Early Chapters, Fall, 1940 (1-8)

[Peppermill]

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nikc wrote:

When does the war feel real to each of the characters?

Interesting--because as I read this book, I didn't feel that the war felt real until the very end.  However, in the beginning, I think that Frankie is certain the war is real to her.  It's exciting, she's in the middle of the action, and she's trying to convey the importance of the London bombings to her listeners.  However, I don't feel at this point that she is truly connecting with the impact of war, not battle, but war--having to leave your home, your belongings, your family.   I contrast this with the war we are experiencing today in Afghanistan.  We see the car bombings, the attacks on the news, but are we truly connected to how the average Afghani lives in the midst of this chaos?

Perhaps the war is most real to Emma, as like the citizens of Europe, the war immediately takes away her true love.  Her husband Will, much like Frankie, is drawn to the excitement, but maybe not the reality of the war.  This book captures how the rest of life moves on, seemingly very normally, while other places in the globe are shattering around us.

Nichole C. Minnesota

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I think your point is an important one, Nichole.  I feel much the same way about the Iraq war. Why do we shatter a country only to make money going in and repairing it, a la Japan?  (Yes, I know I am over simplifying and ignoring lots of considerations.  Still, if we understood clearly what war does to ordinary lives, could/would we find alternatives?)

[Peppermill]

Hope others caught the article on Coventry you cite, Choisya.  I had not thought about the military reasons for targeting the city; I mostly just knew about the cathedral story.  This commentary providing perspective also caught my eye:

"Of the 500 enemy aircraft despatched to Coventry only 449 reached the city. This was by far the heaviest bombing raid on Coventry. Figures for the number killed on the night of 14 November vary between 380 and 554 people killed and several hundred injured."

500 aircraft on one night raid!   I certainly have a very limited sense of the scope and power of military strength and how it has evolved over the years.

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Choisya wrote:

No CL, I lived in the Midlands thank goodness!  We were bombed a number of times though and I also saw Coventry the day after it was bombed, which was the second biggest 'blitz' of the war.  Most people in or near to the major cities used shelters of one sort or another on the nights when there were raids.  We had a shelter right outside our house and at the beginning of the war, when I was more innocent, I used to enjoy taking my dolls and teddies there to play with the other children because I was an only child.  Later, when I realised the dangers, it was not so enjoyable and I took a book instead.  

I am not sure why people might find Iris untrustworthy. She is a bit stiff and starchy but has many good points. 

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Coconut_Library wrote:

Choisya - were you in London when the Blitz happened? I can't imagine how scary that must have been for the people who were there, and being displaced from home at night, hiding in the Underground. How horrible. 

I am loving this book so far. I have only made it to chapter 4, but am looking forward to getting some reading time in today. Someone earlier said that they didn't trust Iris. Maybe I am not to the part where this would make sense yet? I see no reason not to trust her. In fact, I like her and I like how Blake made a character who was so unorthodox for her time period. 

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[Peppermill]

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mgood222 wrote:

Oh, I thought it was just me and my Sciatica. Pulled my back last week and just lying flat in bed, grateful for "The Postmistress" but at the same time didn't know if it was pain of the book but it seems hard to get into. Though I do like the three women.

Today is the first day I am able to sit and post. I'll catch up later I guess.

Maryellen

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Maryellen -- hope you are feeling better now. 

I am one of those who has had little problem following the jumping around of the story, except when the typesetters or whoever fails to provide that critical extra space as a cue.  But perhaps that is because I have a penchant for funky (provocative might be the better word) postmodern stuff even more than for Victorian classics or for mysteries or more straight forward romances.  So good luck with both your back and the story!

Pepper

[Choisya]

And one bomb can now devastate a major city

In comparison, the London Blitz lasted from September 7th to 28th 1941, during which time the Germans sent 100-200 bomber planes dropping 200 tons of high explosive incendiary bombs every night. Some nights there were 300-400 bombers dropping twice that amount. 40,000+ were killed.  The Coventry raid was similar to this but only one night.  I can remember the steady drone of the bombers going overhead as they passed over Nottingham and the fear that engendered, because we didn't know where their target was. Nottingham is 60 kilometres away from Coventry. Quite often bombers returning to Germany from the industrial cities of Coventy and Birmingham, dropped unused bombs randomly so as to lighten their load and Nottingham, which was not an industrial target, was sometimes the recipient of these.

