A Little Love Song

by Michelle Magorian

This is an alternative cover edition for ISBN 0749710616

At seventeen, Rose is convinced no one will ever love her, living as she does in the shadow of her beautiful, older sister Diana. If Diana is the swan, Rose is the ugly duckling. But for both girls this is going to be an extraordinary summer.

It is 1943 and the war has left its mark even in the sleepy seaside town where the girls have been sent out of harm's way. For the first time in their lives they are free of adult restriction.

For both girls it is a summer of self-discovery, but especially for Rose who unearths a love story set in another war, a story that becomes more real when she falls in love herself...

Genres: Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Romance, Fiction, Historical, World War II, British Literature

346 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

British children's author Michelle Magorian - author of the celebrated Goodnight, Mr. Tom (1981), which won The Guardian Children's Fiction Prize - was born in Southsea, Portsmouth, in 1947. She trained to be an actress, studying at the Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama, and at Marcel Marceau's L'école Internationale de Mime in Paris. While pursuing an acting career, Magorian became interested in children's books, writing her first novel for young readers (Goodnight, Mr. Tom) over the course of four and a half years.

Reviews

[Verity · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably my ultimate favourite book of all time. Not to be gushy, or anything. I first discovered this book when I was far too young for it. It was given to me by my sister when she moved out for university when I was about 7. I don't think I read it for a couple of years, but even then I was too young to really understand all the themes...(especially anything involving sex!) Since then I have read it at least 10 times and though not particular challenging or worth much "literary merit", it remains my favourite book because of its quaint charm and its likeable characters. I have fallen in love with this book and I feel that it is a great comfort to me. I view it as an old friend and look forward to re-reading it soon.

[Daisy May Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I seem to come back to A Little Love Song whenever I need comforting and so, it was with no surprise to myself when I found my way back to it recently. It's a wartime bildungsroman, the story of the summer where everything changes for the central character Rose. Rose and her beautiful sister, Diana, are sent to the seaside town of Salmouth in the care of a guardian whilst their mother goes off to entertain the troups. It's when the guardian doesn't arrive, the two sisters have to make a vital decision. Do they stay in the supposedly haunted cottage, the home of 'Mad Hilda', or do they go back to their real lives?

Michelle Magorian is perhaps better known for Good Night, Mr. Tom and is one of those authors who produces masterpieces every couple of years. A Little Love Song is one of those masterpieces. It's written very quietly; the prose is effortless and there's no place for high-dancing metaphors here. It is a story very much concerned with the quiet nature and sheer wonder of life and how people cross and move throughout their stories.

Rose's summer is a delight, a heartbreak, a wistful page-turn. As she discovers more about the previous inhabitant of the cottage - the so called 'Mad Hilda' - she seems to discover more and more about herself in the process. The development and resolution of Mad Hilda's story is heartbreaking and comes to bear more weight on Rose's life than either she or we ever thought possible.

A Little Love Song is the work of an author who is, I think, often forgotten and shouldn't be. This novel holds the hallmarks of some of her greatest work, the sensitive portrayal of a young individual bordering on adulthood and trying to find their way in the world.

It is a beautiful, beautiful book.

[Caelie Burns · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book when I was sixteen, about the same age as the main character Rose. All of her life Rose has lived in the self-imposed shadow of her beautiful older sister Diana. Rose thinks of herself as an ugly duckling and that no-one will ever love her like they love Diana. The novel “A Little Love Song”, by Michelle Magorian, is set on the coast of England in the summer of 1943. This coming of age love story focuses on Rose, a 17 year old girl who is growing into a woman in war time England.
Even though the book was set in war time England it was easy to identify with and bond with Rose. I agree with another review I read which stated that “A Little Love Song” is both a coming of age love story and a story about learning to enjoy oneself.” In order to truly enjoy ourselves we all need to be comfortable in our own skins, which is one of the lessons Rose teaches us. “A Little Love Song” is a classic romance with some mystery and suspense thrown in-a real page turner!
During summer vacation, with her older sister Diana, at a cottage in Salmouth, rose finds the key to a mysterious locked room. Her curiosity gets the better of her and she finds diaries inside the room. These diaries tell the tragic story of a girl about the same age as Rose. This part of the book was so well written you come to know and feel for the characters as if you were there.
This book is about growth and discovery. The many sub-plots keep you glued to the story to see what happens next. The story flows well and intertwines the story lines to a powerful conclusion.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading “A Little Love Song”, and HIGHLY recommend it to all women over the age of fifteen. It is a very good read and powerfully uplifting.

