While many World War II era novels focus on the plight of the Jewish people, A Picture of Hope reminds us of the fate of those who were deemed undesirable for other reasons. In this story Nellie Wilkerson, an American photojournalist, and Jean-Paul Breslau, a member of the Maquis, are brought together by circumstances foreseen only by God. Together,along with a small group of nuns, they seek to insure the safety and well-being of three young children with Down Syndrome. In an effort to maintain historical accuracy, the author uses the term for this syndrome that was in use in the 1940s. In the book's front matter she expresses that, as a mother to a child with an intellectual disability, she did not intend to offend anyone, but to inform in a historically accurate way. It is obvious by their willingness to place their own lives in mortal danger, that the central characters greatly value the lives of the children placed in their care.

Liz Tolsma has once again entranced me with a story of faith hard won, deep compassion, and moments when all I could do was hold my breath. I am very grateful to have received a complimentary copy of A Picture of Hope from Barbour Publishing via NetGalley without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Liz‌ ‌Tolsma‌ ‌is‌ ‌a‌ ‌new-to-me‌ ‌author,‌ ‌so‌ ‌I‌ ‌wasn't‌ ‌sure‌ ‌what‌ ‌to‌ ‌expect‌ ‌when‌ ‌I‌ ‌signed‌ ‌up‌ ‌to‌ ‌review‌ ‌
this‌ ‌book,‌ ‌but‌ ‌it‌ ‌knocked‌ ‌my‌ ‌socks‌ ‌off!‌ ‌ ‌
‌
Set‌ ‌in‌ ‌France‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌waning‌ ‌days‌ ‌of‌ ‌World‌ ‌War‌ ‌II,‌ ‌Tolsmsa‌ ‌gives‌ ‌us‌ ‌a‌ ‌smart,‌ ‌brave,‌ ‌yet‌ ‌troubled‌ ‌
heroine-‌ ‌Nellie‌ ‌Wilkerson,‌ ‌an‌ ‌American‌ ‌photographer‌ ‌desperate‌ ‌to‌ ‌show‌ ‌the‌ ‌rest‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌world‌ ‌
the‌ ‌horrors‌ ‌that‌ ‌have‌ ‌ravaged‌ ‌Europe.‌ ‌I‌ ‌loved‌ ‌this‌ ‌character‌ ‌instantly‌ ‌and‌ ‌rooted‌ ‌for‌ ‌her‌ ‌
throughout‌ ‌the‌ ‌novel.‌ ‌I‌ ‌also‌ ‌loved‌ ‌the‌ ‌tenderness‌ ‌she‌ ‌showed‌ ‌to‌ ‌Claire,‌ ‌the‌ ‌child‌ ‌with‌ ‌Down‌ ‌
syndrome‌ ‌she‌ ‌rescues‌ ‌from‌ ‌a‌ ‌horrible‌ ‌attack‌ ‌on‌ ‌a‌ ‌French‌ ‌village.‌ ‌The‌ ‌interaction‌ ‌between‌ ‌Nellie‌ ‌
and‌ ‌French‌ ‌resistance‌ ‌fighter‌ ‌Jean‌ ‌Paul‌ ‌sent‌ ‌this‌ ‌book‌ ‌over‌ ‌the‌ ‌top!‌ ‌ ‌
‌
I‌ ‌heartily‌ ‌recommend‌ ‌this‌ ‌book‌ ‌to‌ ‌those‌ ‌who‌ ‌love‌ ‌a‌ ‌World‌ ‌War‌ ‌II‌ ‌romance‌ ‌with‌ ‌a‌ ‌twist.‌ ‌This‌ ‌book‌ ‌
is‌ ‌one‌ ‌in‌ ‌a‌ ‌series‌ ‌of‌ ‌books‌ ‌called‌ ‌"Heroines‌ ‌of‌ ‌WW‌ ‌II"‌ ‌and‌ ‌I‌ ‌will‌ ‌definitely‌ ‌be‌ ‌hunting‌ ‌down‌ ‌the‌ ‌
others!‌ ‌I‌ ‌received‌ ‌a‌ ‌complimentary‌ ‌of‌ ‌this‌ ‌book‌ ‌from‌ ‌the‌ ‌publisher‌ ‌and‌ ‌was‌ ‌under‌ ‌no‌ ‌obligation‌ ‌
to‌ ‌post‌ ‌a‌ ‌review.

