Frances Liardet

In the disorderly evacuation of Southampton, England, newly married Ellen Parr finds a small child asleep on the backseat of an empty bus. No one knows who little Pamela is. Ellen professed not to want children with her older husband, and when she takes Pamela into her home and rapidly into her heart, she discovers that this is true: Ellen doesn't want children. She wants only Pamela. Three golden years pass as the Second World War rages on. Then one day Pamela is taken away, screaming. Ellen is no stranger to sorrow, but when she returns to the quiet village life she's long lived, she finds herself asking: In a world changed by war, is it fair to wish for an unchanged heart?

We Must Be Brave

A child left behind. A country at war. A love that endures a lifetime. 'This is storytelling at its best' Sarah Winman 'The perfect book club read' AJ Pearce 'Dazzling... fierce, physical and almost inexpressibly tender' Guardian Ellen Parr has always been sure she never wanted children. But when she finds a young girl asleep and unclaimed at the back of a bus fleeing the Blitz in Southampton, everything she once believed is overturned. As she takes Pamela into her home, the little girl cracks open the past Ellen thought she had escaped and the future she thought she wanted, for in uncertain times it seems the only certainty is love. But with the end of the fighting comes the realization that Pamela was never hers to keep... We Must Be Brave is an epic and intensely moving novel about the ways we rescue one other, and the astonishing tenacity of the human heart. .. We Must Be Brave is an epic and intensely moving novel about the ways we rescue one other, and the astonishing tenacity of the human heart.

Amy Buckle

We Must Be Brave is a novel which begins on the cusp of World War II. When newly married Ellen Parr finds a little girl asleep in the back of an empty bus, she immediately wants to find the child’s parents. However, when it transpires that no one knows who Pamela is, Ellen takes her into her home to look after her. Having previously told her husband that she does not want children, Pamela does something strange to Ellen – she wriggles herself into a part of her heart Ellen thought she was find with being empty, and it quickly transpires that while she doesn’t want children, she does want Pamela. But Pamela’s real parents are still out there, and when she is eventually taken away, Ellen is not quite sure she can handle the grief.

Having read The Nightingale at the end of last year, We Must Be Brave piqued my interest and I was excited to hopefully enjoy it as much as Hannah’s novel. As a protagonist, Ellen is both lovable and compelling – throughout the novel we see her change and grow, and while it’s obvious she is a strong-willed woman to begin with, it’s clear even she could not anticipate what Pamela’s presence would do to her.

Flitting between her life with Pamela and her childhood leading up to meeting her husband, Liardet does a great job of showing how little details and small events can ricochet throughout the rest of out lives. Liardet’s characters in this novel are also hard not to praise; there are a plethora of secondary characters, each with their own individual personalities and traits which help make the main story feel even more plausible and real. In particular, I liked Lucy and William who both provided Ellen with support, even when she wasn’t aware of it.

I do have one small criticism of the book, and that’s just that it didn’t linger on Pamela quite as much as I would have hoped; the book is very much about Ellen and her story, and while I loved being with her as she encountered all the obstacles in her life, I would have liked to have seen both women’s lives in more detail. Not only how Pamela affected Ellen, but how the reverse was also true.

For me, books become impactful when they concern perhaps the least extraordinary stories. I admire Liardet’s ability to take Ellen who, while shrouded in the devastating events of the second world war, finds her own battle to contend with, that of a mother’s love which should never have been. Pamela and Ellen’s story is both touching and compelling and I love this story about love, kindness, friendship, and the bonds which remain with us for our entire lives.

Elizabeth Wood

Amanda Valentin

A woman; a war; a child that changed everything. Spanning the sweep of the twentieth century, We Must Be Brave is a luminous and profoundly moving novel about the people we rescue and the ways in which they rescue us back. She was fast asleep on the back seat of the bus. Curled up, thumb in mouth. Four, maybe five years old. I turned around. The last few passengers were shuffling away from me down the aisle to the doors. 'Whose is this child?' I called. Nobody looked back. December, 1940. As German bombs fall on Southampton, the city's residents flee to the surrounding villages. In Upton village, amid the chaos, newly-married Ellen Parr finds a girl sleeping, unclaimed at the back of an empty bus. Little Pamela, it seems, is entirely alone. Ellen has always believed she does not want children, but when she takes Pamela into her home the child cracks open the past Ellen thought she had escaped and the future she and her husband Selwyn had dreamed for themselves. As the war rages on, love grows where it was least expected, surprising them all. But with the end of the fighting comes the realization that Pamela was never theirs to keep... A story of courage and kindness, hardship and friendship, We Must be Brave explores the fierce love we feel for our children and the astonishing power of that love to endure.

We Must Be Brave

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