Izzy's War

by Isla Dewar

Vicar's daughter Izzy feels hugely guilty that she's having a very good war. Having learned to fly in a travelling circus before the war, she's now joined the Air Transport Auxiliary as one of their few female pilots and is having the time of her life. The only cloud on the horizon is having to lie to her father about her exact role in the ATA. Her father is against the whole notion of women flying - he certainly wouldn't approve of her becoming a 'spitfire girl'.

Izzy also feels distinctly out of place among the more upper class ladies of the ATA. She would love to be as worldly as her flighty housemate, Julia, or as sophisticated as society wife Clare. But when Izzy finds herself falling for the charms of a dashing American doctor it is to Julia and Clare that she turns for help...

Genres: Fiction, World War II, Historical Fiction

512 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Born in Edinburgh, Isla Dewar now lives in Fife with her husband, a cartoonist, and two sons. Her first novel, Keeping Up with Magda, published in 1995, has been followed by a string of bestsellers.

Reviews

[Janet Hutchinson · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a disappointing read. I’ve read her books in the past, and enjoyed them. This felt like too many characters, and the flipping back and forth was aggravating. Some of the characters felt modern in their presentation, relative to the times. I wonder if she felt she needed to add a WWII novel to her list. If so, not the best decision.

[Tara Chevrestt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing. I was expecting more aviation considering it's a 500 some page book. Seems to me, however, that though the novel is ABOUT a bunch of woman ATA pilots, it focuses very little on their careers and the war and instead focuses on their sex lives. If they aren't "doing it," they're talking about "doing it" or thinking about "doing it" or writing letters about "doing it." And some of the girls are doing it with the other girls' men or doing it with numerous men. Basically, the book is about women's emerging sexuality and promiscuity during WWII.

I did like the bits about Lumber Jills. I never realized that there was women cutting down trees to make telephone poles during WWII. I knew all about the land girls, the WACS, the WASP, the ATA, but I never heard of the Lumber Jills, till now.

And Izzy's war.. was constantly debating what to tell her parents. That's all, really.

[Amy DeWolfe · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wasn't too keen on the writing style of this book. The sentences were choppy and there were bits of punctuation missing.

The story would have been interesting had all the characters not been terrible people. Every second person was cheating on their spouse or sleeping with someone else's boyfriend! None of them had a conscious or ever really felt bad for anything they did. I saw another review say that the women didn't have to be pilots; they could have worked in a factory or any other job and the story wouldn't have change - I have to agree.

I feel like there were a lot of characters who had more modern ideas. Here's a direct quote from the book: "But there's a war on, we all got something to lose. Better it's your virginity than your home or your life." Was it a rascally young soldier who said this? Or one of the female pilots? No. It was a seventy-something year old woman - in the 1940s! But then she later says she doesn't approve of the women having premarital sex... then she says it's okay... and again, she says it's bad.

And when Izzy's dad - remember, the vicar? - finds out she lost her virginity to her boyfriend before he went to war (and at this point in the story has died). Here's what he said to her about learning the truth: "I read your letter from Alan. I disapproved at first. Then I thought about it. All those young men dying, some of them only nineteen or twenty, not even started on their lives. [...] Never even having enjoyed proper intimacy." [She asks if he hates her and he says he could never]. "You did a good thing, Izzy. [...] A good thing. A very good thing. You made Allan happy. I'm proud of you."

I'm sorry, what? I'm close with my dad and I would be mortified if he was ever like 'I'm glad you gave it to your boyfriend before he kicked the bucket.'

Okay, back on track. Izzy is SO boring and really shouldn't have been the main character. Elspeth and her adventures as a lumberjill were so much more interesting. Though in the end, it turned out she was just as much of a trash person as the rest of them and I hated her. Poor Tyler.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I enjoyed reading this, I think Isla Dewar is better at contemporary stories - a lot of the attitudes of the women in the book didn't ring true for the time and although obviously people did have sex outside of marriage I don't think the women would have been so blase about it.
Don't let that put you off though, it's still a good story.

[jessie · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is so much misogynism in the book. It enrages me whenever I read it. It's infuriating how it is happening in our society. How much more during the time frame of the book?

There were also a lot of characters that confused me sometimes. Some characters are not necessary, like Jacob. I don't think "Izzy's War" is a perfect title for this book, knowing it isn't about Izzy's life.

[Sue Lilley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my usual genre but I’ve enjoyed all of Isla Dewar’s other books so thought I’d give it a go. It’s very well researched, almost comes across as a memoir. I didn’t know anything about lady spitfire pilots or lumberjills so it was informative as well as entertaining. I got so used to the characters I want to know what happens next. Highly recommended.

[Layla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started reading this book as much as I love WW2 FICTION I could not get into this book.

[Inshal Abidi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Extremely inappropriate and no proper storyline. It tells about all people except Izzy. And there is nothing except making love which is quite awful.

[Hester · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good characters, a bit insightful into life during WWII. Fun read throughout.

[Frumenty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook. Enjoyed it.

[Emily Johnston · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this on and off for a month. It really did go on and on with a lot of characters to remember and covering a big time period. It was reasonably enjoyable.

[Carol W · Rating 4 out of 5]

The cover photograph shows First Officer Maureen Dunlop, a pilot with the ATA.


Until I read this novel, I was unaware that women were pilots as their part in the war effort. I had heard, from relatives and friends about their role taking on the mens' jobs, whilst they were away, but that had been as land girls, factory workers or drivers.


The story has two main settings. Three women pilots, working together and sharing a cottage in England, and a group of women working as Lumberjills in Inverness, Scotland.

Izzy and Elspeth are the link between the two settings as Izzy, the pilot and her friend Elspeth, the lumberjill, come together on their weekends off. It becomes apparent that Elspeth, who was once the envy of Izzy, for her stylish lifestyle before the war, is becoming envious of the comfortable lifestyle the war has mapped out for her dear friend Izzy.


There are many characters that came into the novel, which I, personally, found a little difficult to keep up with, but they all had their stories to tell and added extra interest to the novel. I was not disappointed with any of their stories and some of the unexpected turns that occurred in their stories.


The war, bringing people together from different backgrounds, to work together and play together. People making the most of each day in case it could be their last. Taking chances when they could for distraction or comfort in the most difficult of times. Izzy, especially, seemed to have more freedom that she had back home with her strict father.




I was pleased that the author continued the story after the war had ended for many more chapters. So often with an event that dominates the story, an author will give just a little to what happened next.
Here, we find out how these characters managed going back home to carry on their lives as normal, as they had longed for. Or was it as easy as that?


4 out of 5 for me! I loved it.

I received a copy of this novel, from the publisher, for my honest review. This did not influence my review in any way.




DizzyC

[Clare O'Beara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Izzy and a couple of other ladies are pilots when the start of WW2 comes along, so they are needed to fly Spitfires and other planes between aerodromes, factories and other places. This spares male combat pilots from having to do the work, though there are not enough women pilots so some men do it.

Naturally the ladies have mainly come from wealthy families and have what appear to be high standards, though in one woman's case that means gutter morals. Only the rich could get away with always having two or more lovers on the string. One young lady however learnt to fly in a stunt flying circus show, so she is a misfit.

We also meet Izzy's friend Elspeth for a complete contrast. Elspeth volunteered for land work as a lumberjill. Again with men off fighting the women had to do the hardest of physical work, fed only carrot sandwiches by day and with potatoes, turnips and a slice of Spam in the evening so they were starving for protein. Crowded together in damp cold huts, some of these women came down with TB, almost always a death sentence. To their chagrin they discover that they cannot just leave the forestry work, even to do nursing or other war work. Some Newfoundland men are in the forest too, having come over to help with the timber as they would do at home for less pay. Close proximity and lack of any other amusements means that these few women are in big demand, whether they want it or not.

While we get a great sense of the location and work, I did find the continued storyline slow as there are a lot of conversations, drinks, and musings about how respectable the women's parents are. The war has changed them and they know that they will not be content to go back to the expected role of housewife. I found it hard to keep track of all the lovers coming and going, as I suppose men did flit through the country and off again, and there is little news about the progress of the war.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I came close to giving up on this book in the early chapters. My focus was on Izzy but I got irritated in the early chapters by the sudden change to new characters as the central figure. Maeve Binchy does this technique well, but somehow it did not work for me here. However I stuck with the book and was glad I did. It was at times very moving on the role that women undertook during the war. I had no idea that there were women pilots flying in Britain at this time as part of the Air Transport Auxiliary Service, nor that women undertook the physically bruising work of forestry, amidst the privations of the Highlands weather, and primitive living conditions. There was enough detail on their work to keep me interested, but not in a technical way that bored me. I came to care in particular about Izzy and Elspeth and the heightened conditions they were experiencing, away from family and friends in time of war. Well worth reading.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite interesting and easily readable book about WWII and the female pilots and their friends and companions

[Hilary Tesh · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh, Isla, why did you depart from your usual witty, quirky style of writing? The historical background was really just a pretext for a routine romance when it could have been so much more.