Bombers at this time had a limited range and capacity to carry bombs.  Bombing London from over the Channel was easier for them than getting as far as the Midlands and northern cities.  They had to carry fewer bombs to get to, say, Liverpool, Manchester or Edinburgh, so could spend less time there and do less damage.

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Peppermill wrote:

Hope others caught the article on Coventry you cite, Choisya.  I had not thought about the military reasons for targeting the city; I mostly just knew about the cathedral story.  This commentary providing perspective also caught my eye:

"Of the 500 enemy aircraft despatched to Coventry only 449 reached the city. This was by far the heaviest bombing raid on Coventry. Figures for the number killed on the night of 14 November vary between 380 and 554 people killed and several hundred injured."

500 aircraft on one night raid!   I certainly have a very limited sense of the scope and power of military strength and how it has evolved over the years.

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Choisya wrote:

No CL, I lived in the Midlands thank goodness!  We were bombed a number of times though and I also saw Coventry the day after it was bombed, which was the second biggest 'blitz' of the war.  Most people in or near to the major cities used shelters of one sort or another on the nights when there were raids.  We had a shelter right outside our house and at the beginning of the war, when I was more innocent, I used to enjoy taking my dolls and teddies there to play with the other children because I was an only child.  Later, when I realised the dangers, it was not so enjoyable and I took a book instead.  

I am not sure why people might find Iris untrustworthy. She is a bit stiff and starchy but has many good points. 

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Coconut_Library wrote:

Choisya - were you in London when the Blitz happened? I can't imagine how scary that must have been for the people who were there, and being displaced from home at night, hiding in the Underground. How horrible. 

I am loving this book so far. I have only made it to chapter 4, but am looking forward to getting some reading time in today. Someone earlier said that they didn't trust Iris. Maybe I am not to the part where this would make sense yet? I see no reason not to trust her. In fact, I like her and I like how Blake made a character who was so unorthodox for her time period. 

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[Peppermill]

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GreenFairyLV wrote:

I'm only on chapter 4 right now. So far I don't like any of the characters.  The story is mainly about war, so far anyway, and I'm not really enjoying that.  I feel like I'm not even being given a chance to get to know the characters so I will like them. I hope it gets better.  I'm really glad so many of you are enjoying it, but I'm not.  I read some other postings saying it took them awhile to get hooked.  I'm still early in the book but I hope the more I read the more I will connect with it. 

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GreenFairy -- you express what several others have as well.  I hope you or someone else will add some words on why -- perhaps for you, it is because the story is mainly about war?  Perhaps it is because the story shifts perspectives frequently, so one doesn't get a continuous unfolding of characters?  While I don't necessarily like all the characters (never a necessary condition for a positive judgment of a story for me, incidentally, although PM so far has had a disportionate share of "good-guys".), I did feel as if I knew their general outlines pretty quickly, so I am struggling to understand such different perspectives.

[Hyperviper]

I understand what you are saying, Peppermill. The first few chapters didn't hook me as well but I thought it got more and more interesting in the later chapters.

[HannibalCat]

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jbnie wrote:

I totally agree with you. Life is loss and war speeds that loss along. The deaths in the early chapters hit me especially hard because I didn't expect any of  them. Maggies's death apparently pushed Will into the war, at least on the surface. I  have a felling that Will was looking for a way to make up to the town for his father's failure. Losing Maggie in childbirth, which he felt should have been routine, destroyed that hope. I believe that he did love Emma, just not enough to do the hard work of Marriage and making a life. He did find out that there are no shortcuts to making a life.

