! I did not have high hopes - reading it only because of book club. I love Jane Austen books but I am by no means a super-fan and I generally avoid any "fan fiction". I could go without excessive talking about her too, but this book!
It has such a rich cast of characters. They had such complex issues, I was rushing to the end to see them grow and find some peace. I loved watching them make connections with each other and the way books provided a bridge across such huge social, economical and age divides."
- katelynn
08/05/2020
This was a surprise hit for me! I did not have high hopes - reading it only because of book club. I love Jane Austen books but I am by no means a super-fan and I generally avoid any "fan fiction". I could go without excessive talking about her too, but this book!
It has such a rich cast of characters. They had such complex issues, I was rushing to the end to see them grow and find some peace. I loved watching them make connections with each other and the way books provided a bridge across such huge social, economical and age divides."
- katelynn
08/05/2020
Sophie's Choice
by: William Styron
read
Everyone Brave is Forgiven
by: Chris Cleave
"Still reeling a bit from this one. It started out so light-hearted and hilarious - the tone reminded me so much of P.G. Wodehouse, which I LOVE. There's a moment when all of that changes. The tone of the book, along with the internal journey of the characters, gets more and more serious. As I can imagine with the war, it's rather a jarring change, but it feels real and true.
The writing is so, so good. It checked my boxes of heart and humor, then checked my additional box of "teaches me history without me noticing".
I didn't love the ending, but again, it felt real. It's not neat and tidy, but it speaks to the reality of the time and the progression of the characters."
- katelynn
12/13/2019
The writing is so, so good. It checked my boxes of heart and humor, then checked my additional box of "teaches me history without me noticing".
I didn't love the ending, but again, it felt real. It's not neat and tidy, but it speaks to the reality of the time and the progression of the characters."
- katelynn
12/13/2019
no image available
A Single Swallow
by: Zhang Ling
Code Name Verity
by: Elizabeth Wein
read
The Orphan's Tale
by: Pam Jenoff
"I loved the circus setting and growth of the relationship between the two lead women. It definitely felt over-dramatic at moments, but who am I to judge? It was a dramatic time.
Also, why "The Orphan's Tale"? Is the orphan Theo? It's not his story at all. "
- katelynn
10/05/2020
Also, why "The Orphan's Tale"? Is the orphan Theo? It's not his story at all. "
- katelynn
10/05/2020
We Were the Lucky Ones
by: Georgia Hunter
The Invisible Bridge
by: Julie Orringer
Saving Amelie
by: Cathy Gohlke
The War That Saved My Life (The War That Saved My Life, #1)
by: Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
read
The Huntress
by: Kate Quinn
"Wonderfully done. This book was almost 600 pages, but I would've kept reading for another 300. Such fascinating, complex characters! Like nothing I've ever read before. And I learned a lot about WWII subjects I don't know much about. Quinn kept the history fast-paced and the characters multi-faceted. A fantastic read!"
- katelynn
08/12/2019
- katelynn
08/12/2019
Code Name Verity (Code Name Verity, #1)
by: Elizabeth Wein
read
Corelli's Mandolin
by: Louis de Bernières
"Great romance, interesting history, complex characters. Definitely takes you through a range of emotions. Some of the history stuff is slow but it's easy to breeze past :)"
- katelynn
12/31/2013
- katelynn
12/31/2013
The Last Year of the War
by: Susan Meissner
no image available
The Postcard
by: Anne Berest
read
The Distant Hours
by: Kate Morton
"Unlike other reviewers, I liked this book just as much if not more than Morton's other novels. One of the best books I've read in a long time. Such a great mystery - so many great reveals! I had no idea how it would end which is rare and refreshing."
- katelynn
11/30/2013
- katelynn
11/30/2013
read
Lovely War
by: Julie Berry
Last Train to Istanbul
by: Ayşe Kulin
read
The Book Thief
by: Markus Zusak
"Beautifully written and incredibly challenging. The POV was really interesting and added a lot - definitely not your typical holocaust novel. I give four stars because the book really drags until about the last third - which is great! The unusual writing style also takes a while to get used to and felt a bit pretentious at times. But that's probably just personal prejudice - I like traditional writing."
- katelynn
04/04/2014
- katelynn
04/04/2014
read
The Chilbury Ladies' Choir
by: Jennifer Ryan
"This was a sweet, light story that reads super fast. It feels strange to classify a WWII story as “light” but it felt that way (maybe in comparison to some other novels read recently).
I didn’t love the epistolary/journal style - it seemed awkward and unrealistic. And the “twists” were rather obvious and unsurprising.
I enjoyed the read though. I didn’t want to put it down. The characters were charming with good development. "
- katelynn
02/03/2018
I didn’t love the epistolary/journal style - it seemed awkward and unrealistic. And the “twists” were rather obvious and unsurprising.
I enjoyed the read though. I didn’t want to put it down. The characters were charming with good development. "
- katelynn
02/03/2018
Three Hours In Paris
by: Cara Black
no image available
The Whalebone Theatre
by: Joanna Quinn
The Auschwitz Escape
by: Joel C. Rosenberg
The Narrow Road to the Deep North
by: Richard Flanagan
The Alice Network
by: Kate Quinn
I'll Be Seeing You
by: Suzanne Hayes