GI Brides
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GI Brides: The Wartime Girls Who Crossed the Atlantic for Love Paperback – September 2, 2014
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Editorial Reviews
Review
“Beautifully rounded portraits … delightful and touching.” (Daily Mail (London))
“This is a treasure box of testimonies from a very different world, and one that will soon slip from living memory. Kudos to the authors for capturing these memories for posterity, and in such a readable, touching way.” (The Londonist)
Much has been written about the British “G.I. Brides” of World War II, but perhaps never before with such honesty, compassion, emotional insight and intimacy. I loved this book, and once picked up, it was really hard to put down. (Jacqueline Winspear, New York Times Bestselling Author)
“GI BRIDES includes two authors, four women, and the countless trials and triumphs of wartime romance. Nuala Calvi and Duncan Barrett deftly portray love and heartbreak in riveting narratives that consume the reader from the opening paragraph to the last perfect sentence.” (Erika Robuck, bestselling author of FALLEN BEAUTY)
Heartbreaking yet tender, these British wartime brides face the high cost of marrying GIs they scarcely know and courageously reclaim their lives a thousand miles from home and family. Rich in historical detail and masterfully researched (Marjorie Hart, New York Times bestselling author of Summer at Tiffany)
Truly fascinating insight into the experiences of the war brides; remarkable women whose lives were transformed by war and the American GIs who stole their hearts. (Hazel Gaynor, New York Times bestselling author of The Girl Who Came Home)
“This is a treasure box of testimonies from a very different world, and one that will soon slip from living memory. Kudos to the authors for capturing these memories for posterity, and in such a readable, touching way.” (The Londonist)
Much has been written about the British “G.I. Brides” of World War II, but perhaps never before with such honesty, compassion, emotional insight and intimacy. I loved this book, and once picked up, it was really hard to put down. (Jacqueline Winspear, New York Times Bestselling Author)
“GI BRIDES includes two authors, four women, and the countless trials and triumphs of wartime romance. Nuala Calvi and Duncan Barrett deftly portray love and heartbreak in riveting narratives that consume the reader from the opening paragraph to the last perfect sentence.” (Erika Robuck, bestselling author of FALLEN BEAUTY)
Heartbreaking yet tender, these British wartime brides face the high cost of marrying GIs they scarcely know and courageously reclaim their lives a thousand miles from home and family. Rich in historical detail and masterfully researched (Marjorie Hart, New York Times bestselling author of Summer at Tiffany)
Truly fascinating insight into the experiences of the war brides; remarkable women whose lives were transformed by war and the American GIs who stole their hearts. (Hazel Gaynor, New York Times bestselling author of The Girl Who Came Home)
From the Back Cover
They left everything behind to follow their hearts. . . . True stories that illuminate the experiences of British war brides in America after World War II
American soldiers stationed in the UK came away winning more than just a war, they also won the hearts of young women across Britain. At the end of World War II, more than 70,000 GI brides followed the men they'd married—men they barely knew—to begin a new life in the United States. Meet four of these women:
Sylvia Bradley, a loyal, bright-eyed optimist
Rae Brewer, a resourceful, quick-witted tomboy
Margaret Boyle, an English beauty who faced down every challenge
Gwendolyn Rowe, a brave woman ahead of her time
Though all made the bold choice to leave family and the world they knew, the journey each experienced was unique—ranging from romantic to heartbreaking.
Fascinating and unforgettable, GI Brides pays homage to these brave women, propelled by love and hope, who embarked on an adventure that would change their lives.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
By
Jo Ann Graham
VINE VOICE on June 1, 2014
Format: Paperback
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This is a can't put it down tale of four women from England who married four American GIs during and after World War 2. The women do not know each other. The book explains their coming to America and how they adapt to the completely new life and culture in a strange country. Some of the women knew little or nothing about their new husbands and married in the heat of war. They all met with some disappointment and some happy surprises in the life they expected to have as a new bride in America. Begun as a project to look into the background of a relative of one of the authors, the book grew into an enthralling tale of real life in all its joys and sorrows.
After reading the book in just two days (I couldn't put it down, it is fascinating) I passed it to my mother who is 90 years old and was born and raised in England. In her late teens and early 20s, she lived through the war in London and surrounding areas. She verified that the book is very accurate to real life in terms of the areas and conditions described. She also couldn't put the book down and loved reading about people who seem to come to life in your hands. Although she was not a war bride herself my mother was and remained friends with many woman who were war brides and truly enjoyed reading the stories of the four women in this book.
The authors are wonderful in the manner in which they spin this narrative. You really get to know the players and to care about their lives. You cannot help but respect the courage of women who left the only world they knew and ventured to a new land to join their new love and search for a new life. This is a fascinating and very enjoyable book.
After reading the book in just two days (I couldn't put it down, it is fascinating) I passed it to my mother who is 90 years old and was born and raised in England. In her late teens and early 20s, she lived through the war in London and surrounding areas. She verified that the book is very accurate to real life in terms of the areas and conditions described. She also couldn't put the book down and loved reading about people who seem to come to life in your hands. Although she was not a war bride herself my mother was and remained friends with many woman who were war brides and truly enjoyed reading the stories of the four women in this book.