Riveting. Heart wrenching. Nellie is a photographer/reporter from America, anxious to make a difference and get the message to Americans about what was happening in the war Hitler had brought. The story starts as D-Day takes place. They didn't give permission to women to go into France, so she blended in and got herself there. The things she found once there were unthinkable, including a village where the Germans forced the women and children into a church and set them on fire. But she also found a little girl hiding, a girl with Down Syndrome. One that the Germans considered imperfect and needed extermination. She was able to get a perfect photo of her in front of the burned out church after the village was deserted again.
There she ran into Jean Paul, a member of the French resistance fresh out of prison. His father was a German officer who was angered that he stayed with his French mother and fought against him. Together they get to a convent where they housed a few other children with Down Syndrome and they all worked to get the small group out of France and across the border into Switzerland. Not an uneventful process. Constant danger and tension.
Both Nellie and Jean Paul are also fighting an internal battle from things in their own lives that motivate them to make a difference and not accept the way things were, not just stand by even though they risked their lives.
Excellent read of love and sacrifice with a Christian message throughout. Showing true beauty where others rejected, hope and love, innocence shining through. Often I didn't like Nellie because of stupid, headstrong choices that she made, but Jean Paul liked her (wink), and the end results turned out well. #APictureofHope #NetGalley

A Picture of Hope
by Liz Tolsma
Pub Date: October 1, 2021
Barbour

A Photojournalist Risks Her Life to Save a Very Special Child

Full of intrigue, adventure, and romance, this series celebrates the unsung heroes—the heroines of WWII.
Thanks to Barbour Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC.
What a great book! Patrons at our library enjoy this author very much. The characters are well described and likable. I highly recommend this book to readers of World War Two Fiction and to Fans of the Author. It's the first book of Heroines of WWII series. The book is scheduled to be released on October the First of this year.
5star

Anytime I read a book that is based during war I think of my Mom or her relatives. My Mom was born in England. She was there during World War I. She has told me her experiences as a young child during that time. This book - A Picture of Hope- brings us to a terrible time in our history. The unimaginable happened.

Nellie was a photographer and felt that she was being left out of the important news stories. She was determined to change that. In doing so, she landed up in Nazi-controlled France. In France, she met Jean-Paul, part of the French Underground.

Nellie and Jean-Paul's journey was dangerous but absolutely necessary. They risked all to help others. I quickly turned the pages as I was so engrossed in their story. Would they survive?

It was upsetting to read the atrocities that occurred in that time. But it is so important to not forget.

I received this book from Revell to review.

This has been one of my favorite WWll stories that I have ever read. It was nice to read about what happened during the time when they were trying to free France from the Nazis. This book made me laugh and cry. Nellie and Jean Paul each learn what they need to live and stay safe during this trying time. I liked how the author treated what was happening with the children and how they were affected also. This book has a lot of action and some romance. I received a copy of this book from Barbour Publishing for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

4.5 stars

This is a different view point of WWII. It starts with Nellie, an American photojournalist trying to get to the frontlines in France. Along the way she accidentally crosses enemy lines and runs into a Maquis fighter. Together they discover a Mongoloid child, suddenly and terribly orphaned. This story is about how they do the right thing, even though it is hard. How good can triumph when the world is filled with evil.

I really enjoyed the character development in this novel, we discover bits about the characters along the way - giving them depth and reinforcing their choices. At times, I did not agree with or like the characters choices but this made the story more interesting and created characters with more dimension.

The term Mongoloid is used because it is period appropriate. The author explains her choice to use it at the beginning of the novel. At no time in the story was the term used in derogatory way.

This is the second story in the Heroines of WWII. I received a eARC from #netgalley of #aPictureofHope

Liz Tolsma is writing a series called The Women of WWII. I have read one of the books in this series, A Picture of Hope. As usual, Ms. Tolsma has done a wonderful job of showing just how dangerous Europe was after the Allied invasion, especially in France and Germany. The Nazis were determined to rid the world of “undesirables” before they were routed from the occupied zones.
the undesirables were Jews, Gypsies, and those who were intellectually challenged.

Nellie Wilkerson is a photojournalist desperate to see the battles on the front lines but mired amidst red tape in England. She wants to show the world how the Nazis treated POWs, undesirables, and those opposed to their regime. She stows away on a hospital ship making its way to Europe after D-Day. Alone, she manages to enter France without proper credentials and is taken in by a soldier making his way to his division. Tragedy occurs when the soldier is killed and she is alone again. Jean-Paul, a resistant, finds her and together they try to get to the front lines. They come to a village where the SS have just taken the men away to be murdered and have put all the women and children into a church and set it afire. Those trying to escape were gunned down. Standing in the middle of the street is a little girl, alone and looking for her mother who was in the church. She has Downs Syndrome and if found would be murdered. Nellie and Jean-Paul are trying to get her to neutral Sweden. Their journey there sees the addition of other undesirable children and the nuns who were protecting them.