I discovered that when you have to listen to something rather then read it or see it, you really "hear" it or in my case read it. I listen to audio books when  I drive and I really "read" these differently  than those books that I do read ! I remember listening to the news on the radio in the late 50's, I'm that old, and it was very different than watching what passes for news nowadays ! Listening to the radio with Iris took me back top those days. I  also held my breath during Frankies broadcasts ! Jane

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DSaff wrote:

  As I said in my "First Impressions" post, the war is up close and personal to me because of the descriptions and characters that Sarah uses to tell her story. As I began reading, I hoped that none of the people I met would be killed in bombings, but, sadly we lost Harriet and Billy's mom. Then near the end of this week's reading, we lose Maggie to childbirth and find that Will is going to war. This story, like others, shows us that individuals suffered and died and we get to meet them.

Am I "listening to the radio" as Frankie relates her daily news. YES! I have been totally drawn into what it must have been like to sit by a radio waiting for the news, waiting to hear the reporter, waiting for some hope and truth. Frankie needs to close her eyes to tell her story, and I find myself wanting to do the same (but I can't read that way!). When I am reading, I find myself holding my breath and praying that the link will hold. Her storytelling is breathtaking. Not only did I cry when Billy went searching for his mother, but did so again when Frankie spoke the words. Listening rather than seeing or watching, requires the listener to pay attention and for the speaker to use all of their senses to pass along the true story. I have no doubts that we will hear many more great accounts from Frankie.

  One of my favorite passages is on page 67. "This is how a war knocks down the regular, steady life we set up against the wolf at the door. Because the wolf is not hunger, it is accident--the horrid, fatal mistake of turning left to go to the nearer tube station, rather than right to make the long way around." If Frankie had gone home.......

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 I agree with you, too. I am old enough to remember the news on the radio and how we all sat around it, enthralled, visualizing it in our heads. It seemed very real to me at the time. More so then the news today. Also, I lived in Germany in the early 60s and the war was brought home so completely when I saw the many bombed out buildings that had yet to be rebuilt. I saw the camps and could pick out the people who were still in the throes of defeat. We lived near a displaced persons camp where our neighbors were from many different countries. As my understanding of German increased, I spoke with many of them and most of the people were just picked up and put to work by the Germans, never knowing what happened to their families. War definitely happens to people one at a time. A very sad, heart rending experience for all concerned.

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[jbnie]

I agree

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maryfrancesa wrote:

I think that the war is real as soon as Frankie tells her stories.  As I said before we can see and hear the bombs falling and what it is like to live in a war toren society.  The air raids, going to the bunkers and just living every day as It was the last day.

Nogt real sure if everyone in the town of franklain was listening to the broadcasts but Emma and Will, with Harry or Henry was and actually wondering what it was like over there.  I got the impression that must people did not pay much attention to the broadcasts unl;ess they were involved which america was not at the time.  No one really cared about europe or what it was like over there and especially if I was jewish.  In a way we are the same now if it does not affect us personally we just go on with our life until it hits home.  The war in Iraq does not affect us unless I have aloved one over there,  i admit I do not

fixate on the war news daily.  Yes I feel bad for the bombs and all the innocent lives lost but I do not dwell on it.  In a sense the people of Franklain are the same.. They all make fun of Henry? and his searching for the u boats, he may be the only one who realized that we do not live in a shell but what affects the world also sffects us

I wonder what the people of Franklain would have felt if the war was made real for them like it is for us today .  I mean with the TV and visual aspects of he war, seeing the destruction up close.  Frankie does a excellant job as does the other broadcasters in visua;izing the bommbing and the bunkers for us and how pround the citizens were

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[skiibunny1213]

The book's epigraph states that "War happens to people one by one." When does the impact of the war begin to feel real to us as readers? Are we listening to Frankie's broadcasts along with Emma and Will? Did one war story from these early chapters move you more than the others?

The impact of the war began to feel real for me when Frankie gets stuck in the bombing that night, and finds that she has lost her roommate and friend in the morning.  It seemed like chance that she met that man and didn't go home with Harriett like she might usually have done.  It was a matter of one choice that was the difference between life and death for her.  I think we also see this in the little boy's mother's decision to go back for the grandmother.  At the end of the 8th chapter I had a sickening sense that the same choice - one that could be the difference between life and death - was made by Will. 

When does the war feel "real" to each of the characters?

For Frankie - when she lives through the bombing but Harriett does not.

Emma - when she listens to Frankie tell her story about the boy.

