Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
The Postmistress
by
Sarah Blake (Goodreads Author)
Filled with stunning parallels to today's world, The Postmistress is a sweeping novel about the loss of innocence of two extraordinary women-and of two countries torn apart by war.
On the eve of the United States's 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 Lo...more
On the eve of the United States's 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 Lo...more
Hardcover, 326 pages
Published
February 9th 2010
by Amy Einhorn Books/Penguin Group (USA)
(first published December 24th 2009)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
This book is not yet featured on Listopia.
Add this book to your favorite list »
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
3,000)
There are tons of great stories set during WWII. This is not one of them. It's not even much of a story, it just sort of meanders and then peters out. The main characters aren't much more than plot devices or symbols; in fact, the only people worth caring about are the mostly nameless refugees fleeing the Nazis, and the Londoners living through the Blitz. The sections of the book focusing on them are actually great. But if you want a book about a fascinating female character during the war, read...more
This books leaves way too much to be desired. Blake's book is purportedly a gripping glimpse into the lives of three women whose experiences during the second world war become interconnected. Unfortunately the only thing gripping about this book was the overwhelming sense of confusion that envelopes the reader in his or her attempt to understand why this woman's book was actually published. The attempted interconnectedness between the three main characters is contrived, forced, and unconvincing....more
37 likes · like · see review
I discovered this book after reading a friend's glowing review of it. From her review, this sounded like a book that I would love, the kind that I gravitate toward, and for the most part, it fit the bill perfectly.
This is a story that examines many sides of an issue, namely war and injustice, and how we're all, whether we know it or not, affected by that issue. We can ignore it, we can rail against it, or we can face it head on, but it will affect us just the same.
Sarah Blake tells her story w...more
This is a story that examines many sides of an issue, namely war and injustice, and how we're all, whether we know it or not, affected by that issue. We can ignore it, we can rail against it, or we can face it head on, but it will affect us just the same.
Sarah Blake tells her story w...more
8 likes · like · see review
Aaawww... dang it! I've been sitting here for three full minutes vacillating between two stars and one. It was o.k or I like it... o.k..... like it- no it was just o.k..... but I did like it... sort of....
The dilemma stems from the writing. Wow. This was more beautifully written than The Help- and that's tough for me to say because I adore The Help but the language Blake used, the description, the rhetoric and irony- it's quality stuff and literally took my breath away- for the first 75%. The c...more
The dilemma stems from the writing. Wow. This was more beautifully written than The Help- and that's tough for me to say because I adore The Help but the language Blake used, the description, the rhetoric and irony- it's quality stuff and literally took my breath away- for the first 75%. The c...more
The premise of this book was interesting. I'd definitely hoped for more. I couldn't keep track of whose overall story this book was telling: Emma? Iris? Frankie? It seemed heavily favored to Frankie and hers was the most boring of the three. I think the author was far too caught up in her historical research. I wanted more of the people behind the story and less of the description of bombs going off in London. Although, I have to admit, it brought that piece of history to my mind and taught me a...more
5 likes · like · see review
Snooze fest. I had a difficult time finishing this book. And, in the end, I never really "got it." I wanted more of an emotional punch. Three storylines wove together in the small Cape Cod town of Franklin in the months leading up to the U.S.'s involvement in WWII. So, there were 3 opportunities for catharsis. I had zero. Blake managed to draw things out for one of the two love stories so that by the time the character comes to terms with her loss, the reader thinks "weeep womp. Long time coming...more
28 likes · like · see review
“The Postmistress” is set in the years 1940-41, both on Cape Cod and in Europe. The reader follows the paths of three women – Emma, Iris, and Frankie – as Europe experiences Hitler’s fury and Americans wonder if they will enter the war. Emma has just married Will, a doctor on Cape Cod. She wants to make a good impression on the people there, and make a good home for her husband. Iris is the Postmaster of the same town Emma moves to, and watches over the people of the town. Frankie is a reporter...more
Mar 01, 2012
Janice
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
favorites-of-2011,
historical-fiction
Like many others have noted, this book started slowly for me, and was a little confusing at first. But by the end, I loved it, and the stories it told. Set in the years just before the U.S. entry into WWII, this tells of the lives of three American women, each impacted by the looming war in various ways. The heartbreaking stories of Jewish refugees fleeing the advance of Hitler's armies is central to the life of one of the women, while the other two watch and listen, via the nightly radio broadc...more
4 likes · like · see review
I am re-reading this book for a discussion group in two weeks. The first time I read it, I loved it. It will be interesting to see what the somewhat finicky ladies in the discussion groups think about it. I remember the atmosphere of the book more than the characters; the setting was familiar and the era of WWII is always fascinating. Now, I need to do discussion questions for it, maybe find author interviews, etc.
