Three years into World War II, the lives of two girls in North Carolina are about to change. Deep in the mountains, Bert Tucker is being sent to live across the state with her aunt Violet to attend to her while she has a baby. Next door to Aunt Violet, Lucy Brown lives on a sprawling tobacco farm where the government has just granted the Brown family a contract to raise bees for beeswax. Both thirteen years old, Lucy and Bert quickly bond. They discover that despite their differences, they make a good team, especially when people start to go missing.
All The Little Hopes is a charming historical coming-of-age story combined with a mystery. Told through the alternating viewpoints of Lucy and Bert, the adolescents shine an innocence upon the time along with an adaptability to the many situations that arise. The writing flowed easily with bountiful description of the landscape and gave a distinct voice to each girl. While the mystery of the disappearing men kept me intrigued and introduced wonderful side characters such as mystical Trula Freed and pragmatic Sugar Mayhew, it was the girl's experience growing up during World War II that kept me interested. Through Lucy and Bert's eyes, I could see the effects of homecoming on an injured soldier, how Lucy's sister dealt with her husband declared Missing In Action, how Lucy's mother dealt with her son fighting overseas and how Lucy and Bert learned to welcome the German Prisoners of War onto their farm and into their family. With a bittersweet ending, All The Little Hopes creates an atmospheric story of love and hope.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
All The Little Hopes is a charming historical coming-of-age story combined with a mystery. Told through the alternating viewpoints of Lucy and Bert, the adolescents shine an innocence upon the time along with an adaptability to the many situations that arise. The writing flowed easily with bountiful description of the landscape and gave a distinct voice to each girl. While the mystery of the disappearing men kept me intrigued and introduced wonderful side characters such as mystical Trula Freed and pragmatic Sugar Mayhew, it was the girl's experience growing up during World War II that kept me interested. Through Lucy and Bert's eyes, I could see the effects of homecoming on an injured soldier, how Lucy's sister dealt with her husband declared Missing In Action, how Lucy's mother dealt with her son fighting overseas and how Lucy and Bert learned to welcome the German Prisoners of War onto their farm and into their family. With a bittersweet ending, All The Little Hopes creates an atmospheric story of love and hope.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