Will - when he listens to the radio story about the underground shelter after Maggie dies. 

Henry Vale & Iris - This is harder but I think Otto's experience losing his wife has made the war more real for both Henry and Iris, in different ways.  For Henry, he sees Otto's perpetual loneliness every night; for Iris she sees Otto mail letters to his wife everyday but never receive one in return.

How does the experience of listening to the news via radio in the 40s differ from our experience of getting news from the television and internet? Frankie thinks often of the path her voice travels and believes that the sound of war and a person's voice carries the events straight into American living rooms. Do you agree?

I agree.  I think that the experience of listening to the radio can be more moving because your own imagination can make the events that you are hearing about more real and personal to you. 

[Murphy64]

I am a little late getting started in my reading (only on Chapter 9), but so far I LOVE THIS BOOK, but especially Frankie's character.  I think she does a tremendous job of bringing the story to life with her descriptive words.  I truly feel like I am there!!  She does a great job when you think about the fact that she is reporting all these events over the radio.....I feel she is sometimes hits the "heart" of the war better than we do in today's society with all of our pictures and videos.  The old fashion way leaves a lot more to the imagination.....love it, can't wait to continue reading (just wish I had more time)  

[petitefleur]

"Did one war story from these early chapters move you more than the others"

For me, it was when young Billy realized that he would never see his "mummy" again.  This was heartbreaking.  As Frankie retold the story, I began to think of the wars fought over the years and the many children who woke up in the morning with parents, and went to sleep that night as orphans.

[Sensitivemuse]

 How does the experience of listening to the news via radio in the 40s differ from our experience of getting news from the television and internet? Frankie thinks often of the path her voice travels and believes that the sound of war and a person's voice carries the events straight into American living rooms. Do you agree?

- I definitely agree with this! I think it's very different receiving news on the radio than through tv or the internet. I think it's because we're forced to actually picture what's going on there and sometimes the imagination is a very powerful tool.

What is the town of Franklin like? How does the town seem to be preparing or not preparing for war?

- It's a little bit of both I think. There are a few that think the Germans are about to invade anytime soon but I think the majority of the town just seem to be going on with their daily lives and are just separated from the war so to speak. I suppose, if the war doesn't hit home, then it's not of their concern.

[skiibunny1213]

I agree with your comment about if war doesn't hit home it doesn't seem real... I think we even experience that now!

[jbnie]

War brings home the randomness of life. One decision affects our lives in ways that we can not begin to imagine. Frankie, going with man she didn't really know, saved her life. In doing so she was able to bring the stories home to many people and make the war real other listeners. For me, this brought home a truth, that we can only live in the present. Anything else is futile.

[m3girl]

Thinking about the radio reports on the war and how that channel differs from the news channels today is an interesting question.  They sounded more real - more emotional and perhaps more valid.   Today the news is so sanitized - without much emotion.  Every day they cover the wars going on in the world with several sound bites and facts (some are more questionable than others depending on what channel/source you are reading or listening to).  Blogging isn't news it's opinion but I'm afraid it's replacing real reporting which is unfortunate and will lead to terrible misinformation.  But back to the story...Frankie is my favorite character - I like her drive and her interest in getting the story.  The descriptions of the bombed out neighborhoods is barely adequate and I would have liked to spend more time over there.  The contrast between London and the Cape is drastic.  The war is so far away and doesn't have a face to it for most.  That will change when the US gets really involved....but still it was always on the other side of the ocean - far far away and it's always easy to go on with your life - putting it out of your mind.

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Rachel-K wrote:

Please feel free to use any or all of these questions as a jumping off point for discussion--and please feel free to post your own! Especially for the "Chapter" threads, please be conscious of spoilers!

The book's epigraph states that "War happens to people one by one." When does the impact of the war begin to feel real to us as readers? Are we listening to Frankie's broadcasts along with Emma and Will? Did one war story from these early chapters move you more than the others?

When does the war feel "real" to each of the characters?

How does the experience of listening to the news via radio in the 40s differ from our experience of getting news from the television and internet? Frankie thinks often of the path her voice travels and believes that the sound of war and a person's voice carries the events straight into American living rooms. Do you agree?