The first third of the book is about three characters. Lots of detail getting to know each character. I still wonder why the title is The Postmistress when she is only a part of the storyline...but then some insight is brought in at the end. The last two thirds turn into a touching story and how lives touch other lives and we aren't even aware when they do. How awful things happen at the same time good things happen. People die at the exact same time babies are born. We all live underneath the s...more
1 like · like · see review
World War II is raging in Europe. Frankie Bard is there to report with Murrow to the American people. She paints poignant pictures of what is happening to everyday people as London is bombed. Her reports touch the lives of many, both in Europe and in the US. Dr. Will Fitch, of Franklin Mass., experiences a tragedy in his young career and takes off for Europe, leaving his new wife Emma to wait for his return. Postmistress, Iris, watches each day as Emma collects her letter from Will and mails one...more
I didn't warm to this book at first, but as I've found in the past, it's worth persevering sometimes. I had a bit of difficulty with the characters because at the beginning, the author kept jumping from one place to another, one character to another. However, once I'd sorted that out, I realized what she was trying to achieve, i.e. the importance of news reporting during the wartime. A female American news reporter travels to London and later through Europe and reports back to her American audie...more
I enjoyed this story mostly for the details of WWII from a civilian perspective. Although the postmistress, is the character who begins the book, it seems to be much more the story of Frankie Bard, a female radio reporter. Iris, the new postmistress in a small Cape Cod town, perceives the war mostly through radio reports from Frankie and others. So although the story starts in Cape Cod it quickly moves to London where the action is and Frankie is working the microphone beside such famous folks a...more
I wanted to love this book. Highly recommended, it seemed to contain much that attracts me--from an unusual and rather grand concept to meticulous research to some very expressive writing about a period that lends itself to profound stories. Unfortunately, though, the book failed to live up to its high promise. I enjoyed the first half or more, and thought Frankie was an interesting (though not fully fleshed out) character. But then the book started to fall apart for me once Frankie returned to...more
I haven't read a "proper" book for a while, so thought it might be time to give one a go. Overall, I think I'm grateful that I did but it reminds me why so much of the fiction that I read is escapist. "The Postmistress" is beautifully written & evocative, but heavy with sorrow. It is a novel full of unbearable pain & longing, where love leads only to grief and loss. Sarah Blake says in her notes at the end of the book that she wanted it to be about how one bears the news (in both senses)...more
Blurb on the back: In 1940, Iris James is the postmistress in coastal Franklin, Massachusetts. Iris knows more about the townspeople than she will ever say – for example, that Emma Trask has come to marry the town’s doctor, and that Harry Vale watches the ocean for U boats. Iris believes her job is to deliver secrets. Yet one day she does the unthinkable: slips a letter into her pocket, reads it, and doesn’t deliver it.
Meanwhile, Frankie Bard broadcasts from oversees with Edward R. Murrow. Her...more
Meanwhile, Frankie Bard broadcasts from oversees with Edward R. Murrow. Her...more
This is a really uneven book. The narration shifts the point-of-view often, and sometimes it is difficult to know where we are and who we are following. I wish the book had been only about Frankie. She is a fully realized character and the depictions of war in London are very vivid and well drawn. Iris was also an intriguing protagonist and her love story with Harry was sweet. Anything to do with Emma felt like being stuck in mud for me : She doesn't have much agency and is always waiting for th...more
I was captivated by this book--a little slow to get into it, but once I got into the rhythm of the thing, I was hooked. The concept of choosing the stories you want to tell others really resonated and stuck with me. There are some clunky sentence constructions, but I found the characters and their actions believable. Who doesn't keep stories to themselves in the name of sparing someone hurt--when it would really be better off to just tell the truth? But we all keep some stories to ourselves, for...more
In 1941, London-based radio commentator Frankie Bard wants to make her American audience aware of the plight of European Jews. She spends several weeks traveling refugee trains, recording the stories of her fellow passengers. Before making this journey, Frankie had encountered an American doctor in a London bomb shelter and then witnessed the man's death. Frankie had picked up an envelope that fell from his jacket, a letter addressed to his wife, which Frankie intended to mail, but having not do...more
Beautifully written,this novel is peopled by strong, vivid characters, set in Franklin, MA, a small town on Cape Cod, in 1940. France has been occupied; London is under blitz; President Roosevelt has promised that American soldiers will not have to fight overseas.