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't find an alternative cover to this monstrosity, it's like the publishers found some clip art at random and tried to compile all plot points in the book on the cover. It's truly horrific. Graphic designers must be haunted by this book, waking up in a cold sweat, murmuring to themselves... Never again...
At this point I say, definitely don't judge this book by it's cover, and by Goodnight Mr Tom being horrifically sad and scarring British junior school children for life. I do prefer A Little Love Song to Goodnight Mr Tom, and I would liken this to I Capture the Castle if darker themes were explored in it. I mean if Michelle Magorian didn't write about dark themes in a War Time novel, it'd clearly mean that I had stumbled into a different plain of existence.
Though I would say this novel is still quite light-hearted, with a lot of humour in it, whilst tackling these themes and not ignoring them or skirting round them briefly: this balance between these two themes is skilfully handled by Magorian and I don't think I've seen this too often in books.
Trigger Warnings for: coercion into sex by an awful emotionally manipulative teenage boy. Ick. I still feel the fury.

[ALPHAreader · Rating 5 out of 5]

I *loved* this book when I first read it as a 14-year-old (or thereabouts). Especially because there's romance in it that took me quite by surprise!... well - there's one very toxic romance that was quite bold for the way Magorian brings her heroine to realise that's NOT what love should be about, and then there's another - quieter - romance that highlighted female pleasure brilliantly. And all wrapped up in this WWII backdrop that showed what life was like on the Homefront and for those left behind.

There's also a great sister relationship at its story heart. AND - for those who have just seen the film 'Dunkirk' - a young soldier features who is dealing with physical and mental scars of surviving that ordeal.

All in all, this is one of Michelle Magorian's best - even better than her brilliant 'Good Night, Mr. Tom' (and that's really saying something!)

[QNPoohBear · Rating 3 out of 5]

Category: Somewhere between YA historical romance and women's fiction
Content: frank discussions of sex, sexuality, petting, semi-graphic love scenes

Seventeen-year-old Rose is sent to the English seaside village of Salmouth with her older sister Diana for safety during WWII while their actress mother tours with the E.N.S.A. (a British USO?). Rose is looking forward to a summer without school and when their chaperone gets called up, a summer without strict rules and the pressure to act a certain way. She dreams of escaping the shadow of her beautiful older sister Diana, who is not only beautiful but conventional and kind-everything Roe is not. Roe's solace is writing. She longs to put words to paper easily just to express herself. Her new home provides her with plenty of scope for the imagination, especially when she comes across a locked room full of hidden diaries from another woman during a war not so long ago. Rose relates to the story of "Mad" Miss Hilda, the former owner of the cottage where Rose and Diana now live. With a lovely bookshop and eccentric store owner to provide Rose with books for research, she should have no trouble writing a story, but the desire for her own love story is strong and when a boy named Derry shows an interest in Rose, she is eager to show everyone she isn't a child any longer.

I have mixed feelings about this book. I didn't expect a women's fiction novel starring a "nearly" 18-year-old naive young girl. I was far more interested in the story of "Mad" Hilda. The story broke my heart. I was absolutely appalled at the behavior of her family and Hilda's long nightmare. I'm not sure that was entirely legal. Hilda was a legal adult over 21 and surely could have found a way. My big disappointment was that sometimes Hilda's story was told rather than shown. I couldn't put the book down until I knew what happened to Hilda. We know she's dead but not her history. I found the dual plot a little too carefully constructed to parallel each other. The characters, Hilda, Rose and Dot come from different backgrounds and different times but their stories are a little too similar to be realistically coincidental. I kept waiting for Rose's story to parallel Hilda's more closely. I did appreciate the honest portrayal of teenage sexuality as uncomfortable and unhappy as it made me as a reader. It is very Judy Blume! Is this book banned?!

Rose is a difficult character to like. At first she's kind of an annoying teenager. She wants to be rebellious and tries but is too naive to really understand what she's getting herself into. She is a shockingly bad judge of character. My instincts were better than that at her age but she has led a sheltered life whereas modern girls are more aware of things than Rose is. Her character development is so good that by the end of the book I actually liked her. I rooted for her and sympathized with her at the end when she finally had an epiphany and grew up. Her sister Diana is a little too sweet and good for my taste. I did like her character development, although changes came out of the blue and were not subtle. The relationship between the two sisters is complicated like real life sisters and I appreciated that. Dot is strong and brave. I liked how she knew what she wanted and how to get it. I felt awful for her for having such a horrid family. I really liked her plot though there is a little bit of a fantasy element. I could have done without the graphic childbirth scene though.

