TITLE: The Girl in the Blue Coat
AUTHOR: Hesse, Monica
GENRE: Historical Fiction
One of our book club member chose this for our November read. I finished over a month early, so hopefully I'll still remember all of my talking points.
GENRE: Historical Fiction
DATES READ: 10/10/2017 - 10/17/2017
MY RATING: 3/5
One of our book club member chose this for our November read. I finished over a month early, so hopefully I'll still remember all of my talking points.
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Amsterdam, 1943. A girl named Hanneke deals in black market goods during the German invasion. One of her clients asks her to help find someone who's missing, and Hanneke's investigation will unravel a tangle of mysteries and open her eyes to the resistance.
This is tough to review because as a standalone pleasure reading novel it is a moving, fabulous and touching book. But it's tough to review as a novel for a book discussion.
I enjoy reading historical fiction about World War II, and the heroes that emerged from the wood work. It could be something as simple as hiding a piece of bread or as extreme as harboring Jewish people in an attic.
My only issue with our hero, Hanneke, is that she seems a little unrealistic. I guess I wanted more non-fiction in my fiction. I understand that she ran errands and traded on the black market and hid it from her family. But it all came across as a little too unique - that trope of being a unique "snowflake" in the literary genre.
Other than that gripe, I appreciate it when I can learn anything new about World War II history. In Amsterdam, there was the Underground Camera, and the rescue of babies from the detention center. I love learning about history! Something truth is stranger than fiction.
Definitely worth reading. Leans a little toward YA, but is very moving.
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