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The Girls from Hangar B
 
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The Girls from Hangar B [Hardcover]

Kristin Campbell Nail (Author), Pamela R. Goodfellow (Editor)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)


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Book Description

June 2001
It is World War II. Seattle, like many other cities, is bursting at the seams as women pour in to work in the factories while the men are away fighting in the trenches and on the high seas. At the Boeing airplane factory, a random pick by a sleepy file clerk throws four unlikely women together into tight living quarters. The result is a hilarious and, at times, deeply moving story of friendship as these women work through the hardships of war, the tenderness of love, and the sadness of loss in THE GIRLS FROM HANGAR B, by Kristin Campbell Nail (Goodfellow Press; $22.00; September 2001).

Here they are, four eager, patriotic women who are as different in appearance as they are in upbringing. They know nothing about building anything, but they are about to begin working on some of the largest, most complicated and vital machines ever built.

First there is Annie, a tall Scandinavian redhead from Coos Bay, Oregon. She feels useless waiting at home while her brothers and fiancé risk their lives overseas. To break free from the tight web of obligation and predictability that has surrounded her for the last year, she decides to join the war effort by moving to Seattle and working in the airplane factory. And to add more confusion to her new situation, she meets Cain Adamson at the factory.

Then there is Birdie, an African American mother of four from Georgia, who leaves home to come all the way to Seattle to earn some extra money for her family. She fights to hold her family together with work, tears, and a little culinary magic. Then there is Birdie, an African American mother of four from Georgia, who leaves home to come all the way to Seattle to earn some extra money for her family. She fights to hold her family together with work, tears, and a little culinary magic.

Gloria, a rich society girl, decides to get a job at the airplane factory after learning in her sociology class how badly the war is going. So she too finds herself at the Boeing factory, helping with the war effort, and, for the first time, unsupervised by her family. Her adventure leads her to meet a handsome Navy sailor who sweeps her off her feet and ultimately, quite a bit farther.

Finally there is Sparkle - the ex-hooker - who wavers between her old profession and this new ambition at the factory. Sparkle is often the subconscious of the group as she is brutally honest and does not keep her thoughts to herself.

As the months pass by, these women come to rely on one another and will stop at nothing short of victory. In THE GIRLS FROM HANGAR B, Kristin Campbell Nail has created four wonderful female characters that you will not soon forget.

Goodfellow Press, the publisher of THE GIRLS FROM HANGAR B and the first Northwest fiction publishing house and teaching press, was founded seven years ago. Its goal is to discover, encourage, and nurture the unique talent of new writers, book designers, and editors from the Northwest. Founder and publisher, Pamela Goodfellow has been an editor for over twenty years. In launching Goodfellow Press, she has achieved a personal goal - to develop the highest standards of fiction, while introducing to the general public, new authors from the great Northwest.


Editorial Reviews

Review

Kris Nail's book is hilarious, enlightening and...deeply moving. -- Richard Clement, author of the novel, Midnight Choir

Kris Nail's strong female characters and the circumstances in which they find themselves are captivating -- Florine Gingerich, author of the novel The Day the Music Died

This novel captures the spirit of ordinary women caught up in extraordinary circumstances. -- Jeffrey L. Waters, author of the novel, Rozner's Contstant

About the Author

Kristin Campbell Nail hails from the tiny northwest town of Port Orchards. Commuting daily across Puget Sound to Seattle for her job as an insurance broker, she transforms on the return trip as a writer. In her alleged spare time, she cooks, paints murals, and crafts masks of leather, bone and feathers. She lives with her husband and dog, Brutus. THE GIRLS FROM HANGAR B is her first published novel.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 352 pages
  • Publisher: Goodfellow Press (June 2001)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1891761080
  • ISBN-13: 978-1891761089
  • Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 6 x 1.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,070,130 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

 

Customer Reviews

4 Reviews
5 star:
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4 star:
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3 star:    (0)
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Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars The Girls from Hangar B, December 13, 2001
By 
Catherine Jett (Washington state) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Girls from Hangar B (Hardcover)
An outstanding read! I had a hard time putting the book down just to go to work.

Ms Nail weaves the lives of the four roommates together in such a way that reader can truly get the feel of the difficulties and patriotism of the WWII era.

I highly recommend this book.

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4.0 out of 5 stars appealing historical fiction, September 29, 2001
This review is from: The Girls from Hangar B (Hardcover)
In 1943 across the United States, necessity being the mother of invention, the manufacturing side supporting the war efforts advertises for women to fill blue-collar positions. Experience is unnecessary. The companies want women with a willingness to work harder than the men the females replace do.

In Seattle, several women accept the challenge at the Boeing airplane factory though their reasons for leaving home and taking the jobs vary. Four of these women share a home. Twenty-eight years old Amazon Annie Tosh left Coos Bay because she cannot sit still while her siblings and her fiancé Howard fight the Axis powers. Mid twenties prostitute Sparkle Melody sees this job as a second chance if she can stay away from the Johns. African-American Birdie traveled across the country to obtain work to feed her four kids. Teenager Gloria Westfall, a pampered female, whose wealthy parents want to shield from the realities of war, needs to aid the war effort n order to prove something to herself. Together this group will learn that building planes is easier than constructing healthy relationships.

THE GIRLS FROM HANGAR B is an appealing historical fiction novel that looks back at the home front during World War II through the eyes of several Rosie the Riveters. The story line uses historical tidbits to paint a relationship drama between the four lead characters as well as other people they meet on and off the jobs. Though not loaded with action, readers who delight in this character study concerning the recent American past. The audience will treasure Kristin Campbell Nails homage to one of the most influential periods in the womens rights movement.

Harriet Klausner

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5.0 out of 5 stars A testament to the strength of the collective human spirit, August 8, 2001
This review is from: The Girls from Hangar B (Hardcover)
Set in WW II Seattle, The Girls From Hangar B follows four eager, patriotic women who were selected at random to work in the factories while America's men went to war. A Scandinavian redhead; an African-American mother of four; a rich, academic young woman; and an ex-prostitute - each woman is radically different in looks and history, and each one knows nothing about building, yet each is about to begin labor on some of the most complicated machines of the era. A wonderful tale of the enduring bond between female friends, The Girls From Hangar B is a testament to the strength of the collective human spirit.
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