War Brides: A Novel

Following the end of WWII, three young Australian women meet en route to America, where they plan to join the American soldiers they've just married... At 19, Sheila is the most naive and idealistic. The only child of fairly well-to-do parents, she's used to getting her own way. She has no idea about American geography, but she has a vague idea that the backwoods Virginia home of her husband Billy is somewhere near New York... Dawn, who already lost one young husband due to the war, wanted to remarry in order to provide her little girl Faye with a father. Immediately pregnant with another child, she quickly learns that life with a career Army officer like Zac isn't exactly the picturesque cozy family she had pictured... And Gaynor - the product of a shiftless, alcoholic mother's random liaisons - has grown up in poverty and neglect, vowing to better herself regardless of what it took. When young Ricky, stationed in Australia, immediately fell in love with Gaynor's beauty, she took advantage of his naivete and married into the Cunningham family money. She never imagined, however, to become so smitten with his suave father Richard... The book follows the three women's lives throughout the next decade, taking them through happy and unhappy marriages, pregnancies, child-rearing, homesickness for Australia and various pivotal life decisions as they struggle to achieve what they've always considered "The American Dream." But, as Sheila, Dawn and Gaynor each come to realize, a dream is never like reality... Battle's portrayal of post-WWII life is realistic and engaging, providing readers with a real literary treat.

As a woman interested in the lifes of non-US women who married GIs during WWII, I really enjoyed this book. It was easy to connect to the lives of the characters and the troubles they go through. The character development is interesting. The book is an entertaining read - perfect for a holiday or just a break away from everyday life.