⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“An intimate portrait of coming of age in a dangerous time and an epic tale of a nation divided” – Goodreads

The Women by Kristin Hannah highlights the experiences of the Army nurses who were involved in the Vietnam War. Frankie, the daughter of a wealthy family, enlists as an Army nurse. This shocks her family and community, who cannot understand her decision.

Frankie’s time in the combat zone of Vietnam, soon takes a toll on her, as she faces dreadful wounds, napalm and the horrifying experiences of war. Her determination and strength keep her driving herself forward, and prevent her from breaking down. She is confronted by gut wounds, insecurity and the indifference of her family and friends at home.

Unexpectedly, Frankie finds that when she comes home, nobody realises, or seems to care about what she has been through. The Vietnam veterans are not treated as war heroes in their own country and Frankie has trouble settling back into the everyday life of her past.

My Thoughts

The chaos and misery come alive through the vivid word descriptions of the author. The chaotic misery of the Vietnam combat zone comes alive through the authors vivid descriptions. We get to witness the courage and compassion of the nurses as they do what they have to do, as quickly as possible to repair the horrors caused by war.

I loved the way that music was inserted into the story, bringing up memories of home for the nurses. In 1966, the year that this book is set, I was twelve years old. Even though I wasn’t even a teenager, the music referred to brought up so many memories for me. There were The Doors, The Beatles, The Turtles and many others.

I’ve read many books about war history, but never read anything about the Vietnam War. Even though I know some facts about the Vietnam War it really is the unknown war to me. After reading The Women, I understand much more about the war, the controversy and the experiences of the Army nurses.

In this book, Kristin Hannah has emphasized the importance of the experiences of women during the war, and their very real struggle to reassimilate afterward.

This is another book from Kristin Hannah that is well worth reading, and that explores the experiences of women in a difficult situation.

Quotes:
“I guess I have to feel lucky to have known him and to have learned from him. Too damn many lessons to learn over here, but one that’s for sure is this – life is short. I don’t know if I ever really believed that before. I do now.”

“Not much time here for grief, even though there is plenty of cause.”

Star Rating 

Please note that my star rating system isn’t at all based on literary merit, but is based on my enjoyment for the book.
For me a book that gets five stars, is a book that I really enjoyed, and found difficult to put down.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Unputdownable. Would read it again.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Fantastic read. Not to be missed

⭐️⭐️⭐️ Enjoyable. Would recommend it.

⭐️⭐️ Wouldn’t read it again.

⭐️ Don’t recommend this book at all.

The book mentioned in this post is of my own choice, and has not been sent to me to review. My opinions are my own and I receive no renumeration at all for them.

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This post is linked to the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 2024

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