American radio gal Frankie Bard (who works with Edwin R. Murrow), the first woman to report from the Blitz in London, wants to send home live reports so that Americans will understand what's happening. She believes that Americans need...more
American radio gal Frankie Bard (who works with Edwin R. Murrow), the first woman to report from the Blitz in London, wants to send home live reports so that Americans will understand what's happening. She believes that Americans need...more
I hoped that Kathryn Stockett's recommendation on the front meant something, but the author must be a close friend. The first half of the novel was clunky, full of grasping similes and sentence variations determined but failing to be fluent. The most enjoyable part of the novel was after the end - the author's note on her inspiration to write the novel.
An interesting take on WWII and the populace's tendency to forget that bad things were happening on the other side of the world, The Postmistres...more
An interesting take on WWII and the populace's tendency to forget that bad things were happening on the other side of the world, The Postmistres...more
Another in the line of historical fiction relating to WWII is the Postmistress. The setting is the final years before Pearl Harbor, 1940-1941.
The story revolves around three main characters: Frankie Bard, an American female reporter working with Edward R. Murrow; Irma James, the local postmistress of Franklin, MA.; and Emma Fitch, a British national married to an American doctor. Frankie is the "voice" of a 5-minute broadcast from London, describing London during the Blitz and later the massive...more
The story revolves around three main characters: Frankie Bard, an American female reporter working with Edward R. Murrow; Irma James, the local postmistress of Franklin, MA.; and Emma Fitch, a British national married to an American doctor. Frankie is the "voice" of a 5-minute broadcast from London, describing London during the Blitz and later the massive...more
A poignant, thought-provoking story that takes place in the early years of World War II. The two main protagonists are women: the postmistress of a small Massachusetts town, Iris James, and a radio journalist, Frankie Bard, who travels to Europe to report on the war with Edward R. Murrow.
Prior to the U.S. becoming fully involved in the war, many Americans were oblivious to the plight of the Jews in Europe. Frankie made it her responsibility to see to it that the persecuted Jews of Europe had a v...more
Prior to the U.S. becoming fully involved in the war, many Americans were oblivious to the plight of the Jews in Europe. Frankie made it her responsibility to see to it that the persecuted Jews of Europe had a v...more
While my book group (A Good Yarn, the first Tuesday of the month at Mary Jacobs Library in Rocky Hill--all are welcome) was split, I loved this book. It is sad--incredibly sad and painful at times. However it is beautifully written and filled with characters I came to care deeply for.
There are flaws to be sure--especially some of the choices to make the radio reporter a woman using technology that simply was not available at the time. However, these are minor--I certainly have suspended disbelie...more
There are flaws to be sure--especially some of the choices to make the radio reporter a woman using technology that simply was not available at the time. However, these are minor--I certainly have suspended disbelie...more
The book is set in Europe and Massachusetts at the beginning of WWII. The plot follows three women, the local postmaster, Iris, a young doctor's wife, Emma and Frankie, a radio reporter stationed in London.
The sections revolving around Frankie were by far my favorite. Blake has her travel, by train, back and forth throughout Europe trying to talk to Jews who are being forced to flee their homes. Frankie also experiences a disconnect with regular society, similar to a soldier returning home. I a...more
The sections revolving around Frankie were by far my favorite. Blake has her travel, by train, back and forth throughout Europe trying to talk to Jews who are being forced to flee their homes. Frankie also experiences a disconnect with regular society, similar to a soldier returning home. I a...more
Frankie Bard is a reporter who wants to get to experience the real life stories she hears on the Radio, about life in England during the war. She travels to England where she has a tragic chance encounter with Dr Trask, the husband of Emma.
