Review of Letters Across the Sea

An absolutely powerful historical novel. Ms. Graham has intertwined well-researched history with delightful characters and an engrossing story line. Racial and ethnic tensions, descriptions of battles and POW camps, and sympathetic portrayals of the struggles of soldiers coming home, all based on true accounts, make this book important for people to read. I highly recommend it and plan to read other books by this author.

What an interesting book! I enjoy reading historical fiction because I am interested in history but prefer learning about it from stories about the lives of real people rather than the way you learn it in a traditional history class. I have read a lot of books about World War II but had not read anything about the role Canada played in the war. This story tells of Toronto right before Canada entered the war when the Jewish citizens were being persecuted and discriminated against. Then a number of the boys from the town enlisted and were shipped overseas and the story follows their experiences in the war. When the survivors come home, one of the girls left behind is now a reporter for one of the local newspapers and does several pieces about the experiences of the men in the war. The writing style held your interest very well. I would definitely recommend this book.

Genevieve Graham's Letters Across the Sea is an unusual piece of historical fiction, quite different from what we've become accustomed to seeing. Her focus is the antisemitic climate that preceded World War II--but in Canada. It also deals with the plight of Canadian soldiers during the Battle of Hong Kong, another understudied topic. I felt like Graham was offering me something entirely new and entirely welcome. I got caught up in her characters and resisted putting the book down to go to sleep. I think many library readers will find themselves in the same situation. This book is not just accomplished; it's educational. Recommended for any library with a little room in the budget.

This book was both a good story with good characters and a history lesson about an event that people know very little about. I will admit I thought going into this book I had a beat on what it was going to be like. I thought it would be a good story about two people who could not be together and then separated by war. The End. But I was completely wrong. Graham does a great job of writing about historical facts within this story. I feel like the history was primary and the love story was a good secondary to humanize the events.. Molly and Max were written in a way that they were strong enough to be the main characters but they didn't take away from telling the story. They enhanced it. I know very little about Canadian history and I knew nothing about the invasion of Hong Kong during World War II. I have read a lot of books about the war but never have I come across this event. Graham did a great job capturing the time period. Even from the beginning to the end of the book you can feel the shift in the world. Please take the time to read the authors notes at the end when she talks about how she researched this book. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading others by Genevieve Graham. Thank you NetGalley for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is an historical fiction page-turner, spanning twelve years between 1933-1945, the Great Depression, Recession, and WWII. The story takes place primarily in Toronto and Hong Kong, with descriptions of World War II battles, prisoner of war camps in Germany, Japan, and Ontario.

The beginning of the book feels a little like Romeo and Juliet. Two families, Ryan (Irish Protestant) and Dreyfus (Jewish), live across the street from each other in Toronto, at a time when antisemitism and pro-Nazi sentiment was high. The Dreyfus family owns a clothing factory and although the factory is still operating and providing work in the community, many stores are no longer buying from Jews (nor hiring, nor serving). Signs in shop windows state no [dogs or] Jews allowed, and there is a local chapter of aspiring Hitler Youth who bully and beat Jews. Molly Ryan and Hannah Dreyfus are best friends, Molly’s brothers are close friends and baseball buddies of Hanna’s older brother Max. Molly and Max are the star-crossed lovers. Although the parents are “friendly” a romantic relationship between Max and Molly is out of the question. Never-the-less, the young couple are drawn together like magnets, and their budding relationship leads to tragic consequences, and forced separation after the violent events of the Christie Pits Riot.

The book weaves several dramatic historical events, in particular the Christie Pits Riot and the Battle of Hong Kong, into an interesting novel of the period. The reenactment of the anti-semitic Christie Pits riot in Toronto, following a less than sportsmanship-like baseball game, was frightening, but, the reenactment of the Battle of Hong Kong, the descriptions of the Japanese POW camps, and the Japanese massacre, murder, and rape at the St. Stephen’s hospital, was gruesome and horrifying.