The men are not quite as appealing as the heroine and her sister. Derry is not at all likable. I loathed him from the very beginning. His cousin, Alec, is much more appealing. A slightly more mature man who owns a bookstore with PTSD, he is more fleshed out than his younger cousin. I liked how open and honest he was with Rose (despite that being entirely unrealistic for that generation) and how Alec's story shows just how horrendous war is. Derry is still immature and young. He dreams of being a hero and still thinks of war as a fun adventure game. Death is still abstract to him. Alec knows better. As a mature reader, I found him a little more charming than Rose did at first. I loved his passion for books and his friendship with Miss Hilda. However, a coincidence pops up again and is super easy to guess.

The local people are wonderfully quirky! I adored the warm and loving Mrs. Clarence. She is a surrogate mother to Diana, Rose and Dot, never having had daughters of her own. I love how she doesn't hesitate to share what little material goods she has and how she makes up for it with love. The man with the horse and cart who speaks in an unintelligible local dialect is also fantastic. The author really had an eye and ear for village types. I disliked Mr. Partridge, the puffed up lawyer. He represents the patriarchy Hilda rebelled against.

This is a unique story for older teens and adults. I'm not sure I really liked it though.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this the first time when I was about 12 or 13, when I borrowed it from the local library. I loved it, and really identified with the main character when I was younger. I don't think I fully understood the themes (particularly regarding sex) when I first read it, but I did love the story of the woman who occupied the cottage before Rose and her sister, it being somewhat similar in vein to a family story.

Years later, I remembered the premise of the story, but not the title or author, and went searching for it. I finally found it, and have re-read it twice since then. It's my go-to story for comfort, as I love the characters, the setting, the love story, the coming-of-age themes, everything!

Something really refreshing about this book, is the independence it gives to women. As it is set during the war, this was something that was just becoming more common due to the absence of men. I loved that they had jobs and lives and conversations and everything, but not always with men around, or about men.

It's just a lovely book, and one I would really recommend, not just to young girls, but to anyone.

[Erika · Rating 4 out of 5]

Omläsning. Lånade den här från biblioteket när jag inte riktigt klarade av att läsa så mycket annat än gamla favoriter. Den här är kanske inte lika omskakande nu som när jag läste den första gången, själv tonåring, men den är fortfarande fin. Nu ser jag andra saker i den, till exempel hur kvinnors kamp för att själva få bestämma över sitt liv går som en röd tråd genom boken – men också hur den kommenterar könsrollerna (att en man som fått medalj för sina hjältemodiga insatser vid Dunkerque och sedan får ett sammanbrott anses omanlig när han börjar gråta).
Ja, jag läste den annorlunda nu än när jag var jämnårig med Rose. Mitt eget liv har gett mig fler erfarenheter som jag speglar i boken, Nu blir den mindre av en läromästare och mer av en kamrat.

[Liralen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good Night, Mr. Tom was my favourite book for approximately an age after I first read it in middle school, and I've meant for years to give A Little Love Song a go. In it, Rose and her older sister are off to the seaside for the summer, out of the way of war. It's meant to be a quiet few months for them, but they—Rose in particular—have some growing up to do.

Here's what's interesting about Rose: she and her sister, Diana, have grown up with some amount of money and privilege. They're sheltered: they barely know how to boil water. And when Diana befriends a young woman who is unmarried and pregnant, Rose is borderline appalled. She...doesn't know what she doesn't know, basically. Rose manages to learn that particular lesson fairly quickly (and redeems herself when it counts), but throughout the book she comes up, again and again, against her naïveté. She hasn't learned to judge what sorts of boys are worth her time and effort, and some of the decisions she makes are accordingly inadvisable. But that's what's great about the book: Rose makes these decisions, and then she lives with them. Nobody swoops in at the last moment to save her from her naïveté.

All's well in the end, of course. Readers will see some of it (e.g., the intersection between Hilda's story and Rose's) coming, but there's plenty to keep a reader on her toes. I wish I'd read this ten or fifteen years ago (when I was, you know, younger and less jaded...or something like that), but I'm glad it survived my bruised and battered to-read list.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adored this book as a teenager, and felt I really identified with Rose, and must have read it several times. It is a simple book and very predictable, but I don't care, it is still one of my favourite coming-of-age books, and I still hope I find my Alec :-)

[Jannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

2019/07/04 5/5

Finally have my own paperback copy ❤️ lord this book made me cry. Reading the passages about Mad Hilda's experience in the mental asylum. Felt it so deeply especially as my baby slept beside me ..


