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GI Brides: The Wartime Girls Who Crossed The Atlantic For Love (2014)

by Duncan Barrett(Favorite Author)

3.92 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

0062328050 (ISBN13: 9780062328052)

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

William Morrow Paperbacks

review 1: Interesting stories, but ultimately a pretty depressing read.SOME SPOILERS FOLLOW.GI Brides explores the lives of four British women who marry American soldiers during World War II and emigrate to the United States. Their motivations vary, but all marry for love. Unfortunately, most will find their new life to be a difficult adjustment, followed by bitter disappointment. The men they marry aren't detailed, and we have little understanding of why they'd choose to bring home a war bride from another country. Impulse seems to play a part, as most come to resent their wives. One is a compulsive gambler; one a womanizer and possible bigamist; one is an alcoholic, one is tied to his mother's apron strings. The authors interviewed over 50 British war brides for this book, and w... morehy they chose four such miserable tales to represent the whole is hard to understand. They make a point of telling us that the divorce rates among British war brides were lower than the US average, but that doesn't seem to mean they were happy. Only one bride in this book has anything resembling a successful marriage to her GI. That said, the women were interesting and strong, and entirely sympathetic. Perhaps that's why their stories are disappointing - one wants them to have SOME kind of happy ending. Were there no happy war brides? None?On a side note, this book needed better editing. People don't "diffuse" a situation, for example. I read an e-book, so perhaps this was corrected in the print version.
review 2: RECOMMENDATION: This book is written about 4 women - alternating chapters are a chapter in their lives...after a while the stories began to mingle in my head & I lost track of what had happened to who. I read it a second time, starting with Sylvia - then skipping chapters of the other ladies until I got to the next chapter on Sylvia; and so on with the other ladies. That way it was like reading 4 short stories and easier to follow the story of each life.I REALLY enjoyed learning details about how women in Europe met and married American GIs, as well as what life was like living through WWII - terrorism of that era...food & clothing rations...lack of communication - most people didn't even have landline phones. And then, coming to the US only to experience more trials: living with your in-laws - oh my! And learning how the soldier that they'd married was a different guy from the civilian they crossed the ocean for... less

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