The International Bestselller!A powerful and evocative debut novel about two American military nurses during World War II that illuminates the unsung heroism of women who risked their lives in the fight—a riveting saga of friendship, valor, sacrifice, and survival combining the grit and selflessness of Band of Brothers with the emotional resonance of The Nightingale.In war-torn France, Jo … The Nightingale.
In war-torn France, Jo McMahon, an Italian-Irish girl from the tenements of Brooklyn, tends to six seriously wounded soldiers in a makeshift medical unit. Enemy bombs have destroyed her hospital convoy, and now Jo singlehandedly struggles to keep her patients and herself alive in a cramped and freezing tent close to German troops. There is a growing tenderness between her and one of her patients, a Scottish officer, but Jo’s heart is seared by the pain of all she has lost and seen. Nearing her breaking point, she fights to hold on to joyful memories of the past, to the times she shared with her best friend, Kay, whom she met in nursing school.
Half a world away in the Pacific, Kay is trapped in a squalid Japanese POW camp in Manila, one of thousands of Allied men, women, and children whose fates rest in the hands of a sadistic enemy. Far from the familiar safety of the small Pennsylvania coal town of her childhood, Kay clings to memories of her happy days posted in Hawaii, and the handsome flyer who swept her off her feet in the weeks before Pearl Harbor. Surrounded by cruelty and death, Kay battles to maintain her sanity and save lives as best she can . . . and live to see her beloved friend Jo once more.
When the conflict at last comes to an end, Jo and Kay discover that to achieve their own peace, they must find their place—and the hope of love—in a world that’s forever changed. With rich, superbly researched detail, Teresa Messineo’s thrilling novel brings to life the pain and uncertainty of war and the sustaining power of love and friendship, and illuminates the lives of the women who risked everything to save others during a horrifying time.
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The scenes were hard hitting. You could feel the percussion from the bomb. Each character was well defined. I am a retired nurse and I understood the pain and also the strength it takes to care for you patients. The WW1 nurses were stronger than any one knew. We should all be proud of them.
This book reminds me of MASH without the humor. It depicts the grim realities of WWII medical care. Other reviewers have called it too dark but it brings an appreciation for the hard work and dedication of the Nurse Corps of that era. Those were tough women! The main characters survived horrific conditions and made you very aware that many others did not survive. No sugar coating here. I could not put this book down.
Good book held my attention
Never new what nurses went thru in world war 2. Everyone should read this and realize the sacrifices of these women.
As a nurse, I felt very connected to the characters. Difficult to put this book down and not think about it when I wasn’t reading.
Very insightful as to what nurses went through during WW2
I couldn’t put this book down. The characters are so real and the author’s writing technique takes the reader right along on this tragic, horrendous journey. I can’t wait for her next book!
I rarely write reviews but feel compelled to do so for this wonderful book. As a nurse, I appreciate the accuracy and the obvious research that went into the telling of this story. This book held my attention and I felt a kinship with both of these women. I couldn’t put it down!
An incredible story of the hardships that nurses went through to take care of their wounded soldiers and just survive themselves in WWII.
WWII story with women heroes.A good yarn!
Overwrought from the first few pages. History is only average. Would not recommend.