Despite the title, this book is not epistolary, there are a few letters and the fact of those letters (and only much later, the content) partially drive the novel. After I got over the initial disappointment (epistolary is one of my favorite genres), I settled down to a really good read. Molly grew into a talented and principled newspaper reporter, who never completely got over her true love for Max. Max finished medical school, enlisted, and was deployed in Hong Kong where he performed valiantly under fire in the Battle of Hong Kong, after which he was captured and interned in a Japanese POW camp.

Both the Dreyfus and the Ryan family suffer great loss and redemption over the years until the end of the war. I recommend this book to lovers of historical romance fiction. This is not really my favorite genre, never-the-less I found this book to be a winner and I very much enjoyed the read.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada/Simon and Schuster for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book!

Letters Across the Sea by Genevieve Graham is a heart wrenching tale of anti-semitism in Canada, specifically Toronto, during the Great Depression. The second part of story which is beautifully interwoven into the first is the extraordinary heroism of Canadian soldiers in Hong Kong during WWII.
I knew nothing of this part of Canadian history and found myself caught up in the historical details of the story. The two main incidents that are focused on is the Christie Pit Riots and the Battle of Hong Kong.
It is obvious to this reader how much research Ms. Graham has done in order to write this book. Ms. Graham gives readers a sobering look at both of these incidents in Canadian history. The riots were known as the largest ethnic riot in Canadian history. Anti-Semitic Nazi sympathizers attacked a crowd who had been watching a ballgame.
The battle of Hong Kong describes a group of Canadian soldiers who were sent to war unprepared and not trained properly and who were vastly outnumbered by the Japanese. The amount of deaths in this one battle was huge. The ones who did not die, approximately 2000, spent the next four and one half years in a Japanese POW camp. Many of them died there because of appalling conditions, disease, starvation and torture.
The author makes her characters very believable and memorable. The predicaments experienced by the characters are very compelling.
I urge all the readers to read the additional information at the back of the book. This story is wonderfully written. It is about tolerance, history, bravery, hope, humanity, courage, honesty and love. Genevieve Graham is a wonderful author and I can’t wait to see what she has in store for us. I will be waiting anxiously.
I would like to thank Simon and Schuster Canada, the author and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.imon & Schuster Canada

This is by far the BEST WWII book I have read in a long long while. The writing is stellar, the research was in-depth and accurate. The entire story of the Canadian soldiers and the deployment to Hong Kong was a topic I had never seen covered in all of the WWII I’ve read. The writing makes you feel as if you are in the 1940’s and right there alongside Molly covering a story or Max on the battlefield. Emotions were running high.
I fell in love with Molly and all of her family members. Stayed up late at nite or woke up early in the morning just to grab a bit more reading before work or chores. Genevieve Graham has a gift, this was not my first read by her and it certainly will not be my last.
This one will easily slide into one of my top five favorites of 2021. Way above 5 stars and comes highly recommended for WWII fans or anyone who enjoys historical fiction based upon true events.
I want to thank Simon and Schuster along with NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read an ARC. Coming in with a high 5*****.

I loved this book about WWII told from the prospective of the Canadians. It was a book about friendship across the religious divide and was beautiful.

Man’s inhumanity to man was clearly the theme of this historical novel set in Toronto, beginning in 1933 and ending after the troops had returned from WWII in 1946.

It started with the extreme anti-Semitism which was prevalent throughout Canada at the time and which was fueled by newspaper accounts of the rise of Nazism in Germany. According to this book, the Jews were treated little better in Toronto than those in Germany. Jewish businesses were boycotted or closed, there were limits and restrictions in colleges for Jewish students, and Jews were targeted in their daily lives for hate crimes. I had no idea anything like that occurred on this side of the Atlantic.

Then we moved into the war, itself, and the atrocities rampant there. Most especially, we were taken to China and Japan with the Battle of Hong Kong and over 1,000 Canadian POWs severely ill treated by the Japanese.

Running throughout the storyline were the stories of two families – one Jewish and one protestant. Friendships, loss of friendships, love, death, battle fatigue and finally confession, forgiveness and restoration of lost love. Whew. A lot was covered.