2015
I just reread this. Just as beautiful as the last time. And I appreciate the story of Mad Hilda more.

Two sisters Rose and Diana come to Saltmouth during World War 2 for 3 months. Their chaperone gets called up so they decide not to tell their mother and keep living by themselves in the old house, previously occupied by a woman "Mad Hilda".
The story centers around Rose or Roe who is nearly 18, feeling constrained by society and wanting to break out of the mold that her mother and her school want of her. Her older sister Diana, is the beautiful one, whom she feels she has to compete against. She feels free when she writes.
Saltmouth is like freedom. She meets new friends, discovers a world outside of what people tell her to think, writes stories, finds Mad Hildas diaries, discovers herself, gets manipulated by a shithead, helps give birth and falls in love with a lovely man.

That description is terrible. -.-

Michelle Magorian has a beautiful way of combining warmth, humor, British wartime, self discovery and heavy topics to make a very readable and touching story.
I'm a pretty wimpy person who hates reading about abuse or manipulation or just horrible reality but she makes it very readable in the few books I have read by her. Granted it wasnt abuse here, more just plain (quite obvious) manipulation by a prickhead. But also there was the horrors of mental asylums for unmarried pregnant ladies in Edwardian times in Mad Hilda's diaries..
I have my favourite passages but I can't bookmark them because this is a library book. #needtobuythisbook

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely book on lots of levels. I really liked the characters. I was shocked by some of the attitudes of the times. (my naiveté). I was glad to see such thoughts changing within the story. A good description of sexual feelings in a young girl. I enjoyed the atmosphere. Felt good about the ending. A wonderful visit to another time and place. Also known as A Little Love Song. Not a Swan is the US edition title.

[Niki E · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Michelle Magorian’s work - Back Home is one of my very favourite books from late primary school that I return to - but this one, aimed at slightly older readers, wasn’t it. It felt predictable and one-dimensional, like the sort of midday movie granny would enjoy. Unsubtle, although the theme of consent and coercion was fairly well handled.

[Elyia]

Dnf

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read it as a teenager and never forgot it. Beautiful.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Derry was one of the most infuriating characters I’ve ever had the displeasure of reading about. Apart from that I loved the book.

[Rae Stoltenkamp · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent coming of age novel which covers a wealth of themes related to prejudices of a particular era. A book about WW2 which focuses on what was happening on the home front rather than the war itself while never forgetting the horror of war. Refreshingly simple. Full of detail without feeling didactic.

[Kerry Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

A reread for me - first book of “Comfort Book February” for 2023 - WWII historic fiction, and a bit of a coming of age story about young women learning to let go of expectations and be true to themselves, even when unconventional or shamed. Strong message, fun story, remains a favorite!

[Abi Holligan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Little Love Song is set in 1943 during the war about two sisters Rose 17 and Diana 21 who are sent to Salmouth by their Mother whilst she is away on work. After their babysitter is called away they decide to stay by themselves and learn to cook and clean while they have the chance. The story mainly follows Rose as she finds a letter and a key to a hidden room where "Mad Hilda" used to live. Unlocking the door she finds all of "Mad Hilda's" belongings, including all her diaries. After a battle of privacy Rose begins to read Miss Hilda's story and is shocked by some of the entry's. Rose also meets two men Alec who owns a bookshop which she visits frequently and his younger cousin staying for the summer Derry. Whilst away both Rose and Diana find themselves, who they want to be, who they want to be with and finally feel like they have grown up.

I was borrowed this book by a friend and at first after reading the blurb, I didn't think it would be my type of book, set in 1943 and when the war was going on, I wasn't sure whether it would be that interesting but I was pleasently surprised.
I really enjoyed not only Rose's story but also Miss Hilda's, it was definately an eye opener of what things where like back then.
I didn't like Derry at all and I found I had good reason to.
I loved Alec and Rose's relationship although he was a bit older, they seemed to be with each other naturally.
I loved Dot, I thought she was funny and was glad that her and Rose became good friends.
I thought the ending was perfect, Alec finding out who his birth mother was (although I maybe guessed this) but I would liked to have known what happened further on. I thought a 5 years later or something would have been perfect in this case.