I love Ms. Tolsma’s writing. Her books provide realistic people in untenable situations from which they must find their way. I would highly recommend this book and all her books. You will be glad that you’ve read them for they will stick in your mind for a long while afterward.

1944 France

American journalist Nellie is devastated that women are not allowed closer to the front lines. How can she capture the war in France from London? With a healthy does of bravery and little planning, Nellie finds a way to travel aboard a medical ship to Normandy arriving just after D-Day.

Jean-Paul, whose mother is French and father a Nazi is part of the French resistance. His path crosses with Nellie as she develops a minute by minute plan to capture the war with her camera. Nellie quickly realizes that the reality of war in France is much harsher than she imagined.

This quote perfectly describes where both Nellie and Jean-Paul are at:

"No matter what comes into our lives, God uses it in the best way for us. His ways and His plan are perfect. You will learn that in the coming days, though the lesson will be difficult."

Both have memories from the past that weigh them down with guilt and regret. These memories also inspire them to be strong for those that cannot.

Although neither had plans to be at a monastery with hidden children, that's exactly where God needed them to be. Definitely some suspenseful or tense scenes as they danced with danger. At times, Nellie's impulsive actions made me cringe, but those actions were in character for the heroine.

Good second in the Heroines of WWII Series of the importance of women during the war. In this case, it was a female journalist that captures images bringing the reality of war to those that don't have a front line view.

A Picture of Hope is a WWII story set in France. Many, if not most WWII stories that deal with people being persecuted , deal with Jewish people. This story, although it mentioned the Jews, the characters in this story that were trying to escape being captured/tortured/killed were special needs individuals -- mongoloid children specifically. The author includes a note in the beginning of the novel telling why she chose to use this terminology, vs. something that might seem more politically correct these days. I appreciated that she made this choice ... this was the terminology that was in use during that time period and there was no time when it seemed disrespectful... There were many times during this novel that I really got irritated with the female main character, but I think the author intended for us to get irritated at her, and in the end it did all work out! All in all, a good WWII novel with a different twist.

No matter what comes into our lives, God uses it in the best way for us. His ways and His plan are perfect.

1944 The job of a war correspondent was a dangerous one - one that Nellie Wilkerson was anxious to be part of. However, managing to get to the place of involvement took all the courage and compassion that she could find amid the brokenness of war. She learned that even if she helped only one person, she had changed one world. With all the death and destruction around her, was this a lesson that was worth learning? Could she bring hope to one or more?

Jean-Paul had been part of the resistance since the beginning of the war, sometimes wondering if he was making any difference at all. Managing to survive unimaginable conditions, how can he have the strength and fortitude to give hope to others?

The author takes us into the world of those that the invading army would consider less than perfect - a place where evil is heaped on evil. How much difference could possibly be made by several people with totally different goals in life? Will they be open to the mighty plans God has for them?

This ARC was received through Barbour Publishing and NetGalley. These impressions and comments are my own and were in no way solicited.

This is a *Must Read* book!! It hooks you on the first page and doesn't let go. It is a very emotional well written read and I highly recommend it.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing, Inc via NetGalley and was not required to write a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I liked this book but, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I hoped I would. Which is a shame as I enjoy stories about the Second World War. This one just didn’t cut if for me. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

A Picture of Hope by Liz Tolsma
I'm so in love with this story! Liz is the best author with her unique story. You are pulled into this amazing book from the very first page. The characters are likable and make the book com alive. The story about Nillie and Jean - Paul. Millie is a journalist that is trying to get to the front line and get pictures of the REAL story of WWll to the Americans. Jean -Paul is part of a resistant group. They have adventures of trying to get some down syndrome children's and nuns to Switzerland away from the Nazis.

I recommend this book to other that love a great story

I received this complimentary copy from publishing companies and Netgalley.

"The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps." (Proverbs 16:9) 

I begin my review with this verse because it applies so well to the story. When Nellie Wilkerson stole away on a medical ship, she planned to make her way to the front line in order to capture "...the entire story in one shot. ... So that, without a single word, the world will know what Hitler is doing. And that there is hope in the midst of the evil of this world.” God would use her ambition for a higher purpose—to save lives.

Years ago, while on a mission trip in Southeast Europe, the pastor of the church we were serving recounted how the disabled and mentally ill suffered and perished in that country during WWII. As I read Nellie and the sisters' urgent desire to protect the orphans in their care, his words came to mind. Then and now, all lives matter to God and Tolsma boldly proclaims this truth through her writing.

