Synopses & Reviews
A remarkable autobiography of the last great wartime icon, this account depicts the life and times of Dame Vera Lynn. Born Vera Welch on March 20, 1917 in the East End of London, Lynns career was set from an early agealong with her father, who also did a turn,” she sang in Working Mens Clubs ate the mere age of seven years old. She had a successful radio career with Joe Loss and Charlie Kunz in the 1920s and 30s, but it was with World War II that she became the iconic figure that captured the imagination of the national public. Her spirit and verve, along with her ability to connect with the men fighting for their country and those left behind praying for their loved ones, made her the Forces sweetheart.” Performing the songs that she will always be associated with, such as We'll Meet Again” and Yours,” Vera toured Egypt, India, and Burma to entertain the troops and bring them a sense of back home.” Her career after the war flourished, with hits in the U.S. and the UK, but Vera was never able to leave behind her wartime role and was deeply affected by what she had seen. Still heavily involved with veteran and other charities, this is Dame Veras vivid story of her life and her warfrom bombs and rations to dance halls and the searing heat of her appearances abroad. Epitomizing British fortitude and hope, Dame Vera gives a vivid portrait of Britain at war and a unique story of one woman who came to symbolize a nation. Previously unpublished photographs of Dame Vera and wartime Britain from her personal archives are also included.
Synopsis
Forbidden love and family secrets In World War Two Liverpool in the heartrending new saga from the author of Goodnight Sweetheart.
Rosie has grown up in the heart of Liverpool's Italian community, treated as one of their own. With a father away at sea and a mother more interested in other men than her only daughter, the bighearted Grenellis are the closest thing Rosie has to a proper family.
But when war breaks out, and Italy becomes the Allies' adversary, everything changes. The community is torn in two: friends become enemies, neighbours become traitors and Rosie is left uncertain of just who she can trust.
As war intensifies, and Liverpool is subjected to relentless bombings, things become more perilous. When a devastating attack leaves her mother dead, Rosie is sent to live with her aunt in Edge Hill. Her father is feared missing at sea and her aunt lets slip a family secret which has unimaginable consequences...
Fleeing her cruel aunt, Rosie becomes a Land Girl and falls in love - with someone utterly forbidden. As bombs drop and families are ripped apart by conflict at home and abroad, can they find happiness or will war stand in their way?
About the Author
Dame Vera Lynn is one of historys most revered recording artists. Dubbed The Forces' Sweetheart” because of her tireless work entertaining the troops during World War II, she has come to symbolize many of the values the country fought to maintain in that conflict. Her recordings of songs such as We'll Meet Again” and The White Cliffs of Dover” have become icons of the war era and of Britain's doughty resistance of the Nazi threat. She was appointed a Dame Commander of the British Empire in 1975. Now in her 90s, she is still active in charity work.