Book Recommendation Needed!

[Caroline]

Does anyone have a particularly interesting WWII-era historical fiction book that you really enjoyed?

[Linda]

I won a firstreads not too long ago that was interesting. It's Mission to Paris by Alan Furst. It's set in 1938 when Germany was breathing down the neck of France. What I never realized until I read this book was that the German government was paying bribes to important people in France to say how wonderful the Nazi party was. One reason they marched into Paris with no resistance was because Germany had "greased the palms" of everybody that had any influence. Very interesting book and I liked the protagonist who was an American movie star.

[Kirsten]

My dad insisted I read Battle Cry a couple of years ago. I loved it! It made me laugh and cry! It's the story of US Marines in the island-hopping campaign in the Pacific.

[D.J.]

A few suggestions, depending on what sort of thing you're keen on:

The Cruel Sea by Nicholas Monsarrat, a matelot's eye view of the Battle of the Atlantic.
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein, derring-do in occupied France with the Special Operations Executive.
A Man Without Breath by Philip Kerr, following the twisted morality of the SS investigating the Katyn Massacre as a war crime.
Enigma by Robert Harris, and intelligent spy thriller about a mole in Bletchley Park.
Turbulence by Giles Foden, about a young meteorologist trying to coax a mathematical formula out of an older scientist so he can forecast the weather for the D-Day landings.

All of them were both very good reads and very thoughtful in the way the approached their subject. Hope you haven't read them all already!

[Emily]

It's awfully mainstream, but I enjoyed The Book Theif by Markus Zusak. It's from the German Nazi side, which makes things a little bit more interesting.

[Melissa]

I enjoyed My Enemy's Cradle and The House at Tyneford.

[QNPoohBear]

All young adult but can be equally enjoyed by adult readers:
Violins of Autumn by Amy McAuley
The Montmaray Journals by Michelle Cooper
Aleutian Sparrow by Karen Hesse
Flygirl by Sherri L. Smith -

Adult books:
Henrietta Sees it Through More News from the Home Front 19421945
The Two Mrs. Abbotts by D.E. Stevenson

[R.N.]

My book Wings of Fury is set before World War Two and might be what you are looking for.