I am an author and avid reader of historical fiction, and I loved this entire series. I suggest readers read them in order. At the end of Books 1 and 2, I couldn't wait to read Book 3. This book is Book 1. One protagonist lives in the United States in the 1930's and begins writing to a boy in the Netherlands as a class pen pal project. The boy in the Netherlands dies, and his sister continues writing to the Chicago boy.  The continues through the occupation of the neutral Netherlands by the Nazis. It includes an important United States effort to relieve the starving of the countries, called "Operation Chowhound." There is very little written about the Netherlands during the war, so I was intrigued to learn about it. All three of the books are worth your time and will take you on a ride you won't forget!

 

I am giving four stars to An American in Paris by Siobhan Curham. I write historical fiction and have become obsessed over books about WWII. The only reason I am giving the book 4 instead of 5 starts is because of the over-the-top portrayal of the people in Arkansas. The story is about a young American dancer from Arkansas who moves to pre-war Paris, Florence, and her encounter with Otto, an Austrian Jewish artist. They fall in love and eventually marry. Sage is a British woman in 2019 who doesn’t realize that she has a family in Arkansas. She earns money through social media. My favorite part of the book were Florence and Otto’s story and the heartbreaking portrayal of WWII Paris. The author rounds out her characters and portrays them in a way that made me quickly turn the pages to find out what happened next. I will definitely read this author again!

 

I am giving 5 stars for The Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah. Although the book began slowly, somewhere in the middle, I became wrapped up in the characters just like I do every book by Kristen Hannah. I admit to having had zero interest in the Russian front or the siege of Leningrad, but soon found myself wrapped up in the heartbreak of a young girl, Anya. The book travels back and forth in time and relates the story of Anya as a young mother who has since moved to the United States. She first appears unloving and cold toward her two daughters. Her husband and father of the girls dies in the beginning of the book. Meredith, 40, is obsessed with work and taking care of everyone but herself. The other daughter, Nina, is a photographer who travels the world and rarely comes home. They both are running from their feelings because of the cold attitude of Anya. What gripped me about a third of the way through the book was the beautiful, poetic writing of the author. She depicts her character so well, that I started to really care about them and had no choice to keep reading. I urge anyone who reads this book to give it a chance and once the story of the siege of Leningrad unfolds, read slowly so that can appreciate the author’s stunning depiction of Leningrad and the lives of Anya’s family and the heartbreaking times through which she lived. I became so immersed in the book that I cried through parts of it, just as I did in The Nightingale. Kristin Hannah is still my favorite author!