A.J. Pearce > Quotes

“Find out what you're good at...and then get even better. That's the key.”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“My mother never gave in. One of Father's friends had once said that if Mother had been in charge, the Great War would have been over by 1916. Father had replied that if my mother had been in charge, she would have made damn sure the bloody thing hadn't started in the first place. Mother always said it wasn't just about keeping going, but about standing up for what you believed in as well.”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“I tried to take a deep breath and be British and brave, but it didn't work, and instead, the tears began. Masses of them. Where did tears like that come from and how did they get there so fast? Were they always there, just waiting for something awful to happen? What a horrible job they had.”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“Mother always said it wasn't just about keeping going, but about standing up for what you believed in as well.”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“The sun had pulled its socks up and was making a good effort in the almost cloudless winter sky,”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“My mother always said that a lot of men think that having bosoms means you’re a nitwit. She said the cleverest thing is to let them assume you’re an idiot, so you can crack on and prove them all wrong.”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“as Mother always said, Granny didn’t spend half her life chaining herself to railings for today’s woman to moon around waiting for some chap to look after her.”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“Joan, Thelma, and Mary, like thousands of others, spent day and night after day and night carrying on with their jobs in the most frightening of conditions. Every day they helped save strangers they didn't know and would never meet. But today it was their friend. Stiff upper lips and getting on with things were all very well, but sometimes there was nothing to do but admit that things were quite simply awful. War was foul and appalling and unfair.”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“I have to say, it’s all Greek to me. That’s why I stick to fiction. Making things up is somewhat easier than sorting out real life.”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“Find out what you’re good at, Miss Lake, and then get even better. That’s the key.”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“asked about the weather in London. I confirmed that it was fine and asked after the weather in Little Whitfield, which, it turned out, was fine as well. Everything, it appeared, was equally first-rate.”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“GIVE THEM A NURSERY!” someone shouted. “WHO ARE YOU, ANYWAY?” called out someone else. Mr. Adams didn’t like that at all. “STOP PICKING ON THEM,” cried a woman with a young girl in a school uniform.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“Anne swayed from side to side, trying to calm Ruby down. In between enormous gulps and with her flowery crown all askew, Ruby buried her head into Anne’s shoulder. “He. Made. You. Cry. My Mummy,” she sobbed.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“If anyone would understand, it was my best friend. “Just love him,” she said. “Whatever happens, if you love someone and know you’re loved back, you will always have that.” She paused and then added, “To be honest, it’s not nearly as good as when they’re actually alive, but you know, you have to try.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“I am a war worker and a mother. I have two small children.” She glanced down at Ruby, who was with Violet and trying on her scarf. “I want to tell you about their father, my husband. His name was Corporal Anthony Oliver, and he was killed at Dunkirk.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“Darling,” said my mother, “I’ll put a penny to a pound that nothing has changed since factories in the last war. Thousands of perfectly capable women being managed by a lot of silly old men without an ounce of sense between them.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“We’re only asking for a nursery,” said Anne to the policeman. “But we’ve been told it has to be done jointly by local authorities and factory managers. They won’t even meet with us. No one seems to want to know.” “And the Ministries of Health and Labour have to say yes before anything happens,” I added. “These women just want to be able to work.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“But we have a problem, which is why we are here today. You may know we work shifts and weekends and all hours. We don’t mind that if it gets the job done. But our littl’n’s, our children who are with us today, need looking after. We know Mr. Churchill’s Government is setting up special nurseries for war workers. But we don’t have them yet, even though we need them badly. The fact is, we need them NOW.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“They may have been singing and wearing pretty scarves, but their signs and placards were clear. Anne had tied one to Tony’s pram that read MY MUMMY WANTS TO HELP WIN THE WAR. Maeve and her girls had used chalk to write on blackout cards NURSERIES FOR KIDS, WAR WORK FOR MOTHERS, while another pram sported a sign saying HELP MUMMY HELP OUR DADDY. Two women I didn’t recognise held pieces of cardboard that read WE NEED NURSERIES TO HELP WIN THE WAR.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“We just want nurseries so we can work and keep our children safe,” shouted Maeve. “TO WIN THE WAR, WE’RE ASKING, PLEASE, HELP US GET OUR NURSERIES,” some of the others began to chant.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen,” she said. Then she cleared her throat again. “My name is Mrs. Anne Oliver and I am a war worker.” The other women clapped again. A soldier nearby shouted, “Good girl!” and his friend joined in with a “Well done, love. Good on you.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“Of course I would never write something like that, but I found it frustrating to write encouraging articles, while knowing my friends weren’t being listened to in real life.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“My mother was more likely to be found reading Virginia Woolf than Woman’s Friend.”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“Mr. Adams, the Public Relations Manager, was no fool. Just a handful of female workers had managed to get themselves in the papers, and a policeman had ordered the man from the council to meet with them. Mr. Adams had also seen the response of the crowd. Sacking patriotic women war workers at Christmas would not be a good move.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“Mi madre siempre decía que muchos hombres creen que por el hecho de tener senos ya eres una mema. Decía que lo más inteligente era dejar que creyeran que eras idiota, y luego darles un buen chasco y dejarles en evidencia.”
― A.J. Pearce, Querida señora Bird

“would be sympathetic”
― A.J. Pearce, Dear Mrs. Bird

“Press,” I said loudly. “Good morning. May I take your name? I want to make sure I spell it correctly. Are you an official representative? Our readers will want to know what you have against women who want to do war work.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“When the song came to an end, the women began to chant. “To win the war, we’re asking, please, Help us get our nurseries.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“everywhere, there was little in the windows. The days of endless fat plucked turkeys hung up in rows were temporarily gone. I overheard someone saying there was chicken, and through force of habit I nearly checked my bag for my ration book.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully

“I’m Mrs. Irene Barker,” she said, almost in a whisper. “I was a war worker, but I lost my job because I couldn’t find anyone to look after my girls when I was at work.”
― A.J. Pearce, Yours Cheerfully