23 year old stay at home mum looking for a great book

Hiya am looking for a great read,
Am 23 i am a stay at home mum of two children my partner works all day and very late some nights, so would love a book to read once my children are in bed.
I love ww1/ww2 stories of house wifes or set in the 1930s to 1950s,
Any suggestions ..

alana
the only "ww2" novel i recall reading which was just a very good story was "the pursuit of happiness" by douglas kennedy - you may like it...
susan

Books by penny vincenzi are good. There are some "stand alone books" but there are 3 or 4 that follow on and take in the whole family saga that takes them through the world wars - can't remember the exact title but the family name is Lytton. i am sure if you look on Amazon you will find them - make sure you read them in the right order!

Sorry -- me again - I think one of them is called "The Spoils of Time" ??

Hi
I'd like to suggest Jennifer Worth.

Hi,
I work for Waterstone's and recently read an advanced copy of 'My Dear I Wanted To Tell You' by Louisa Young which is set in the First World War. A really touching novel and one I'd highly recommend.

You might like Can Any Mother Help Me? by Jenna Bailey. A woman in your situation wrote a letter to a magazine in the 30's asking if there were others in it looking for something beyond solitude & child-rearing; she & the women who replied began a secret sort of magazine between themselves and kept in touch through it for something like 50 years. I usually loathe this sort of thing, but I loved this and in fact closed it with a tear in my eye.

I've also noticed that on the first page for that book here on amazon listing, under 'what customers ultimately bought' are several other books dealing with women's domestic lives during WW II. (The Bailey is non-fiction, and am sure that the others listed are as well.) Good luck with it all . . .

1923: A Memoir 83p
I might suggest my book as it has very strong and compelling female characters in it.

Review
It's a personal as well as a social history. Smith has the knack of bringing the times to life in a way that few writers can manage. It's the ability to tell a story, the knowledge of when to move on & not labour a point.
--The Bookbag

1923 is a book that succeeds in two ways with ease, both as a personal memoir of a life lived in a volatile age and as a record of that age for all time. --The Current Reader

"1923" is uplifting and highly recommended. --Midwest Book Review

1923: A Memoir is a protest against social injustice, corruption, war, famine, poverty, and societies blinded by greed. More importantly, it is the story of hope and the notion that anything can be overcome if desired. --The Publishing Guru
Product Description
To say that Harry Smith was born under an unlucky star would be an understatement. Born in England in 1923, Smith chronicles the tragic story of his early life in this first volume of his memoirs. He presents his family's early history-their misfortunes and their experiences of enduring betrayal, inhumane poverty, infidelity, and abandonment.

1923: A Memoir presents the story of a life lyrically described, capturing a time both before and during World War II when personal survival was dependent upon luck and guile. During this time, failure insured either a trip to the workhouse or burial in a common grave. Brutally honest, Smith's story plummets to the depths of tragedy and flies up to the summit of mirth and wonder, portraying real people in an uncompromising, unflinching voice.

1923: A Memoir tells of a time and place when life, full of raw emotion, was never so real.

How about "Atonement" by Ian McEwan? If you've not read it you're in for a treat...

May I suggest this short biography, Be The Best You Can Be ( polio my constant companion )

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The Affair of the Bloodstained Egg Cosy (Burford Family Mysteries 1)

Hello Alana,

The above book is the first of three whodunnits set in the 1930s, all of which I raced through in far too little time (and I'm a slow reader!). Try also David Roberts's series about Lord Edward Corinth and Verity Browne, which are also whodunnits, set in the late 30s and involve real people (Churchill and Joe Kennedy, for example) in the plots.

All daft, of course, but escapist daftness and it sounds as though you might want some of that.

Good luck!

How bout Sebastian Faulks? Excellent books! :-)

Are you looking for fiction or non-fiction/biography?

Here are some of my favorites in each category.
Fiction:
"The Bronze Horseman" trilogy by Paullina Simons. (takes place during and after WWII in the USSR (Leningrad), and later in America.)
"The Cement Garden" by Ian McEwan

Biography/Memoir: "Leap of Faith" by Queen Noor

Have you read any of Nella Lasts books? Think the first one is 'Nella Lasts War' they are the books that 'Housewife 49' were based on, the tv programme set during WW2 with Victoria Wood. very touching.
You might also like 'future homemakers of America' it's a nice read, about American military wives living in a military base, it also has some nice recipes through the book!
And you can't go wrong with 'the last fighting tommy' about Harry Patch, it'll make you cry!! Oh, and 'winter ghosts' by Kate Mosse, best read during a frosty armistice time/ November though...

Try 'The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society'

P.
A fantastic book I read a long time ago was 'House of the spirtits' Isabelle Allende, It's a big book beautifully written. Easy every day girlie reading Marian keyes is fabulous. And I agree with The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, I loved it.

[Deleted by the author on 27 Jul 2011 10:39:13 BDT]

I am in exactly the same position as Alana, aged 23, 2 small children and a partner who works long hours meaning that I read ALOT and I have to say that I have read the midwife trilogy and they are fantastic books!! This is a very good recommendation!!

Also "the book thief" is a good read, set in WW2, that might be a good pick!The Book Thief

this was a fantastic book , really touching and written excellently

Try anything by Justin Cartwright or Tim Parks

why not try 'peripheral vision' really good book.