Product Description

Liverpool, 1939. The Second World War is about to start when pretty Laura Oliver meets Queenie Todd. Laura is 21 and happily married. At 14, Queenie lacks Laura's confidence, and has been deserted by her good-time mother. The two become friends, but when the air raids begin Queenie is trusted to look after two young children, and the three of them are evacuated to a small town on the coast of Wales. At first it is a haven of peace and quiet. The girls have a wonderful time - and then something happens, so terrifying that it will haunt them for the rest of their lives.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #136545 in Books
• Published on: 2004-04-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 576 pages

About the Author
Maureen Lee was born in Liverpool and had numerous short stories published and a play professionally staged before her first novel was published. She is an RNA winner, and writes full time.

Customer Reviews

A gripping read
Strong women are Maureen Lee's speciality - strong Liverpudlian women living in the 1940s, to be precise. And they don't come much stronger than Queenie. She is a gem. I've read, I think, all of Maureen Lee's Bootle sagas and her characterisations just get better and better. The novel takes its cast of memorable characters from childhood through to adulthood, from the 1930s to the 1970s, with many unexpected and dramatic twists and turns along the way, bringing the wartime and post-wartime years to life in a fresh and lively way. Even if you are far too young to remember air raids and the evacuation of children from the cities to the countryside, I think you'll enjoy Maureen Lee's evocation of how it must have felt. Highly recommended if you want to be swept along by a gripping tale, well told.

Simply an excellent read
No more needed to be said. Read this book you will not be disappointed.

Family history
I have to admit my reasons for buying this book are a little unusual. The photograph on the front cover is of five of my Aunts (youngest five out of seven girls, my mother was second eldest)on a day trip to Clacton during the war. The little boy was apparently also playing on the beach and was asked to join the group by the photographer to make up the numbers. One of my Aunts found the book in her local library and now they all have copies! They tell me the publisher got the photo from some form of national archive. Last time we were all together was sadly at one of their funerals and the book cover was being reminised about and it occured to me that I'd better get a copy. Really hope to get round to reading it one day but must confess its currently on my shelf unopened.