For those who enjoy a well-research novel, Tolsa delivers! Through this novel, I learned about the massacre in the village of Oradour-sur-Glane, Marianne Cohn's heroic acts, and how the village of Annemasse aided refugees. It's the author's blend of history and heart which leads me to recommend A Picture of Hope to you. 

I received a review copy from Barbour Fiction. All opinions are my own.

I liked this book, but didn't love it. Let me start with what I liked. I enjoyed the characters because they were likable yet flawed, and I enjoyed seeing them grow over the course of the story. I also liked how the author incorporated the characters' faith and spiritual growth into the book. My favorite part of the book is that it explored a part of WWII history that I didn't know about, namely how the Nazis treated people with Downs syndrome and other mental health issues. I found myself doing more research on the topic online. I love when a book piques my interest and I learn something new

Now for the parts I had a hard time with. Some of the writing felt choppy to me, and there were sometimes conversations or descriptions that felt that the author jumped over some details or left them out. I had to go back and reread portions, but was still confused. I also didn't care for the way the characters' memories of the past were treated. More exploration of these would have enhanced the current storyline and the characters' journeys. Some conversations and situations felt rushed, especially at the end. The ending was satisfying, but I felt it wrapped up too quickly. I would have loved for the last couple chapters to be stretched out and explored more in-depth.

Thank you to @netgalley and Barbour Fiction for the eARC.

As I get older I realize that I was taught very little about WW2. Our high school American History books just gave the simple facts, brushing over the details, without exploring the human tragedy, the devastation to European and Asian Countries. I thought I was a little more knowledgeable. After all my mother grew up running from the bombs dropping on England.

I was wrong, so very wrong. Books like A Picture of Hope need to be required reading in order for us to gain a full understanding of World War 2. We need to learn about the struggles of those whose land was taken. We need to understand the atrocities brought by the Germans. They did not just kill Jews, but anyone that did not meet their standards. Children born with downs syndrome were put to death unless those with a heart helped them hide or escape.

Through the eyes of Nellie, a photographer for the Chicago Tribune the reader gets to see through a camera lens. We travel with her has she tries to stay safe in a strange country behind enemy lines as she records the horrors of war. A chance meeting with an escaped prisoner, a member of the resistance, we are taken deeper into the war and all it entails.

Her meeting up with Jean-Paul allows the reader to see even more of the devastation. But it also allows us to see how those that loved their country fought for their freedom. The dangers that they lived with everyday were put on the page in great detail. They risked their lives over and over again trying to save others. My respect for those that stood up the Nazis grew with every page I read.

A Picture of Hope is one of those books that tells a story that we should all know. A Picture of Hope is one of those books that lets us know that it was many different people working together that saved lives. If it weren't for hope, they might not have survived their ordeal. Nellie and Jean-Paul may have had a happily ever after, but many, many others did not.

A Picture of Hope by Liz Tolsma is a World War 2 story that readers of historical fiction will not want to miss. Especially Christian readers. The characters, Nellie, John-Paul, the children and nuns are all so lovable and you will feel their pain as they try to escape Nazi -occupied France. Nellie, an American photographer wants to tell the story of the war through her photographs so that history will never be forgotten and each generation will remember how brutal Hitler’s war was. She hides on a ship in Southampton and ends up on the Omaha Beach. She meets Jean-Paul , who is working with the resistance. They work together to rescue the children that Hitler had labeled undesirable.
The nuns that they meet and escape with are such fantastic characters, so lovable, so much faith to carry them through all the tough times. It is a story that is hard to read, very emotional with lots of action.
I received an ARC from Barbour Publishing and NetGalley. All opinions are mine.

Readers who enjoy World War II historical fiction will love this book. Fast paced, well researched with strong characters of faith, this story features a female American photojournalist and a French revolution fighter. I loved Sister Maria-Theresa's strong faith and quiet resolve. The journey to protect the children from the Nazis took the brave effort of many. I liked the author's note with additional information .

I liked this book all right in the beginning, enough to keep reading, but once it reached the halfway point, it became very fast-paced and hard to put down!

Nellie is a female newspaper reporter from the United States, based in London, who is anxious to get to where the action of the war is but hasn’t been able to obtain permission. Taking matters into her own hands, she sneaks aboard a hospital ship headed to France, and gets off once there and begins taking pictures. Her adventures ramp up from there and she eventually inadvertently teams up with Jean Paul, a member of the French resistance. Although their partnership seems accidental, God has a plan and leads them in heart-stopping adventure which includes some children and nuns.

Very well-written and with a satisfying conclusion, I’d recommend this book to anyone who enjoys WWII historical fiction.

I received this book from the publisher via net galley in exchange for an honest review. Five stars!