What is Frankie's attitude about reporting the news? How does she see her role? How did Harriet see her role as a reporter? Did the two women have different attitudes toward what they were doing there?

What is the town of Franklin like? How does the town seem to be preparing or not preparing for war?

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[m3girl]

One thing about the Cape in the winter is that it's darn cold and very different from summer.  Now that's how it is today - and so I would imagine that the population changes in the 40s was similar.  I don't get that feeling from the story during the winter months - seems like.  Perhaps some of the long time residents are used to it but I would imagine that Emma would feel it especially when her husband leaves her to go to Europe.  I don't see her being lonely as I would expect. 

[lisally]

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m3girl wrote:

Thinking about the radio reports on the war and how that channel differs from the news channels today is an interesting question.  They sounded more real - more emotional and perhaps more valid.   Today the news is so sanitized - without much emotion.  Every day they cover the wars going on in the world with several sound bites and facts (some are more questionable than others depending on what channel/source you are reading or listening to).  Blogging isn't news it's opinion but I'm afraid it's replacing real reporting which is unfortunate and will lead to terrible misinformation.  But back to the story...Frankie is my favorite character - I like her drive and her interest in getting the story.  Thedescriptions of the bombed out neighborhoods is barely adequate and I would have liked to spend more time over there.  The contrast between London and the Cape is drastic.  The war is so far away and doesn't have a face to it for most.  That will change when the US gets really involved....but still it was always on the other side of the ocean - far far away and it's always easy to go on with your life - putting it out of your mind.

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Late to the discussion, with exam season and a broken lappy getting in the way...

This definitely is an interesting question, and I agree that the news was probably more emotional, as the enitre story had to be conveyed with words. Today we can have live video of events as they happen, and sometimes the audience can see things objectively, which is a good thing.  Everyday broadcasts, however, can either be very dry or simply the network's opinion.  There is definitely a reason broadcasters such as Edward R. Murrow were much more respected than the "talking heads" of today.

I also find Frankie to be my favorite character, and I wish more of the book followed her story.  I'm finding the parts set in Cape Cod to be rather boring in comparison.  Perhaps it's indicative of the detachment from the events in Europe, but the lives of the American characters seems a bit too mundane so far. Granted, I'm still early in the book, so it may change, but the book is off to a slow start.

I'm also not a huge fan of the relationships in the book; the couples scenes come off as excerpts from a cheesy romance novel.  I'd much prefer story and character development over reading about longing for one's husband or a preoccupation with marriage.

[katknit]

The way that the author introduces the topic of what was going on with the Jews in Europe is what interests me the most. Americans knew something was wrong, but not quite certain what is was or how it was to take shape. The German refugee living with Harry brings home the plight of many, without wordy descriptions. 

[HannibalCat]

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Peppermill wrote:

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quiltedturtle1 wrote:

I think the author has done a good job in these chapters of showing us how the war is personal to different characters in the book through her use of the radio and Frankie's broadcasts. We see how it affects each of the characters as they listen to her. Frankie ties them all together and she also gives us a look at what is going on in England.

As I read the first chapters, the story caught me and I could not wait to see what happened. The death of Maggie was heart wrenching.  It is interesting that Will is leaving Emma after being married such a short time. I questioned early in the book why she was coming to town alone on the bus when they had been married only 2 weeks before.

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Great juxtaposition!   I wondered the same.  If we ever got an adequate understanding, I don't remember what it was just now.

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I agree with a previous writer that said she thought Will was a coward. It also struck me that he was struck (no pun intended) by a taxi and killed. Somewhat of an ignominious way to die when he went over there to sort of be a hero. I don't really understand his motives. There was some good intentions, of course, but most of it seemed to be to escape from Maggie's death. He went to a place of death where none of the deaths could be blamed on him, and he didn't have to face the one death he felt responsible for. Why did he feel so responsible?

[sheljenk]

Frankie seemed to think of the war as more of an adventure.  It was something outside her comfort zone and exciting.  I don't think she thought it was going to be the ordeal it turned out to be - I think she really didn't think below the surface.  Harriet saw it as a mission, I think.  She was more realistic and seemed to want to scratch below the surface and even help.