Emma Trask, fragile and alone in a small town she does not know in Cape Cod, Massachusetts is pregnant with her first child and waiting for her doctor husband to return from England.
She is befriended by Iris James, the postmistress of the book's title, who is...more
Emma Trask, fragile and alone in a small town she does not know in Cape Cod, Massachusetts is pregnant with her first child and waiting for her doctor husband to return from England.
She is befriended by Iris James, the postmistress of the book's title, who is...more
A good read- apart from a strange episode at the start of this book, this was a very good story set in WWII. The book centres on a young American female journalist broadcasting on the radio about the Blitz in London. Her broadcasts, which she fears no-one is listening to, are having a profound effect on those listening in the States- she shows this by focussing on those listening in a small town on the Eastern seaboard where the postmistress is working. The author says that she based this part...more
There is a lot to like about this book. The characters are vividly drawn and the premise is interesting. There are 2 significant flaws that really detract from it. 1) the opening chapter that frames the novel is too heavy with foreshadowing and the plot doesn't really live up to it. the book would be stronger without the opening. 2) The recording device that the reporter uses in 1941 in the book wasn't really used until 1944. I learned this from the afterword by the author herself, and while I a...more
What a disappointment. This book started great. Interesting characters at the dawn of World War II.
Spoiler alert: The following discusses plot and characters.
Iris, the postmistress, moving to a new town as a 40 year old virgin, finding her love with an auto mechanic. The young doctor moving back home with his young wife. He lost a woman who bled out in pregnancy and in penance, moved to London to help the war effort.
Most interesting was the female war correspondent, Frankie, and her description...more
Spoiler alert: The following discusses plot and characters.
Iris, the postmistress, moving to a new town as a 40 year old virgin, finding her love with an auto mechanic. The young doctor moving back home with his young wife. He lost a woman who bled out in pregnancy and in penance, moved to London to help the war effort.
Most interesting was the female war correspondent, Frankie, and her description...more
Unfortunately, this is the worst of the spate of recent novels based on aspects of World War II. The author tried hard to push this book into the category of literary fiction by covering themes of war, antisemitism, loss, the challenges of journalism, and the consequences of the randomness of life, but she failed to make the cut. I still can't figure out why the main characters did what they did. The connection between the three lead women characters is forced.
Frankly, the authors of these WWII...more
Frankly, the authors of these WWII...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Innocent ignorance! | 1 | 20 | Feb 13, 2013 09:12am | |
| The Postmistress | 9 | 108 | Jan 23, 2013 06:10am | |
| Which is better? | 2 | 39 | Aug 01, 2012 07:05pm | |
| Litwit Lounge: Buddy or Small Group Read Anyone - The Postmistress | 4 | 13 | Nov 25, 2011 10:40am | |
| Tampa Ladies Read...: September Book: The Postmistress | 16 | 27 | Oct 21, 2011 05:06pm | |
| Nook Worm : RAL - Read A Long | 24 | 59 | May 01, 2011 08:37pm |
Sarah taught high school and college English for many years in Colorado and New York. She has taught fiction workshops at the Fine Arts Works Center in Provincetown, MA, The Writer’s Center, in Bethesda MD, The University of Maryland, and The George Washington University. She lives in Washington DC with her husband, the poet Joshua Weiner, and their two sons.
More about Sarah Blake...
Share This Book
11 trivia questions
More quizzes & trivia...
“every story - love or war - is a story about looking left when we should have been looking right.”
—
21 people liked it
“It is the story that lies around the edges of the photographs, or at the end of newspaper account. It's about the lies we tell others to protect them, and about the lies we tell ourselves in order not to acknowledge what we can't bear: that we are alive, for instance, and eating lunch, while bombs are falling, and refugees are crammed into camps, and the news comes toward us every hour of the day. And what, in the end, do we do?”
—
17 people liked it
More quotes…
Aug 27, 2012 01:26pm
Nov 11, 2012 02:37pm