Customer Reviews

The September Girls

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The September Girls starts on a chilly night in 1920 when two babies are born: one to a poor Irish family just arrived in Liverpool, and the second to a privileged family of money in the same town--in fact, in the very same house. Cara, the Irish child, grows up in a home filled with love and family though never rich, while Sybil, the monied child, grows up with an overly doting father and a mother who finally leaves them to forge her own life. Though very different, the girls' lives are entertwined through the circumstances of their births and the friendship of their mothers, leading them on different paths that will ultimately converge again.

This is a wonderful tale that pulls you in the moment you read the first page. Brenna and Eleanor, the mothers in this story, bond over their children and we follow them and their daughters over the course of 20+ years, through marriages that crumble, children who disappoint, and lives that are changed irreparably when the bombs begin to fall on Liverpool in 1940. Each of the characters, from Nancy the stalwart housekeeper to Marcus the stand-offish businessman, creep slowly into your heart as you read about the adventures of life in Liverpool as seen through their eyes. Cara and Sybil take us far away as both join the military when Britain enters World War 2, and both experience devastating affairs of the heart that bring them closer together and then tear them apart once again.

There are a few moments when things are tied up nicely that I would have liked a bit more information about, but this novel is so well-crafted and the characters so honest and believable that that is only a mild consideration. Full of life and the curves it throws us, this story will stay with me a very, very long time. I will definitely be looking for more from this superb author, and I encourage you to do the same. Highly, highly recommended.

This book is a warm, cosy read, a story of two families, set before and during WW2. Brenna and Colm Caffrey arrive from Ireland with just the clothes on their backs, in 1920, following a call from Colm's brother, to whom they had entrusted their only money, ten pounds, won on a bet. When the brother fails to appear, they begin to walk from the dock with their two small sons and with Brenna heavily pregnant. When the baby starts to come, she is forced to sit in the basement doorway of a large house, until the housekeeper takes her inside for the birth. At the same time, the mistress of the house is upstairs, also in labour and the two women have their baby daughters in the same hour. The story continues with the fate of the Caffrey's entwined with the family in the big house, with deaths, marriages, births and every possible drama happening that actually does happen in real life. I suppose it's easy to label this as chick lit or, even more damning, a nice "Ladies" book, but if you're in the mood for a non taxing read, like the comfort of an old dressing gown, this is the book for you.

Their called the September Girls Sybil and Cara born within minutes of each other. But they couldn't be different. Growing up, they could stand each other. But when the second world war breaks they are both station on Malta. But in wartime things can change quickly. And for the September girls their live will never be the same.
"The September Girls" is another great book by Maureen Lee. As always Ms.Lee gives the reader great characters and a rich story that holds the reader interest and makes them want more.

The September Girls follows the life/loves of several Liverpool women during WWII. Cara is the daughter of an Irish immigrant, but her life is a happy one. Sybil is the spoiled daughter of a rich couple whose parents are in an abusive relationship. They are born under the same roof and are called 'the September girls' by the housekeeper Nancy. The novel also follows the lives of the girl's parents who have a longlasting, albeit rocky frienship.

This is the second Lee novel I have read and I enjoyed it quite a bit. Lee manages to capture the flavor of wartime perfectly. I do think she has a talent for writing female characters, her male characters however, never seem to jive with me, though for some reason.

I found this a gripping book, and recommend this to fans of historical drama.

I really enjoyed this book. I read it within a week and thought about it on and off when I wasn't reading it. I found that it wasn't predictable as so many books directed to a female audience often are and there were a few things that I didn't expect. If you want to read a book about strong female women, this is a good choice.

I did have a couple of little niggly things though - the book is based in England and set just prior to and during WWII. The story line followed the lives of the characters and their reactions and participation to the war but felt it missed a few things detail wise. There was no mention of the events or effect of the holocaust on these people and they seemed to continue living almost as if the war was on the opposite side of the world rather than in their own neighbourhood. It just didn't seem realistic.

The other was that for some reason there were new paragraphs when the text was still a part of the previous paragraph. I think this is a Kindle thing rather than the author so it would have been nice for the Kindle edition to be fixed prior to the book being made available. In the beginning I found it hard to follow as a new paragraph often means the end of a 'scene' and I was prepared to move on in the story only to find it was actually the same scene continuing.

In saying this, I am keen to read more of this author's books.