Between the Dances: World War II Women Tell Their Stories

by Jacqueline Dinan

The start of World War 2 changed women’s lives and their place in Australian society forever. Thousands of women ventured where few had gone before – into the services and workplaces previously considered the sole preserve of men.
In preparation for her book Between the Dances, Jacqueline Dinan, interviewed over three hundred women around Australia to collect the last first hand stories from World War Two. Revealing poignant and personal conversations, photographs and letters, Between the Dances is a testament to real life during World War 2.
From Malta to Australia, New Zealand to the UK, the challenges and adventures faced by these women were unprecedented. Their passion, courage, resilience and commitment during wartime were all a precursor to the astonishing changes brought about by this incredible generation.

For the first time, women were doing their bit as nurses in war zones, members of the services, farmhands, factory workers or volunteers in community service. The last tradition left was the weekly dance, which ceremoniously brought these courageous women and men together for a quickstep, fox trot and brief respite from the rigours of wartime.

Genres: Nonfiction

390 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2015

Reviews

[Saturday's Child · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jacqueline has written a well researched book that provides an insight into the lives many Australian women lead during World War 2. This history and their contributions has been brought to life in a book that is well worth reading.

[Vivienne · Rating 3 out of 5]

These are the stories, or at least snippets of stories, of more than 300 Australian women and the roles they played during WWII. These roles ranged from working on the homefront, volunteering, farming, nursing, being medical aides etc all the way through to being members of the Armed Forces.
Despite being brief, each woman has a story to tell and those stories are often very poignant. I particularly enjoyed the chapter on Medical Sides, which included women who were VADs (Voluntary Aid Detachments) which was what my mother did during the war. Like many of the women mentioned in this chapter, she was at Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital for some part of the war, and the stories felt so real I could almost hear Mum's voice and imagine her photo appearing on these pages along with all the other women. I loved, too, that, amidst all the hardship and suffering, these women seemed to remain happy and resilient.
The most negative aspect of this book was the brevity (only a paragraph or so) of most of the stories. I found it quite frustrating that we did not hear any details and that the stories had little depth. ***

[Shreedevi Gurumurty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Australian women during WWII played a larger role than they had during WWI.Many women wanted to play an active role in the war, and hundreds of voluntary women's auxiliary and paramilitary organisations had been formed by 1940. These included the Women's Transport Corps, Women's Flying Club, Women's Emergency Signalling Corps, and Women's Australian National Services.The federal government and military did not initially support women being trained to serve in the armed forces, however, and these organisations were not taken seriously by the general public.But then, a shortage of male recruits forced the military to establish female branches in 1941 and 1942. The Royal Australian Air Force established the Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force (WAAAF) in March 1941, the Army formed the Australian Women's Army Service (AWAS) in October 1941 and the Australian Army Medical Women's Service (AAMWS) in December 1942, and the Women's Royal Australian Naval Service (WRANS) came into being in July 1942.Thousands more had joined the civilian Australian Women's Land Army (AWLA). Women also worked in 🏭. The war brought people together across Australian society's different classes. Women from all walks of life found themselves working alongside each other. This new environment brought opportunities for social barriers to be broken down. The war was possibly a unifying factor, as Australian women put differences and perceptions aside for the good of the nation. One potential advantage was that women could see that they shared the same concerns and that there was more to be gained in Australian society if they worked together for the advancement of their roles and rights.