As in “The Forgotten Home Child,” which I enjoyed immensely, our author had an extensive “Note to Readers” at the end where she told a lot about her research, fleshing out a lot of the story.

I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher, Simon & Schuster, in exchange for an honest review. I will look forward to other publications from Genevieve Graham.

I am always drawn to books about WWII, but have never read one from the perspective of the Canadians. This was beautifully written and the characters were developed so well. At the center is Molly Ryan, a christian, who grew up with her best friend Hannah who was Jewish. They grew up knowing only love for all until one fateful night when a brick was thrown changing the trajectory of families and friendships. There are harrowing tales of the war in letters from family and friends. Some letters were never delivered and the final letter that was received help reunite two broken families. There is love, heartache, heartbreak, and ultimately forgiveness. I highly recommend this book!

This is the second Genevieve Graham book that I have read, and just like "the forgotten Home Child" it does not disappoint.

Focusing on the lives of two families in Canada at the time of the depression in 1933 through to the aftermath of the second world war, this book paints a detailed picture of what it was like during the anti-Semitic years of Canada's history.

Molly, from a protestant family, is best friends with Hannah Dreyfus, a Jew, at the time of the depression, when anti-Semitic feeling start to rise. Molly's brother Richie is also Max's good friend. When Molly falls for Hannah's brother Max, they both know that they have no future together, given the attitudes of the time. When riots break out in the city, both families are caught up in events that seem to change their lives forever.

We follow both families through the difficult war years, with Molly's 4 brothers all serving in the armed forces along with Max. News of those serving is scarce, and we get to understand how hard it is for the families waiting at home.

Max, Richie and other friends are caught up in the Japanese attack on Hong Kong, and the brutal St. Stephen's massacre. This book shines a light on one of least told stories of the second world war, where unprepared Canadian troops faced the Japanese war machine. It also highlights some of the treatment the men faced in POW camps for years. Once the war is over, how does everyone handle the devastating losses, and the injuries and memories that haunt the young men?

It was a captivating book, with well drawn characters, and descriptions of life at the time that made you feel like you were there.

This book begins during the Depression culminating at the end of WWII. It tells the story of two Canadian families, the Dreyfus family is Jewish, the Ryan family is Protestant. The mothers and fathers were good friends and all of their children grew up together. Their daughters were best of friends and their sons were not only great friends but great baseball teammates.

The close relationships of the Dreyfus and Ryan families are broken as anti-semitism seeps into society causing the Jewish community to become isolated. Lifelong friends and neighbors turned on the Jewish people. They stopped speaking to them, avoided them on the streets and stopped patronizing their businesses ultimately causing violent encounters and riots.

I have read numerous books (too many to count) about WWII and the inhumane treatment of Jewish people. However, until this book I was unaware of the treatment of the Jewish communities in North America, specifically Canada. I was also unaware of the brave Canadian soldiers that were sent to Hong Kong without any means of support to fight for their lives.

War, violence, loyalty, friendship, regrets, forgiveness and love.
A great read, highly recommend!

This novel tells of World War II in Canada which is something that I was not familiar with at all. This tale of anti-Semitism against Canadian Jews is compelling and the characters of Molly and Max are complex. I received this novel as an ARC from net galley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is fantastic! The story takes you on the journey of Molly and Max as their lives are turned upside down by the Great Depression, growing tensions between Protestants and Jews in Toronto, Canada, and then World War II. This historical fiction novel brings to life a part of history that I had never even heard about, The Battle of Hong Kong. The atrocities, though difficult to read at times, are an essential part of ensuring history does not repeat itself.

Graham notes in the "A Note to Readers" the similarities seen in the media today and 85 years ago. People, then and now, question why some material is censored and what effect that has on the opinions of so many. This parallel is a bleak reminder of the issues we continue to see today.

I thought the flow of this novel made it a quick and exciting read. I liked how all of the character's stories intertwined very harmoniously, even if at times unrealistically.

I recommend this to history buffs and romance bibliophiles alike because there is something in this story for everyone!

What a difficult but great read! I am a big fan of historical fiction, and before this book, had been uninformed about the specific challenges facing the Jewish community in Canada during WWII. I learned about this difficult period and the history through the story, which drew me in for the characters, the friendships, and the descriptive writing. Highly recommend.

Love in Times of Uncertainty

Letters Across the Sea is a heart-wrenching telling of anti-semitism in Canada during the Depression and the bravery of Canadian soldiers sent to Honk Kong during World War II.

Molly and Max were neighbors. Their families knew each other well. The moms cooked together, the boys played baseball, and the girls were best friends. Molly's family was Protestant, and Max's was Jewish.

All this changed when a wave of anti-semitism washed over an economically fragile Canada, bringing neighbors against neighbors, riots, and violence.

The book takes the reader through all the turmoil, culminating in WWII.

My heart ached from the prejudice and violence. It was inspiring to see the families reunited and their sons fighting together.

The sadness of the narrative was lightened by the sense of family, loyalty, friendship, and the beautiful love between Molly and Max.

It was interesting to learn more about Canada's history and its less-known participation in WWII.

Letters Across the Sea is a must-read for all WWII historical fiction fans and a great resource to learn more about such a critical time in history through the perspective of the Canadians.

Disclosure: I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

*This review will be posted on https://lureviewsbooks.com on 04/29/2021*

This book chronicles two families living across from each other in the early 1930's in Toronto. They have been neighbors for years; their children have grown up together, the mothers bake and gossip. The primary difference between the families? The Dreyfus family is Jewish; the Ryan family is Protestant. For the longest time, who cared? But as Hitler began to influence not just Germany, but the whole world, similarities began to be more and more important. Ultimately, in Toronto as in other places, the mentality became "us against them".

Molly Ryan, the lone girl among five brothers, considers Hannah Dreyfus her best friend. They are inseparable. Hannah's brother, Max, is friends with Molly's brothers, particularly Jimmy. Baseball is the glue that binds the boys together.

A brawl after a baseball game has far reaching effects for these friends. Into this former idyllic life, however, come the evil of Naziism and the horror of WWII.

Skillfully researched, filled with historical background information, the story of Max and Molly, the Ryan and Dreyfus families, Jews vs. Gentiles is expertly told in this not-soon-forgotten story.

I read this EARC courtesy of Net Galley and Simon & Schuster Canada. pub date 04/26/21.

I really go all-in on WWII books and it was nice (?) to read a book about a different aspect of the war that I didn't know about - how it was in Canada and what the war looked like for Canadian soldiers.

I had NO idea how segregated it was in even Toronto which I assumed was fairly progressive at the time. This was a fascinating read about what life was like in Canada and is based on various true events that happened during the course of the war in Canada and to the Canadian soldiers overseas.

It was really hard to put this novel down. I found it gripping and harrowing and I'm still a bit sad about it all AND that I didn't know about so much of the breadth of the Canadian's story for the war.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for an eARC copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I’ve read a lot of WWII historical fiction lately, but this is the first time this type of storyline came up. It was interesting to read about the climate at home (or in this case, Canada) and what was going on. That being said, I didn’t really form a connection with any of the characters, felt a little flat at times. And while I think the author did a great job trying to show the messiness in the aftermath of war, it seemed to wrap up a little too tidily and quickly for my taste.

Also, the title is a little misleading. There was one letter.

Still, not a bad read. It was a quick read once I got into it, but it definitely took some time to get to that point.

I loved this title. What a fantastic WWII story.
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Thank you for my review copy. The opinions are solely mine.

I'm a huge fan of Historical Fiction. WWII can become somewhat repetitive, if I am being honest. For me, this was a fantastic perspective. First, this is a dual point of view of a female Canadian and a male Canadian. I loved both perspectives so very much.
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I was not as familiar with the Battle of Hong Kong in 1941. It was very interesting and I am so glad I was able to study this battle via this story.
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There are a lot of other positive writing within this novel. The women's rights. The depression. The internal conflict with Jewish and Protestants. Loved it all.
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You were given a bit of a love story and in my opinion it was the perfect amount. It was very predictable....but very enjoyable.

I will highly recommend this title. Much needed distraction and a great learning experience.