[Amy W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book I read as a child that I wanted to read again as an adult.

I've never read Michelle Magorian's most famous work Goodnight Mister Tom so I can't say how it compares to that. They're both based around the Second World War though.

This tale of two sisters growing up one summer is definitely a stereotypical girl's book, but I still think it is rather charming. The main characters are likeable and the story moves along nicely with the addition of various love interests and kindly older people to help them out.

For younger readers this is a worthwhile book as it talks about boys and relationships though not in a preachy way. You are seeing things through seventeen-year-old Rose's eyes. It has a nice message about waiting for the one you love and the importance of feeling comfortable with someone before giving yourself to them. Of course the war setting also gives a bit of background about rationing, shell shock, being called up etc that would benefit younger readers.

That said, the book isn't too babyish. In fact if Rose had been in her twenties or something I think the story would still stand up for adult readers as a tale of an awkward individual being tested and finding inner strength.

True, this isn't ground-breaking stuff or always totally realistic, but it's a pleasant little book that takes you through a few emotions. I like that the ending leaves you wondering about the future of the characters. It doesn't say what happened after the war, but you hope things worked out for them.

I enjoyed reading this again.

[Laura Sheldrake · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written YA fiction. Read many times and always enjoy.

[Kelly Hodgkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Honest and heartwarming, comfort read!"

If you could sum up A Little Love Song in three words, what would they be?
Love in its complexities

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Little Love Song?
Rose's first dance is a hysterical story that will live long after the book as well as her hours in the bookshop.

Which character – as performed by Michelle Magorian – was your favorite?
That's a tricky one, I appreciate Rose's spunk and Alec's sensibility and openness.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
Every moment is so honest, you cringe, blush, laugh and love with the characters, you move with them.

Any additional comments?
Delicious book, to be served as comfort. It isn't unpredictable or twisty just honest and lovely!

[Tamba · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my mums favourite books and I picked it up one day off the book shelf in my bathroom, (only warm place in the house!). Instantly I was hooked and spent the rest of the day snuggled on the sofa completely engrossed. It's definitely not a hard read but like a lot of Magorian's books it picks you up and sweeps you along giving you such a clear picture of everything that's happening and how each character is feeling.
I love this book and all it's characters, a must read in romantic fiction.

[Eve Hunter-Featherstone · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an absolute favourite of mine as a teenager and I am so glad I decided to revisit it. ALLS is a beautiful, heartwarming book that perfectly encapsulates British summertime by the sea, and keeps the reader gripped to the end. Magorian has written a story that is somehow both light-hearted yet deeply moving; providing the reader with a beautiful romance whilst also delving into the deeper topics of post-traumatic stress, unmarried pregnancy and sexual consent in the WW2 era. Exploring self-discovery and the tricky transition from youth to adulthood, this book is a definite must read.

[Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been enjoying Ms Magorian's books since I discovered "Goodnight Mister Tom". They seldom disappoint, and this is no exception. The story centers around a 17 'and a 1/2' year old girl during WWII. She and her sisters end up staying in a remote cottage while their mother is away. Some good characters and situations in this book, but should have some notice it isn't for the younger teens as this book has more sexual content that the others of this author that I've read. Still good read.

[Kitkat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful comfort reading.

A quiet little book, that portrays the coming of age of a charming but flawed girl. Love the setting, the local people, the Miss Hilda subplot. Rose is lovely, Dot, an unmarried mother, is fantastic. I could strangle Derry, but he was still human. Alec was... lovely. Great romantic hero, not the one Rose was looking for, a broken hero who supports Rose.

Just a lovely lovely book I return to whenever I'm feeling sad.

[Aimee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A long overdue reread, which made me sob several times. Such good hets.

[Nikole · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE this book...I read it first when I was about 12 or 13 and I always go back to it. My version is actually called "Not a Swan" so I wasn't sure if this was the book or not, but it is. It is a wonderful book for preteens, but even in my late twenties I still find it a very satisfying read :).

[Abra · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the US, this book is titled Not a Swan, and it is possibly my favorite of all the young adult historical fiction set during and immediately after WWII by Michelle Magorian. I wish she'd write more. Re-read 11/18/14; re-read again 1/7/16

[Anya · Rating 4 out of 5]

i read it last year i think...i cant' recall all the memories about it ,but i do remember not sleeping all night and reading like paranoid.it was interesting