We learn so much from reading Historical Fiction, especially when the author does enough research to be sure he/she writes with authenticity. Kate Reynolds' newest book, Pheemie's War--Coming of Age in WWII gives a realistic picture of what life was like during the early years of WWII in the desert town of Phoenix, Arizona.
Pheemie and her twin sister, Zella, are sixteen when the U.S. enters the war in 1941. They've been raised in a comfortable family along with younger brother, Tom. The girls' father was in the National Guard and is immediately called up and shipped out to the Pacific theater. The twins attend a Catholic Girls' School. Sister Mary Matthew, their teacher, cannot understand how twins can be so different, yet look so much alike. Pheemie is the scholar and in great hope of winning a schlarship to college, while Zella's aim is to have a good time in life.
Once war is declared the girls and most everyone they know immerse themselves int the War effort--selling war bonds, collecting rubber and newspapers, meeting troop trains offering coffee and doughnuts and a smile to the military men on their way overseas and learning to do without many things they once took for granted.
Shy Pheemie loves Rafe, the son of their Mexican housekeeper, Quinta, but in the Arizona of the 1940s, a racially mixed relationship was not done. Pheemie's father gives her a stern warning before he leaves for overseas duty. Quinta also lets Pheemie know there can be nothing between her son and Pheemie. Like most adolescents, Pheemie and Rafe's relationship has many ups and downs, leaving childhood moving on. Pheemie vows to love Rafe forever.
Zella, however, falls in love with numerous soldiers, nor has she ever turned down a dare.
The story takes the reader through the adventures and the changes in the two sisters as they meet life head-on. Pheemie, in particular, moves from being a young girl to becoming a woman. She struggles with questions of right and wrong.
The novel brings the reader right into the times with so many small details that mark the early 1940s era. Ms. Reynolds also paints a perfect picture of Phoenix when it was still a small town, not the city of today. She weaves all this into the story seamlessly.
The novel flows well, and the characters are well-drawn, and it is a fine story. What more could you ask?
Note the car on the cover. The Pierce-Arrow plays a definite role in the story. Imagine it filled with nuns. Imagine it filled with twins on a very difficult mission.
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