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Dearest Ones
"Charming . . . an intimate memory of a time that has gone forever." Rosamunde Pilcher
"An amazing narrative . . . Everything about this account is blazingly authentic. There is no pretense, no false modesty or grandstanding. The gray privations of life in cold, wet wartime England come alive." Washington Post
"A different perspective on the war from those in the thick of battle or those writing on the home front. . . . The author s letters . . . speak of the camaraderie and adventure of it all . . . she paints the everyday details, not the heroics." Dallas Morning News
"A fascinating work of social history, revealing much about British life and American attitudes fifty years ago." Sunday Times (London)
This captivating memoir of a World War II Red Cross volunteer recounts the touching stories of American women and men who served their country abroad. Based on richly detailed and beautifully written letters and journal entries, Rosemary Norwalk tells the unfolding love stories of her and her friends while stationed in England. Deflecting the advances of GIs of every stripe, but caught up in the romantic excitement of the times, they meet and fall in love with their future husbands and make plans for life after the war. With its absorbing narrative of devotion and heroism, Dearest Ones delivers an emotional testament to the endurance of the American spirit and an exquisite tale of love s discovery.
"An amazing narrative . . . Everything about this account is blazingly authentic. There is no pretense, no false modesty or grandstanding. The gray privations of life in cold, wet wartime England come alive." Washington Post
"A different perspective on the war from those in the thick of battle or those writing on the home front. . . . The author s letters . . . speak of the camaraderie and adventure of it all . . . she paints the everyday details, not the heroics." Dallas Morning News
"A fascinating work of social history, revealing much about British life and American attitudes fifty years ago." Sunday Times (London)
This captivating memoir of a World War II Red Cross volunteer recounts the touching stories of American women and men who served their country abroad. Based on richly detailed and beautifully written letters and journal entries, Rosemary Norwalk tells the unfolding love stories of her and her friends while stationed in England. Deflecting the advances of GIs of every stripe, but caught up in the romantic excitement of the times, they meet and fall in love with their future husbands and make plans for life after the war. With its absorbing narrative of devotion and heroism, Dearest Ones delivers an emotional testament to the endurance of the American spirit and an exquisite tale of love s discovery.
288 pages, Paperback
First published February 5, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
December 9, 2023
2023 bk 300. The letters and narrative of a California woman who volunteers with the American Red Cross during World War 2. Rosemary went from a Clubmobiler Captain and then Supervisor in her station at the docks of Southampton. There the team of women (which would eventually include about 40 women under her supervision) would meet the troops arriving and then send them off across the continent with doughnuts and coffee under there belt. In her time there, the women would greet around 2 million men. She and her team would received commendations from the Military directors of the port and after VE day, she and a few of her team were invited with about 145 other ARC volunteers to a reception at Buckingham Palace where they met the entire royal family - a highlight. Another highlight was meeting the love of her life. Thank goodness her family saved her letters home - and thank goodness she was so very descriptive of her time in Europe. I've read this over several times and each time something new pops up for me to consider.
June 24, 2022
Fascinating glimpse into the life of an American Red Cross volunteer stationed in England during WWII. Her letters home and journal notes take the reader with her on this crazy ride. The journal entries were especially interesting as she recorded things there that she didn’t want her family to worry about or know were happening. I noticed that she didn’t include any letters to her love after he returned home - guess they were too mushy. So thankful that her family kept the letters and that she shared them with us all these years later.
December 17, 2018
One of the great tragedies of our age is the loss of handwritten letters. The author so beautifully and honestly describes life as an American Red Cross girl. I thought I knew what they did, but actually I had no idea. If you love this era, you will love this book! And even more gratifying is the fact that it's a true story, written by the author as it happened!
March 1, 2015
I'm not really a huge fan of biographies or autobiographies, yet they always hold something interesting. This one was sometimes slow reading, trudging through letters and journals of a WWII Red Cross worker. However, as the story progressed, there were lots of things that caught my attention and made it interesting reading.
There were facts about the war that I hadn't thought about previously ... such as ships sinking due to mines, and sometimes going down within sight of the harbor.
Visits to many places in Europe that I have been, such as the Firth of Forth (Edinburgh's bridge), Stonehenge, Dublin, Paris, and Germany.
Then there was the visit with the Queen, and that was such a fun story.
Altogether it was an enjoyable, if not fully captivating, book to read.
There were facts about the war that I hadn't thought about previously ... such as ships sinking due to mines, and sometimes going down within sight of the harbor.
Visits to many places in Europe that I have been, such as the Firth of Forth (Edinburgh's bridge), Stonehenge, Dublin, Paris, and Germany.
Then there was the visit with the Queen, and that was such a fun story.
Altogether it was an enjoyable, if not fully captivating, book to read.
May 27, 2010
I loved this book! Reading her letters & journal entries were quite eye opening, and very funny at times. Her sense of humor made her time in Britain much easier to deal with I think. I really loved her description of everything around her during that time. Is hard to imagine how she felt dealing with so many difficult emotions during her time over there. As odd as it sounds for me to be saying it, this book made me hungry to read more about World War II.
September 21, 2019
25-year-old Rosemary Langheldt decides to leave her job in a San Francisco department store and volunteer for the Red Cross in 1944 - the height of WWII. The book is her letters home and journals of her time serving mostly in England on the docks at Portsmouth. A fascinating look at the war from a different angle. The Red Cross were volunteers with a unique position in relation to the troops and the war.
