Monday, August 22, 2011

The Postmistress by Sarah Blake

There are two ways to study history. You can get the encyclopedia out and learn a list of names and dates. Or you can read novels about the time period and really get a sense of people and relationships and why things happened the way that they did. A more meaningful way to learn in my opinion. For history to have any meaning, for events to have an impact on how you live in the here and now, you need to get into the skin of the people living in the past. A novel serves the purpose well. "The Postmistress" is set in one of the most interesting-to-me times - World War 2. We see the early war years through the lives of three very different women who eventually come together in a heart-rending conclusion. I had a bit of a time getting into the first chapter, but then I was hooked and continued to read at every opportunity. The cover illustration of the version I read was lovely too, but if anyone can tell me what significance the dried flower has, I'd love to hear it. Take away question - is it sometimes right to do the wrong thing?

1 comment:

  1. I want to read this! That's a tough question you ask. Who considers it wrong? Is it a 'wrong' law? I guess I'll have to read the book to truly answer this question.

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