I absolutely loved The Chilbury Ladies Choir by Jennifer Ryan. I listened to an audio version, and really enjoyed the different voices of the various characters--all were excellently done.
The setting is a small village in Kent in the opening year of WWII--the men have gone off to war, leaving the vicar to disband the church choir because apparently in England the notion of a women's choir was unthinkable. I thought that a bit of a stretch, but nonetheless, the women, lead by the indomitable Prim, reform the choir, and use the music as a way of bonding with each other, grieving, celebrating, hoping, and surviving through the dark days and grim nights.
I really liked the variety of the main characters--my favorites were the two upper-crust sisters, Kitty and Venetia, the mousy Mrs. Tilling who learns to roar, and the devious Edwina Paltry. I thought the plot line interesting and poignant, and I really hated saying goodbye to the villagers at the end of the book.
I loved reading about life on the homefront during the war, and felt a surge of pride as the women stepped up and did things they never thought they could do...because they had to.
It's a story of resiliency, fortitude, and sisterhood.
Definitely a book I would recommend.
I think that there is an element of truth to this story. As s result of World War II, women throughout the world, and on a large scale, began to take on rolls usually excluded to them. In my opinion this accelerated the drive toward equality and had s positive effect on the world.
ReplyDeleteMost definitely--both 20th century wars made a big difference in getting women into the workforce, and that was a critical step forward.
DeleteMaybe the pastor couldn't imagine women being able to sing in the lower registers: baritone, bass?
ReplyDeleteAudio books can be tricky so it is good to know this one is a good one in that format1
That was the rationale, but the choir director, Prim, rearranged the works for the women's voices. Where there's a will...
DeleteI still need to read this one!
ReplyDeleteI liked this too - like you, one of my favorite (historical or fictional) things is women in war or the look at the homefront. It did suffer a little from my reading it at the same time as The Women in the Castle which seemed more unusual, however.
ReplyDeleteBTW, have I asked if you ever watched the TV show, Homefront? I loved that show. Funny that Kyle Chandler and John Slattery went on to big careers afterwards but I am not sure if I have seen any of the actresses (many of whom were great) in other things.