The Postmistress

The Postmistress

by Sarah Blake

audio book: 10.5 hours

narrated by Orlagh Cassidy

From Overdrive.com:

On the eve of the United States' entrance into World War II in 1940, Iris James, the postmistress of Franklin, a small town on Cape Cod, does the unthinkable: She doesn't deliver a letter. In London, American radio gal Frankie Bard is working with Edward R. Murrow, reporting on the blitz. One night in a bomb shelter, she meets a doctor from Cape Cod with a letter in his pocket, a letter Frankie vows to deliver when she returns from Germany and France, where she is to record the stories of war refugees desperately trying to escape. When Frankie arrives in Cape Cod, the two stories collide in a way no one could have foreseen.


My Thoughts:

When I put this on my library wish list I was really excited to listen to it.  By the time it came in though, I was in a reading rut and wasn't in the mood for this kind of book.  I started listening anyway and was really turned off by the introductory chapter that set up the story.

BUT THEN ...

Once I got into the actual story, I was hooked.  I could NOT stop listening to this book.  I didn't love all the characters but they seemed very real to me - I could visualize them as real people living and working during the start of World War II.  I didn't agree with all their decision, but I could understand why they made them.

For me, listening to this on audio rather than reading it was a huge advantage toward the middle of the book.  There is a section where Frankie records interviews with Jewish people who are attempting to flee Europe.  These recording become very important to her and she listens to them repeatedly as the book progresses.  Hearing those recordings aloud (rather than reading them) actually gave me chills. That is a part of the book that will stick with me for a very, VERY long time.

I've been recommending this book left and right (or as Kiddo would say "every left and right") - I'm so glad I gave it a chance even though it wasn't what I thought I wanted at that time.


Your Thoughts?

I'd love to know what the rest of you thought of this book.  Did anyone else listen to the audio?  For those who read it, did the recordings have a big impact on you or were they simply part of the story?