February 21, 2020
I never finished the book. It seemed like a travel log and a bit slow getting to the major plot. I’m sure it would be nice for those who want to learn more about the war in relations to the Red Cross.
April 5, 2023
Just okay.
December 10, 2013
Finally, the voice of a woman who served in World War II telling her story, telling her role in the Great War -- this book was exactly what I had been longing to read; I had always wondered if any women wrote in the postwar era about their wartime lives. As it turns out, Rosemary Norwalk was a prolific writer during the war, not after the war. Her writings were in the form of letters sent to family at home and journal entries (where she could avoid the censors). The letters and journals were saved by her mother, put in her foot locker when she returned home, and then stored in an attic. Fifty years later, they were retrieved and the process of converting the hand-written letters and journals into readable typed pages began. Dearest Ones was published in 1999.
Rosemary Norwalk became an American Red Cross Volunteer in 1944, and was stationed in England for the duration of the war; she was briefly on the continent in Germany before returning home in 1946. She had a style of writing that was incredibly detailed oriented; she painted a picture of everything and everyone who came her way. What she talked about and how she talked about it reminded me so much of my mother (of the same generation). She expressed her opinion, not too harshly, about the English girls on the hunt for American GIs, American GIs who drank too much, the stoicism of the English, the volunteers who were looking for husbands, and, in Germany, the questionable innocence of the Dachau villagers. While I thoroughly enjoyed every detail in this book, the issue of too much detail might deter another reader from finishing the book. I always have felt as though I am connected to WWII in a special way -- this book enhanced my thoughts about that connection.
Rosemary Norwalk became an American Red Cross Volunteer in 1944, and was stationed in England for the duration of the war; she was briefly on the continent in Germany before returning home in 1946. She had a style of writing that was incredibly detailed oriented; she painted a picture of everything and everyone who came her way. What she talked about and how she talked about it reminded me so much of my mother (of the same generation). She expressed her opinion, not too harshly, about the English girls on the hunt for American GIs, American GIs who drank too much, the stoicism of the English, the volunteers who were looking for husbands, and, in Germany, the questionable innocence of the Dachau villagers. While I thoroughly enjoyed every detail in this book, the issue of too much detail might deter another reader from finishing the book. I always have felt as though I am connected to WWII in a special way -- this book enhanced my thoughts about that connection.
July 30, 2012
This book is the journal of Rosemary Langheldt who left her job and home in San Francisco to serve with the Red Cross in London and then Germany. The story is told through letters home and journal entries, and both are highly informative and well written missives. Mrs. Norwalk recreates what it was like to live in England during the last year of the war. She is an empathetic observer of the many tens of thousands of men (boys) who stop briefly at her Clubmobile for a donut and a cup of coffee after disembarking in England and re-embarking for the fight on the Continent. Once Rosemary is transferred to Germany, she sees firsthand the near destruction of many German cities. Her writings are true to the time: these people were our enemies a short time ago and they tried to kill the boys who I helped serve. It also offers an honest appraisal of the Occupation where the black market made many Americans rich. This book will be of interest to anyone who wants to know about life in England after the Allied landings in June 1944 and the early days of American occupation of Germany.
December 13, 2007
This is NOT a sappy love story. This book is chock-a-block full of the letters and journals of a woman who volunteered with the Red Cross during WWII. She is American, and joined the Red Cross to serve in England. She and her colleagues met soldiers as they were deployed from England to the continent, then again as they returned, wounded.
This group of volunteers worked tirelessly and cheerfully to make sure soldiers had doughnuts and coffee and friendly faces to greet them. They had difficulties along the way, too, but in all of her letters and journals, Rose only projects her purpose and the fulfillment she gets from her hard work.
This group of volunteers worked tirelessly and cheerfully to make sure soldiers had doughnuts and coffee and friendly faces to greet them. They had difficulties along the way, too, but in all of her letters and journals, Rose only projects her purpose and the fulfillment she gets from her hard work.
October 13, 2008
This book was very good. It was all letters home and journal entries by a American Red Cross voulenteer who did most of her service on the Ports of England. This book gave me a new perpective of the ARC voulenteers and the selfless, hard work the accomplished during WWII.
November 2, 2008
I'm nearly finished and I will miss this book! Our book club is reading it and we will discuss it at our Nov. mtg. Author is from Seattle area. True story about her time serving the American Red Cross during WW2. I LOVE it and will give it as gifts to friends!
March 1, 2013
Very interesting memoir of a woman's experience in the American Red Cross during and immediately after the second World War. This is educational as well as it recounts the events in history and the reasons everyone did not leave europe immediately after the war was over.
August 10, 2013
This one was hard to put down -- letters and diaries of a Red Cross volunteer on the docks in England during World War II. Insights into a little known part of the war, at least to me. Highly recommend it.
September 3, 2014
LOVED this book. Rosemary's family was truly lucky to have gotten the privilege of receiving such wonderful and fascinating letters from her while she was overseas serving with the Red Cross during WWII.
February 24, 2008
I loved this story--especially it's time period and setting. Loved it.
maybe-read-available
July 3, 2009940.54 Nor
July 1, 2010
Interesting to learn how the Red Cross contributed to the war effort
August 5, 2013
I loved this. These were amazing women. Amazing experiences and wonderful writing.
February 17, 2018
Amazing protagonist, amazing time in history. Detailed and real.
March 4, 2013
Fascinating first person account of WWII and some of the aftermath.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews