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That Liverpool Girl
Not even the bombs that destroyed their city could break their spirit ...
Three generations of strong, determined women and the war that threatened to tear them apart.
In the backstreets of Liverpool, Eileen Watson lives with her mother, Nellie, daughter Mel and her three tear-away sons. Life isn't great, but they have eachother, and family can get you through anything. Or...can it?
Then, on the third day in September 1939, Britain declares war on Germany and their lives change forever.
The children have to be evacuated, but daughter Mel refuses to go, and so Eileen says goodbye to het mother and sons, moves away from the street they love and faces a future without most of the people in her precious family.
Thus begins a journey for them all. A journey filled with forbidden love, tragedy and the terrifying sounds of a city they love crumbling into craters left by the Luftwaffe.
Their lives will never be the same again ...
Three generations of strong, determined women and the war that threatened to tear them apart.
In the backstreets of Liverpool, Eileen Watson lives with her mother, Nellie, daughter Mel and her three tear-away sons. Life isn't great, but they have eachother, and family can get you through anything. Or...can it?
Then, on the third day in September 1939, Britain declares war on Germany and their lives change forever.
The children have to be evacuated, but daughter Mel refuses to go, and so Eileen says goodbye to het mother and sons, moves away from the street they love and faces a future without most of the people in her precious family.
Thus begins a journey for them all. A journey filled with forbidden love, tragedy and the terrifying sounds of a city they love crumbling into craters left by the Luftwaffe.
Their lives will never be the same again ...
420 pages, Hardcover
First published May 1, 2011
About the author
Ruth Hamilton
54 books47 followersRuth Hamilton was one of North West England's most popular writers. She was the bestselling author of twenty-five novels, including Spinning Jenny, The Bells of Scotland Road, Mulligan's Yard, Mersey View and That Liverpool Girl. She was born in Bolton, which is the setting for many of her novels, and spent most of her life in Lancashire.
(source: http://www.panmacmillan.com/author/ru...)
(source: http://www.panmacmillan.com/author/ru...)
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
January 26, 2014
I tried very hard to like this book more, and wanted to give it three stars, but after a long hard think, I couldn't justify it.
This was a frustrating read, because I know that there is an excellent book in here somewhere. Unfortunately, Hamilton's storyline is so jumbled, with the action jumping round between far too many (and often unnecessary and dull) sub-plots, that I found it difficult to keep up with who was now falling for who, who was on friendly or unfriendly terms, and which characters we were supposed to like or dislike.
The interior monologues were poorly done, with the characters re-iterating what was either obvious from the subtext, or what the author herself has already written just pages (or sometimes just paragraphs) ago. I often found myself getting flustered, wishing Hamilton had more faith in her own style and her readers to allow them to "get it" without repeating a point over and over again.
All of this repetition and re-assuring lead to an over-inflated book. At just shy of 500 pages, this isn't a short read. Like I said, there is a good book (possibly two) in here, and with more of a focus on the central family, and more brevity in style, it would have been much more enjoyable.
I enjoyed getting to know the women who were central to the plot. Nellie, Eileen and Mel were strong, well drawn characters who represented three generations of hardy Liverpudlian women making the most of the lot they are given. It was this dynamic that lead me to pick the book up in the first place, and in the end it was the characters who kept me reading. The famous Scouse humour and stoicism was evident throughout, and their love and respect for each other was heartwarming.
There were other aspects which worked. The long wait for the war to start gave the first half of the novel a palpable air of suspense, and when the war finally got going, the destruction of Liverpool and helplessness of its population was well drawn. Although our protagonists escaped relatively unscathed physically from the bombs, the psychological damage and its consequences was captured brilliantly.
All in all, not a bad read, but not good either. I would love the opportunity to go through the manuscript with a red pen and give it the heavy edit it deserves. Then, hidden amongst the debris there may well be a gem of a novel.
This was a frustrating read, because I know that there is an excellent book in here somewhere. Unfortunately, Hamilton's storyline is so jumbled, with the action jumping round between far too many (and often unnecessary and dull) sub-plots, that I found it difficult to keep up with who was now falling for who, who was on friendly or unfriendly terms, and which characters we were supposed to like or dislike.
The interior monologues were poorly done, with the characters re-iterating what was either obvious from the subtext, or what the author herself has already written just pages (or sometimes just paragraphs) ago. I often found myself getting flustered, wishing Hamilton had more faith in her own style and her readers to allow them to "get it" without repeating a point over and over again.
All of this repetition and re-assuring lead to an over-inflated book. At just shy of 500 pages, this isn't a short read. Like I said, there is a good book (possibly two) in here, and with more of a focus on the central family, and more brevity in style, it would have been much more enjoyable.
I enjoyed getting to know the women who were central to the plot. Nellie, Eileen and Mel were strong, well drawn characters who represented three generations of hardy Liverpudlian women making the most of the lot they are given. It was this dynamic that lead me to pick the book up in the first place, and in the end it was the characters who kept me reading. The famous Scouse humour and stoicism was evident throughout, and their love and respect for each other was heartwarming.
There were other aspects which worked. The long wait for the war to start gave the first half of the novel a palpable air of suspense, and when the war finally got going, the destruction of Liverpool and helplessness of its population was well drawn. Although our protagonists escaped relatively unscathed physically from the bombs, the psychological damage and its consequences was captured brilliantly.
All in all, not a bad read, but not good either. I would love the opportunity to go through the manuscript with a red pen and give it the heavy edit it deserves. Then, hidden amongst the debris there may well be a gem of a novel.
July 5, 2021
Loved this book. Ruth Hamilton was a master storyteller. So much happening inside this one, Love, forbidden love, an unrequited love, death, birth, new beginnings for some with the best descriptions I’ve ever read about the almost total Annihilation of Liverpool and Bootle by the Germans..Such heartache! It’s hard to believe it was all down to one small monstrosity of a Man who thought himself a God.
April 15, 2020
There’s something about this type of book that pulls me in almost every time.
Strong women holding their families together through difficult times.
Eileen is a strong independent woman who is very forward thinking for the time (early 1940s). Her daughter Mel made me laugh and was equal parts likeable and made me roll my eyes (the beauty of 14 year olds) and Peter nearly made me cry.
Heartwarming story set in my city during the Blitz.
Strong women holding their families together through difficult times.
Eileen is a strong independent woman who is very forward thinking for the time (early 1940s). Her daughter Mel made me laugh and was equal parts likeable and made me roll my eyes (the beauty of 14 year olds) and Peter nearly made me cry.
Heartwarming story set in my city during the Blitz.
April 27, 2014
After reading some of the negative reviews I could not help, although I did not want to, agree with certain comments. I often found myself getting lost and confused thinking, "which person is that again". There was too many colourful characters with big personalities, but not enough character building in the story for them to be memorable. Also I did not find myself so enthralled by the story that I could not physically put the book down. However that being said, I really enjoyed this book for numerous reasons.
First of all I fell in love with Nellie, Eileen & Mel. They are three formidable women and being a liverpulian girl myself I do not think the author could have done a better job at encompassing everything that makes up a liverpudlian female. They were strong, loud, brash, took no sh*t & most of all they managed to make a joke and laugh even when everything was at its worst, even if it does seem inappropriate! Maybe it is just a coincidence but even down to how close the three women are I felt like it was spot on in comparison with my own family. I was home again when reading this book and felt warmed by the love the women shared.
Second of all this book did make me laugh out loud, any book that can make me laugh deserves some credit!
Lastly I think the author did a good job when it come to the effects of the war. There was enough detail for the reader to feel the dread, sadness and helplessness that the characters where going through & what people would have gone through in Liverpool during those dreadful times.
Overall verdict- If you want a book to help you shut off from the world for a while this is the one. It is not fast paced, full of suspense or drama, and it won't have you clutching the end of your seat. However it is heartwarming, sad in parts but will also put a smile on your face and make you laugh. It is essentially the story of ordinary folk during a bloody dreadful time in history :)
First of all I fell in love with Nellie, Eileen & Mel. They are three formidable women and being a liverpulian girl myself I do not think the author could have done a better job at encompassing everything that makes up a liverpudlian female. They were strong, loud, brash, took no sh*t & most of all they managed to make a joke and laugh even when everything was at its worst, even if it does seem inappropriate! Maybe it is just a coincidence but even down to how close the three women are I felt like it was spot on in comparison with my own family. I was home again when reading this book and felt warmed by the love the women shared.
Second of all this book did make me laugh out loud, any book that can make me laugh deserves some credit!
Lastly I think the author did a good job when it come to the effects of the war. There was enough detail for the reader to feel the dread, sadness and helplessness that the characters where going through & what people would have gone through in Liverpool during those dreadful times.
Overall verdict- If you want a book to help you shut off from the world for a while this is the one. It is not fast paced, full of suspense or drama, and it won't have you clutching the end of your seat. However it is heartwarming, sad in parts but will also put a smile on your face and make you laugh. It is essentially the story of ordinary folk during a bloody dreadful time in history :)
August 8, 2014
Set in Liverpool at the start of WW2, this book took me back to my Nan's home in Aiintree. Now, to show how impressive a feat that is, my Nan died when I was 4yrs old and I am now 44yrs old. So, for me, this book was all about the older characters and a much loved city - Nan's neighbours, Mum's friends - all of them were in there.
It starts off in an area of Liverpool just off Scotland Road - an area I was never familiar with, nor did my Mum ever live there but it was famous (perhaps infamous) for the characters it produced and responsible for many legends. I remember my Mum talking about "Scottie Road" where Cilla Black's Mum reputedly set up a market stall to sell her daughter's cast offs - I never did find out if that was true. Even Lewis's department store was talked about - only a true Scouser would understand the significance of this store (oft would a telling off include the phrase "never mind standing there like one of Lewis's, get a move on""). The depiction of the destruction and devastation that this city endured during the war was moving too.
The actual storyline became insignificant against the characters and the setting & some parts were irritating, It was matriarchal to the point that the men were wet blankets. On one occasion, a younger character - Mel - spoke to her friend's father, a doctor, in such a manner as would have earned her a slapped face by any Scouser worth his salt in that era. Yet here, Dr Bingley takes the diatribe with shame. This would never have happened. I also strongly suspect that the author is an Austen fan - far too many Bingleys, Collinses & Darcys!
All-in-all, a must read for any proud Scouse lass (far too chick-lit for the boys!).
It starts off in an area of Liverpool just off Scotland Road - an area I was never familiar with, nor did my Mum ever live there but it was famous (perhaps infamous) for the characters it produced and responsible for many legends. I remember my Mum talking about "Scottie Road" where Cilla Black's Mum reputedly set up a market stall to sell her daughter's cast offs - I never did find out if that was true. Even Lewis's department store was talked about - only a true Scouser would understand the significance of this store (oft would a telling off include the phrase "never mind standing there like one of Lewis's, get a move on""). The depiction of the destruction and devastation that this city endured during the war was moving too.
The actual storyline became insignificant against the characters and the setting & some parts were irritating, It was matriarchal to the point that the men were wet blankets. On one occasion, a younger character - Mel - spoke to her friend's father, a doctor, in such a manner as would have earned her a slapped face by any Scouser worth his salt in that era. Yet here, Dr Bingley takes the diatribe with shame. This would never have happened. I also strongly suspect that the author is an Austen fan - far too many Bingleys, Collinses & Darcys!
All-in-all, a must read for any proud Scouse lass (far too chick-lit for the boys!).
August 28, 2013
bought this book (on kindle daily deal) because I like books set during the world wars. As a war book, this was pretty war lacking, and that was disappointing, especially after writing a post about my top 10 books set during war time. Really it was more a story about Eileen, with a bit thrown in about Mel, her daughter, and even less about the rest of her family- and the place they were evacuated to. Then there was a bit of a story about Tom and his family.
It was all over the place really, the stories were interlinked, but it was like Hamilton couldn’t write a complete story for any storyline so decided to put a few together- and only Eileen’s story really had enough detail to be a story of its own- at a stretch. Occasionally there were war moments, but most of the time the war felt more like a strategy to split the family apart. When the war parts of the story came they sort of came in one big lump rather than the story constantly feeling like a story happening during the war.
However the bits where there was war were rather well done. Moving. Especially towards the end where the war section actually became the story.
It was all over the place really, the stories were interlinked, but it was like Hamilton couldn’t write a complete story for any storyline so decided to put a few together- and only Eileen’s story really had enough detail to be a story of its own- at a stretch. Occasionally there were war moments, but most of the time the war felt more like a strategy to split the family apart. When the war parts of the story came they sort of came in one big lump rather than the story constantly feeling like a story happening during the war.
However the bits where there was war were rather well done. Moving. Especially towards the end where the war section actually became the story.
June 12, 2014
Coming from Lancashire and the Bolton area in particular, I love Ruth Hamilton's books. This one switches between the Bolton area and Liverpool with consummate ease. Set during the first three years of WWII, it tells the story of widowed Eileen Watson, her mother Nellie and her daughter Mel, as well as her three sons. Living in the Scotland Road area, life is hard for the family, especially as the three boys are running wild. With the outbreak of war, the three boys, with their grandmother, are evacuated to The Willows, on the edge of Bolton moors, which is the making of them. Eileen, staying behind with Mel, takes the living-in job of caring for an elderly woman, which brings her into contact with attractive Dr Bingley, whose obsessive love for Eileen nearly brings about his downfall.
This is a lovely story, full of family fun and laughter, with warm and all-too-human characters. It's sad, too, in places as Liverpool bears the full force of the German Luftwaffe. But, throughout, the Scouse humour wins through as in the comment by one character, while surveying the bomb damage, 'I want to hit someone.' An ARP warden close by quips, 'Hit him, he's an Everton supporter.'
This is a lovely story, full of family fun and laughter, with warm and all-too-human characters. It's sad, too, in places as Liverpool bears the full force of the German Luftwaffe. But, throughout, the Scouse humour wins through as in the comment by one character, while surveying the bomb damage, 'I want to hit someone.' An ARP warden close by quips, 'Hit him, he's an Everton supporter.'
October 11, 2011
This was excellent, giving a real feeling of the difficulties and fears of living through a war, in an area that was definitely going to be a target for bombs.
Families need to decide whether to stay put, at risk to their lives, or to move to somewhere safer. Widow Eileen Watson decides that she must take up the opportunity to move her children to a more rural area - her three sons are always in trouble and they don't cope well when removed. Her beautiful daughter cannot move with them as she has a scholarship to an excellent school, and is the one who may be able to make something of herself.
Miss Hilda Pickavance, thought by all to be rather posh and unbending, turns out to be anything but, and her life becomes entwined with Eileen's family, to everyone's benefit.
There are always those who will abuse their position in life, and there are interesting examples of this.
This was a good read, really bringing to life the problems of wartime life, and some of the really tough decisions families had to make.
Families need to decide whether to stay put, at risk to their lives, or to move to somewhere safer. Widow Eileen Watson decides that she must take up the opportunity to move her children to a more rural area - her three sons are always in trouble and they don't cope well when removed. Her beautiful daughter cannot move with them as she has a scholarship to an excellent school, and is the one who may be able to make something of herself.
Miss Hilda Pickavance, thought by all to be rather posh and unbending, turns out to be anything but, and her life becomes entwined with Eileen's family, to everyone's benefit.
There are always those who will abuse their position in life, and there are interesting examples of this.
This was a good read, really bringing to life the problems of wartime life, and some of the really tough decisions families had to make.
October 14, 2016
This was a good story, I really enjoyed the story and was eager to see how Mel and her boys got on life.
I have to agree with some of the other reviewers in terms of Ruth Hamilton's writing style, I found it too rambly at times, almost irritating even. It felt like character dialogue was being dragged out with a load of euphemisms / old feisty woman speak (for want of a better term), it was too much at times and I found myself skipping over a lot of it the more I got into the book.
The story was good though and it was clear that both Liverpool and Bolton are close to the authors heart. I enjoy the wartime stories and rambly bits aside, this was an enjoyable enough read.
I have to agree with some of the other reviewers in terms of Ruth Hamilton's writing style, I found it too rambly at times, almost irritating even. It felt like character dialogue was being dragged out with a load of euphemisms / old feisty woman speak (for want of a better term), it was too much at times and I found myself skipping over a lot of it the more I got into the book.
The story was good though and it was clear that both Liverpool and Bolton are close to the authors heart. I enjoy the wartime stories and rambly bits aside, this was an enjoyable enough read.
September 1, 2011
This book is beautifully written, although to start with it was quite hard to get into. Some of the things that Ruth Hamilton talks about, the beauty of the city, how much the people of Liverpool stuck together during the war and how strong a family can be even if they're living an hour up the road from one another. It's a beautiful book and I would recommend people to read it.
September 6, 2012
This was a good "switch off and read" novel. The story was nice but at times seemed a bit far-fetched and cheesy. Whilst the world wars did bring people together and in those pre-war times there was a sense of community I found the web of relationships too improbable. The background to the story - that of Liverpool during world war two was obviously very well researched and the story gives great descriptions of the struggles and atmosphere of life through this period. I also liked how the author gave us 3 very strong female characters, but also gave them a fragile side too. Personally I'm not a fan of the Tom & Eileen attraction/potential affair as I don't think it added majorly to the overall plot, and whilst it could have gone either way on more than one occasion throughout the story it didn't really add too much in the grand scheme of things and I did rather feel let down by the abrupt end to the character and this aspect of the novel - the author could have either bulked this relationship out or forgotten it entirely. The relationship between Eileen and Keith was extremely well written and I laughed out loud on several occasions - this was a very real and funny relationship - I think I'd have been quite happy to have just read their story without all the other side stories.
August 17, 2020
After hugely enjoying the Elizabeth Jane Howard's wartime Cazelet saga I settled on this as something that would fill the gap left after that epic four-book series.
Whilst not in the same league, it is enjoyable. the characters are well drawn and the story intertwined with Liverpool life during the early years of the war very well.
My gripes are twofold: there is an occasional chapter that ends with an Enid Blyton-style 'but she would soon come to regret saying that' sort of teaser. I hated them when I was a child and I don't like them now. just tell me the story. The second annoyance is I feel sometimes that the characters are speaking in the 1940s with a modern day knowledge.
Neither are enough to stop this being a moving and enjoyable tale but they are enough to stop me wanting to read to many more period novels by Ms Hamilton.
Whilst not in the same league, it is enjoyable. the characters are well drawn and the story intertwined with Liverpool life during the early years of the war very well.
My gripes are twofold: there is an occasional chapter that ends with an Enid Blyton-style 'but she would soon come to regret saying that' sort of teaser. I hated them when I was a child and I don't like them now. just tell me the story. The second annoyance is I feel sometimes that the characters are speaking in the 1940s with a modern day knowledge.
Neither are enough to stop this being a moving and enjoyable tale but they are enough to stop me wanting to read to many more period novels by Ms Hamilton.
November 12, 2012
I enjoyed this book. The characters were fun and the WW2 era was brought to lifenicely. Reading this book made me feel like I was having tea with the people in the book. I happen to love this genre (British WW2 sagas) and loved every minute of it.
February 1, 2015
Another book about Liverpool and Lancashire people by Ruth Hamilton. This one is set during 1939-1941 with its climax during the merciless Liverpool blitz in May '41. As in her other books, she portrays the fesity spirit, warmth and humour of scousers with affection and wit.
September 24, 2011
An enjoyable read. Amn interesting insight into life in England during the blitz.
June 27, 2012
Oh, I tried, due to my Liverpuddlin roots, but this is awful.
March 16, 2016
Story line has interesting characters, clear description of country side, Liverpool and bombing of England. Title a bit confusing to me Eileen, Mel? Which one is the Liverpool Girl . Easy read.
May 9, 2012
Stupid girly book, wasn't very well written at all I thought.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews