Monday, December 19, 2011

Fair Stood the Wind for France by H.E. Bates


At the unbelievably young age of twenty-two, John Franklin crash lands his Wellington bomber in Occupied France during World War II.  Despite a badly injured arm, he and his four fellow airmen make their way through fields and wood under the cover of night in search of somewhere safe to shelter. 

Franklin's declining health forces the group to trust a French family who take in the airmen despite the threat of being shot for assisting the enemy.  Francoise, the daughter, is still in her teens but exudes both confidence and courage beyond her years.  She soon bonds with Franklin layering this war novel with a love story which Bates blends to perfection.  And make no mistake, the war he writes about is not romanticized and the love affair is far from sentimental.

Each new character appearing on a page brought about new twinges of suspicion.  Every decision to be made from which road to take, where to cross on the river and who to trust could be life or death.  I'm quite sure I held my breath for half of this book and cursed everything that made me have to put it down. 

If you need further convincing here is the link to Reading Matters and thank you to Kimbofo for leading me to a stellar read.

10 comments:

  1. I checked this out from the library a while back after reading Kim's review but found the edition I had too difficult to read, with awful font in a distracting size. But what I did read, I loved! Now even further convinced by your review, I'm looking forward to tracking down the Penguin edition and enjoying it fully sometime soon.

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  2. I don't need convincing at all. I read everything I could find by H E Bates in my teens, after first seeing a very good television adaptation of Love for Lydia and then falling in love with his writing. His profile has slipped in recent years - as with many of his male contemporaries - which is a pity because there is some fine writing there.

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  3. So glad you enjoyed it!! I thought it was just a lovely read, quite dramatic in places, romantic in others, the type of book you get completely lost in.

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  4. Claire, I can be picky about font as well and no amount of desperation can persuade me to read something where it's too small or too large.

    fleurfisher, Well I will do my best to spread the word at my library about this wonderful author and look for more of his material. I like the sound of Love for Lydia!

    kimbofo, Thank you so much for writing about this fabulous book and the sublime reading experience. Oh, and for stopping by!

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  5. I have been meaning to read this for years Darlene! I am going to get around to it next year, you have convinced me I shouldn't put it off any longer!

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  6. Ok, now I have to read this. My own copy has been dug out...

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  7. bookssnob, It's one of those magical reads, Rachel. A read so gripping that you stay right there in the moment, no daydreaming, no drifting to thoughts of your next read, it's fabulous!

    StuckInABook, A wonderful thing about having enough books on hand to stock your own bookshop, Simon! I'm so glad you have this at your fingertips, hopefully you enjoy it as much as I did.

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  8. This sounds wonderful and I will add it to my list of books to read. I love all the book recommendations at this time of the year because I am so inspired to read books of quality when the new year begins, a resolution of sorts, and so many bloggers such as yourself are excellent resources on what to read next. Thanks for another recommendation!

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  9. My library has an old copy of this (must admit I love this cover), and I have been meaning to check it out. It will have to wait now until 2012 as I am on (bliss!) vacation, but I think I might be able to find SomeThing to read! Ooh, and I see you have moved on to Elizabeth Taylor...I need to read more by her next year, too. (Get in line ET). :)

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  10. Sunday Taylor, This book is a definite must-read. In fact, my copy is from the library and I left it in my car last night because I couldn't bear to return it just yet. Follow my dear book blogger friends and you'll have a bookcase full to bursting in no time, Sunday!

    Danielle, Isn't it lovely!? The power of gorgeous cover art because I'm not sure if the title or description would have necessarily drawn me in. Well, that review by Kimbofo was the clincher really. And there is a celebration of Taylor's writing going on at LibraryThing for her centenary if you're interested! Check out the Virago group.

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