An Author and Her Books, AJ Pearce

British author writes WWII fiction about friendships and strong women wanting to do their part for the war effort

Hi readers,

Last week in North Texas, we jumped almost entirely over spring and landed in a “too early” summer. The predicted forecast for this week is that the temperature will reach nearly 100° and when it happens in mid-May, that usually means we are in for a long, hot summer. The flowers are still beautiful; what once was crisp, clean air has turned into stale, muggy air, and I dread the summer heat just like I do every year.

I’ve had a book on my TBR for way too long, and I finally read it over the last couple of weeks, and I’m so glad that I did. This book is from a new author, and she says, “even though I didn’t have a huge plan for what the book would be about, I knew I wanted it to be something that might make readers smile,” and it certainly made me smile. And aren’t those covers just gorgeous? I’m a sucker for covers like these.

British author AJ Pearce was born in Hampshire, UK, and loved English and History in school. She majored in American History at the University of Sussex and spent her junior year at Northwestern University in Illinois. Before turning to novel writing, she worked in magazine publishing and marketing. She came across an article that opened her eyes to an era she knew little about and wondered what each reader was doing and where they were when they read that article. Her first novel was published in 2018 and was shortlisted for the Debut of the Year for 2019 at the British Book awards. It was also shortlisted in the US for the Library Reads Favorites of 2018 and has been published in three countries and translated into fifteen languages. She has written two books so far and says that she is working on the third installment of the series.

• Dear Mrs. Bird - the cover of this book is so gorgeous, and the old typewriter keys and the clothes the women are wearing show the period at a glance. Kimmery Martin, The Queen of Hearts author, says, "Emmeline Lake, the heroine of Dear Mrs. Bird, is funny; she’s indefatigable (tireless), and she faces the worst of circumstances with the pluckiest of resolves. You cannot help but love her." I really enjoyed this book for its humor and, at times, its sadness, but most of all for Emmeline and her enthusiasm and resilience. The advice column letters had me laughing out loud. I’ve read several reviews that the audiobook is excellent as you get the full flavor of all the British slang and sayings that weren’t familiar to me. 📚

• Yours Cheerfully - the typewriter keys make another appearance on this delightful cover, and I can’t wait to read it when the hold comes in. Jennifer Rosner, the author of The Yellow Bird Sings, says, “brimming with charm, wit, and poignancy, Yours Cheerfully is a wartime story of women's strength and friendship that touches deeply and shines with heart. Emmy Lake is a character for the ages.” The reviews say that this second book is just as delightful and charming as her first one and continues to focus on Emmy and Bunty’s friendship along with Emmy’s romance. 📚

Here are several links to interviews, podcasts, and videos.

• 📝 Printed author interview with Authorlink Writers and Readers Magazine after Dear Mrs. Bird is published. This interview gives a lot of history on the catalyst to her writing her first book and why it focuses on friendship and ordinary life interspersed in the time of WWII.

• 💻 Author Janet Skeslien Charles interviews Pearce about both her novels. They discuss what surprised Pearce the most about the “advice columnists” during her research, how she names her characters and many other answers to questions from readers.

• 🎧 This interview about Yours Cheerfully on the Eason Bookclub of the Pat Kenny Show podcast has mixed reviews, but I love the British accents. They said that if you like “jolly good reading,” you would enjoy this book.

• 📝 This Debutante Ball short article offers up more fun facts about Pearce other than just about her books and publishing.

• 💻 Simon and Schuster video where they discuss Dear Mrs. Bird for their monthly book club. They talk about the book cover design, women and employment, and more behind-the-scenes information on what it takes to bring a book to market.

• 🎧 The Dabbler’s Book Club podcast episode interview with Pearce.

• 💻 A link to the event page on Pearce’s website with several interviews of events after Yours Cheerfully publishes, including one with Julia Kelly sponsored by Parnassus Books.

There are many heavy books about WWII, but these two stand out to me as they are lighthearted and humorous while keeping in mind the tragedies of the war. Dear Mrs. Bird struck a good balance between the two, and from what I’m reading in the reviews, Yours Cheerfully does the same.

Pearce is active on Facebook and Instagram, and you can see more about her books on her website.

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I’m getting excited as I’m taking next week off work. I’ve sandwiched it between a normal and a long holiday weekend; I’ll have ten glorious days off to read and work on planning several months’ content for the newsletter. I’ve got some ideas on some new features for the newsletter, but if there is anything you’d like to see me write about, feel free to tell me about it in the comments below.

My reading pace has picked up the last couple of weeks, and I’m excited to finish a couple more books this week; it feels good to feel normal again. Have a great reading week. Happy reading!

Some of the links in this newsletter may be affiliate links. That means that if you click through and purchase anything, I may earn a small commission. This costs you nothing and helps me feed my voracious reading habit, and for that, I thank you.