Band of Sisters
A Novel
Lauren Willig
- "A
- crackling
- portrayal
- of
- everyday
- American
- heroines…A
- triumph."
—
- Fiona
- Davis,
- New
- York
- Times
- bestselling
- author
- of
- The
- Lions
- of
- Fifth
- AvenueA
- group
- of
- young
- women
- from
- Smith
- College
- risk
- their
- lives
- in
- France
- at
- the
- height
- of
- World
- War
- I
- in
- this
- sweeping
- novel
- based
- on
- a
- true
- story—a
- skillful
- blend
- of
- Call
- the
- Midwife
- and
- The
- Alice
- Network—from
- New
- York
- Times
- bestselling
- author
- Lauren
- Willig.A
- scholarship
- girl
- from
- Brooklyn,
- Kate
- Moran
- thought
- she
- found
- a
- place
- among
- Smith’s
- Mayflower
- descendants,
- only
- to
- have
- her
- illusions
- dashed
- the
- summer
- after
- graduation.
- When
- charismatic
- alumna
- Betsy
- Rutherford
- delivers
- a
- rousing
- speech
- at
- the
- Smith
- College
- Club
- in
- April
- of
- 1917,
- looking
- for
- volunteers
- to
- help
- French
- civilians
- decimated
- by
- the
- German
- war
- machine,
- Kate
- is
- too
- busy
- earning
- her
- living
- to
- even
- think
- of
- taking
- up
- the
- call.
- But
- when
- her
- former
- best
- friend
- Emmeline
- Van
- Alden
- reaches
- out
- and
- begs
- her
- to
- take
- the
- place
- of
- a
- girl
- who
- had
- to
- drop
- out,
- Kate
- reluctantly
- agrees
- to
- join
- the
- new
- Smith
- College
- Relief
- Unit.Four
- months
- later,
- Kate
- and
- seventeen
- other
- Smithies,
- including
- two
- trailblazing
- female
- doctors,
- set
- sail
- for
- France.
- The
- volunteers
- are
- armed
- with
- money,
- supplies,
- and
- good
- intentions—all
- of
- which
- immediately
- go
- astray.
- The
- chateau
- that
- was
- to
- be
- their
- headquarters
- is
- a
- half-burnt
- ruin.
- The
- villagers
- they
- meet
- are
- in
- desperate
- straits:
- women
- and
- children
- huddling
- in
- damp
- cellars,
- their
- crops
- destroyed
- and
- their
- wells
- poisoned.Despite
- constant
- shelling
- from
- the
- Germans,
- French
- bureaucracy,
- and
- the
- threat
- of
- being
- ousted
- by
- the
- British
- army,
- the
- Smith
- volunteers
- bring
- welcome
- aid—and
- hope—to
- the
- region.
- But
- can
- they
- survive
- their
- own
- differences?
- As
- they
- cope
- with
- the
- hardships
- and
- terrors
- of
- the
- war,
- Kate
- and
- her
- colleagues
- find
- themselves
- navigating
- old
- rivalries
- and
- new
- betrayals
- which
- threaten
- the
- very
- existence
- of
- the
- Unit.With
- the
- Germans
- threatening
- to
- break
- through
- the
- lines,
- can
- the
- Smith
- Unit
- pull
- together
- and
- be
- truly
- a
- band
- of sisters?
pro-mbooks3 : libris