The authors are wonderful in the manner in which they spin this narrative. You really get to know the players and to care about their lives. You cannot help but respect the courage of women who left the only world they knew and ventured to a new land to join their new love and search for a new life. This is a fascinating and very enjoyable book.
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
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Sunday
VINE VOICE on June 5, 2014
Format: Paperback
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GI Brides: The War-time Girls Who Crossed the Atlantic for Love could have been and should have been much more than what it was; which was a novel type nonfiction book about four WWII war brides. In their acknowledgements, the authors stated they interviewed over 60 brides. Thus, why did their book concentrate on only four? Moreover, in the description on the back of the ARC, it is stated that most war brides "persevered, determined to turn their wartime romance into a lifelong love affair". But in the book itself, two of the four women divorced their GI husbands, because one husband was an alcoholic, the other a cheater. A third bride continued living with her gambling addicted husband, but they lived "separate lives" throughout most of their marriage. The fourth bride had a happy marriage, but contacted polio after coming to the United States!
In other words, the book obviously does not offer a balanced view of the British war brides who married American WWII soldiers. It also chopped up the stories of the four women, so the first chapter was on Sylvia, the second on Rae, the third on Margaret, the fourth on Gwendolyn, the fifth on Sylvia, the sixth on Rae, etc. Did the authors think doing that would make the stories seem longer, or more complex, or more suspenseful than they actually were? The stories are neither complex nor suspenseful. This book is a quick read. Reading all the chapters on one woman at a time makes it an even quicker read, and eliminates any confusion as to who is who and who did what. All of this is not to say the book is uninteresting or a waste of reading time. It is simply to say that the reader should not expect it to be more than what it is--a collection of short stories, written in a fictional way, about four British WWII war brides.
In other words, the book obviously does not offer a balanced view of the British war brides who married American WWII soldiers. It also chopped up the stories of the four women, so the first chapter was on Sylvia, the second on Rae, the third on Margaret, the fourth on Gwendolyn, the fifth on Sylvia, the sixth on Rae, etc. Did the authors think doing that would make the stories seem longer, or more complex, or more suspenseful than they actually were? The stories are neither complex nor suspenseful. This book is a quick read. Reading all the chapters on one woman at a time makes it an even quicker read, and eliminates any confusion as to who is who and who did what. All of this is not to say the book is uninteresting or a waste of reading time. It is simply to say that the reader should not expect it to be more than what it is--a collection of short stories, written in a fictional way, about four British WWII war brides.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
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David Field
VINE VOICE on July 30, 2014
Format: Paperback
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This is an interesting book about the stories of four Englishwomen who were wooed and eventually married to US serviceman in World War Two. The GIs were stationed in Britain and fought on D-Day and afterward in Europe.
In a country where many of the eligible Englishmen were already serving far away in the services, the arrival of the GIs must have looked like a heaven-sent opportunity to the young women of Britain. Not only were the men largely single, they had far better uniforms than the British troops, as well as having access to some of the items, like specialty food and luxury items that the British never saw during the war. Plus being paid five times as much as the native troops, you can understand how attractive they were.
Not only that but the GIs had been briefed on behaving correctly towards the British. Their manners were very good, and they had no problems with visiting their girlfriends' families and gaining their approval..
It seemed like a dream come true, but several of the four women described in this book had trouble in their marriages once they went to the United States. Their husbands drank and gambled, and one husband, from a closely-knit Italian-American family, found that his family could not accept his bride. In spite of all of this, the women eventually pulled through and either succeeded in their marriages or found a new man in the U.S.
I found this book interesting because I'm a British man married to an American wife. We met in Britain and spent a lot of time together, and then I came to the US on a three week vacation. Of course, in the mid-1980s, the U.S. was a more prosperous place than forty years ago, and the proliferation of U.S. movies and TV shows gave me a better idea of what to expect. There's a lot to like about the U.S., and thirty years on, I'm still here and still married.
The author goes into great detail, yet is very easy to follow. Worthwhile.
In a country where many of the eligible Englishmen were already serving far away in the services, the arrival of the GIs must have looked like a heaven-sent opportunity to the young women of Britain. Not only were the men largely single, they had far better uniforms than the British troops, as well as having access to some of the items, like specialty food and luxury items that the British never saw during the war. Plus being paid five times as much as the native troops, you can understand how attractive they were.
Not only that but the GIs had been briefed on behaving correctly towards the British. Their manners were very good, and they had no problems with visiting their girlfriends' families and gaining their approval..
It seemed like a dream come true, but several of the four women described in this book had trouble in their marriages once they went to the United States. Their husbands drank and gambled, and one husband, from a closely-knit Italian-American family, found that his family could not accept his bride. In spite of all of this, the women eventually pulled through and either succeeded in their marriages or found a new man in the U.S.
I found this book interesting because I'm a British man married to an American wife. We met in Britain and spent a lot of time together, and then I came to the US on a three week vacation. Of course, in the mid-1980s, the U.S. was a more prosperous place than forty years ago, and the proliferation of U.S. movies and TV shows gave me a better idea of what to expect. There's a lot to like about the U.S., and thirty years on, I'm still here and still married.
The author goes into great detail, yet is very easy to follow. Worthwhile.
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