I’ve made mention of the fact that joining a book club has significantly broadened my reading choices and genre preferences, and I am not mad about it by any means. For years, I essentially only read fantasy, and when some of my closest friends introduced me to Kristin Hannah’s The Nightingale, I haven’t looked back in the context of reading historical fiction. I fucking love it, and, it’s often educational, which is never a bad thing.
I’m currently reading Donna Jones Alward’s When the World Fell Silent, and while I’m not quite finished, it is positively excellent. It follows the fictional stories of two different women, Nora and Charlotte, who are both drastically affected by the Halifax Explosion that occurred here in Canada on December 6, 1917, as a result of the First World War. I wanted to read this book and educate myself more thoroughly about the Halifax Explosion, seeing as I myself am Canadian, and in addition to the text covering this horrific event in historical detail, Nora and Charlotte’s perspectives are raw, emotional and positively moving.
The following is a description of the book, from goodreads.com:
“Nora Crowell wants more than her sister’s life as a wife and mother. As WWI rages across the Atlantic, she becomes a lieutenant in the Canadian Army Nursing Corp. But trouble is looming and it won’t be long before the truth comes to light.
“Having lost her beloved husband in the trenches and with no-one else to turn to, Charlotte Campbell now lives with his haughty relations who treat her like the help. It is baby Aileen, the joy and light of her life, who spurs her to dream of a better life.
“When tragedy strikes in Halifax Harbour, nothing for these two women will ever be the same again. Their paths will cross in the most unexpected way, trailing both heartbreak and joy its wake…”
This book is undoubtedly a read, not a rid.
