Nancy's review of The Welsh Girl
The Welsh Girl by Peter Ho Davies
At the height of World War II, a small Welsh village becomes a camp for English soldiers first, then a dumping ground for German POWs. This is a very human story of World War II, told on a small personal level.
The characters struggle with the concept of belonging and dislocation, either struggling against the lives they seem destined to lead, denying their backgrounds, or feeling a sense of displacement and non-acceptance. Cowardice and bravery, loyalty and betray, and nationalism and cultural expectations are also recurrent themes as the characters ponder the meaning of courage and who they really are. Is it an act of cowardice if a soldier surrenders to save his men? If you flee persecution in one country and take up residence in another, where do you truly belong?
Although set during World War II, the true historical fiction reader will probably not find enough actual history or action in The Welsh Girl to satisfy them.
The characters struggle with the concept of belonging and dislocation, either struggling against the lives they seem destined to lead, denying their backgrounds, or feeling a sense of displacement and non-acceptance. Cowardice and bravery, loyalty and betray, and nationalism and cultural expectations are also recurrent themes as the characters ponder the meaning of courage and who they really are. Is it an act of cowardice if a soldier surrenders to save his men? If you flee persecution in one country and take up residence in another, where do you truly belong?
Although set during World War II, the true historical fiction reader will probably not find enough actual history or action in The Welsh Girl to satisfy them.
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