One of the questions I often get from readers is, “Where can I learn more about the topics you write about?”
(All of the following books mentioned are linked in a carousel below.)
In my Author’s Note for The Lost English Girl, I mentioned When the Children Came Home by Juliet Summers, which weaves firsthand accounts of children and parents separated by Operation Pied Piper (the mass evacuation of children and other vulnerable people from urban areas of Britain deemed at high-risk of bombings if a war broke out). The book is incredible, with lots of detail about how varied people’s experiences could be during evacuation as well as upon their homecoming.
I also leaned heavily on Patrick Bishop’s Air Force Blue: The RAF in World War 2 while writing Joshua’s storylines. The book is very readable and fascinating if you have any interest in the Royal Air Force.
While the Author’s Note is always a good place to look for books, there are often too many books to choose from when it comes to resources. Here are some other places you might turn if you want to read more about life in Liverpool, the Operation Pied Piper evacuations, or more:
Goodbye East End: An Evacuee’s Story by David Merron
Women in the Second World War by Neil R. Storey & Molly Housego
Liverpool’s Children in the Second World War by Pamela Russell
A 1940s Childhood: From Bomb Sites to Children’s Hour by James Marsh
Evacuee: From the Liverpool Blitz to Wales by Barbara Warlow Davies
Wartime Childhood by Mike Brown
And finally, if you want more fictionalized accounts of Operation Pied Piper and the stories of evacuated children during the war, you’re in luck because two incredibly talented historical fiction authors have books on the subject coming out soon! The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry comes out May 2, 2023 in the United States and The Last Lifeboat by Hazel Gaynor comes out June 13, 2023. (Both are US release dates.)
If you haven’t read The Lost English Girl yet, you can purchase your copy from all fine book retailers including:
Amazon | Bookshop | Barnes & Noble
Kobo | Apple Books | Google Play | Audible | Libro.FM
If you have read the book, please consider reviewing the book on Goodreads or your favorite retailer.
Happy reading!