I read this book alongside my book group and we all universally adored it. It is uplifting and hopeful and is a perfect read if you need a little perk up. She writes beautifully and it is a wonderful story.

Really enjoyed this book, I read it in a matter of days and loved getting to know Emmy and the rest of the characters, the book was well written and perfect to just pick up when I had a spare few minutes. The descriptons of war time britain seemed to be true to life and I imagined Emmy to speak like the queen!! Definintley recommended!

A charming read set in the problem page department of a wartime periodical. I enjoyed the problems sent in and the conflict which they produced amongst the staff. The main character was engaging despite the fact that I didn’t agree with all her choices.

A really lovely book about the WW2 effort in London and what it would be like if a young woman decided to hijack an advice column in a struggling women’s magazine.

Funny, entertaining and easy to read, I’ll be looking forward to the author’s next book.

With thanks to Pan Macmillan and NetGalley.

This is a lightweight, cozy read with a heartbreaking ending. I did enjoy it but Im not sure I would read more from this author.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in return for an honest review.

Very slow paced but it was a nice story and I did enjoy it. Even though it was about war there was no UNPLEASANTNESS. Worth a read and I would definitely read a sequel.

Oh this is just so wonderfully sweet!

Set during the second world war, it revolves around Emmy, who wants to be a female war correspondent but ends up typing for the eponymous Mrs Bird, an agony aunt who has little time or patience for most types of agony.

I thoroughly enjoyed this. Yes, it's very jolly hockey sticks and the language veers into anachronisms at times, but that's it's charm and if you don't mind that you'll be treated to a real gem of a book.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC without obligation.

I'm afraid I am in the minority with this book. I am one of the few (perhaps even the only one) who didn't finish The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and Dear Mrs Bird was the same for me.

This is a failing on my part and certainly not that of the authors. I have learned that this style of novel doesn't suit me but I know for a fact that many other readers will absolutely love it.

I am in charge of our Senior School library and am looking for a diverse array of new books to furnish their shelves with and inspire our young people to read a wider and more diverse range of books as they move through the senior school. It is hard sometimes to find books that will grab the attention of young people as their time is short and we are competing against technology and online entertainments.
This was a thought-provoking and well-written read that will appeal to young readers across the board. It had a really strong voice and a compelling narrative that I think would capture their attention and draw them in. It kept me engrossed and I think that it's so important that the books that we purchase for both our young people and our staff are appealing to as broad a range of readers as possible - as well as providing them with something a little 'different' that they might not have come across in school libraries before.
This was a really enjoyable read and I will definitely be purchasing a copy for school so that our young people can enjoy it for themselves. A satisfying and well-crafted read that I keep thinking about long after closing its final page - and that definitely makes it a must-buy for me!

A charming World War 2 story set out in epistolary form with an engaging writer. The spirit if the Blitz, Dad's Army and all that British pluck makes for cheerful if, at times, bitter-sweet reading.

A charming, irresistible debut novel set in London during World War II about an adventurous young woman who becomes a secret advice columnist—a warm, funny, and enormously moving story for fans of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and Lilac Girls.

A lovely story set in WWII. Set in London ,sad and funny. Bringing the characters to life, the author adds depth and you feel real emotion. So much so you invest in the character development. Emmy particularly stands out. If you enjoy stories based on wartime and want a feel good experience. I really recommend this.

I absolutely loved this book and cannot wait to read their next! It’s not my usual genre but I found it so heartwarming and totally connected with the characters. I have recommended to friends and online book forums.

A very enjoyable novel about friendship, love, and trying to do the right thing when the world is literally collapsing all around you. Evocative and witty, it's a charming read that also manages to give a window into the heartbreaking reality of living in London during WW2 as well. If you like fiction set in the 1940s you'll enjoy this.

I've had this on my list to read for a while, and finally got to it, and wasn't disappointed at all!

Dear Mrs Bird follows a young girl, Emmy Lake, as she lives in London with her best friend Bunty in the midst of World War 2.

She has dreams of becoming a journalist, whilst holding down a secretarial job and helping at the Fire Station on night shifts.

Her dream looks set to come true as she finds an advert for a job as a Junior at a proper paper, and she gets it but isn't prepared for what she was actually employed for.

Emmy finds herself as a typist for the Editress, Mrs Henrietta Bird, who is a formidable character with extremely high morals and the opinion that everyone should be able to solve their own problems by growing a spine. Not always helpful for advice if you are the actual columnist that women around the country write to.

Reading through correspondence from many women, and realising Mrs Bird wouldn't even give most of the letters the time of day, Emmy takes it upon herself to write back to some, with more sympathetic advice and even speaks some replies into the actual magazine.

Having lived through a wartime engagement with her own beau which ends rather abruptly, and having to deal with a personal tragedy involving her own best friend, Emmy is more than capable of answering the worries of the young women around her, in a way that Mrs Bird never would.

Does she get found out? Does she get her own column? Does she find love?

Well, you'll have to read it to find out!

I love books set in wartime London and this was an easy read, with plenty of laughs as well as tearjerking moments. The only thing that was a little grating was when certain parts of the text were in capitals...

But I'd definitely recommend it as a good read!

Many thanks to NetGalley, PanMacmillan and Picador for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

I wasn’t sure I would like Dear Mrs Bird by A J Pearce because, although it’s historical fiction and one of my favourite genres, it has received so much hype that made me wonder if it was over-hyped and whether I’d find it a bit of a disappointment.

It is written in a chatty style, which makes it a quick and easy read. It’s set mainly in 1941 in London. The main character is Emmeline (Emmy) Lake, a young woman who yearns to be a war correspondent and gets a job on a magazine, Woman’s Friend as she thinks, mistakenly that this will lead to her becoming a war correspondent. However, what the job entails is being a junior typist working for Mrs Henrietta Bird, the agony aunt on the magazine’s Problem Page.

Mrs Bird is a formidable woman who has no time for what she calls Unpleasantness and she will not answer any letters that she considers to be Unacceptable – and there is a long list of topics that come under that heading, mainly anything to do with relationship problems of any kind, religious or political activities or opinions and the war. But Emmy can’t help getting involved and, failing to persuade Mrs Bird to answer the letters, decides to write back herself, and even to publish a couple of answers in the magazine. Needless to say, this is not a Good Idea and she lands herself in all Kinds of Difficulties.

At first I thought I wasn’t going to enjoy this book as it comes over as not only chatty, which I liked, but also full of slang – too breezy and clichéd in a ‘jolly hockey sticks’ style with an over-use of capital letters For Emphasis, which I found a bit irritating. But then, as the scattiness of the first part of the book faded somewhat and concentrated more on Emmy’s voluntary work with the Fire Service, the tone changed giving a vivid picture of what life was like during the Blitz. Emmy is a well-meaning young woman, if a little misguided in her efforts to help people, but she tries very hard to correct her errors when things did not turn out as she had hoped. Overall, then I did enjoy it and think it gives a good sense of the times and the realities of the war for the ordinary people at home.

My thanks to the publishers, Picador for my review copy via NetGalley.

Emmeline Lake is ambitious. She wants to be a journalist, a woman in a man’s world, a Lady war correspondent. Someone who sniffs out the story and feeds it to the masses. When she answers an ad in the newspaper and gets the job she thinks all her eggs have hatched at once. Unfortunately she finds her new position is not only not at the newspaper it’s only as the typist for the formidable agony aunt of a women’s magazine with low readership.

Emmeline decides to see it as a temporary situation, a stepping stone to the bigger world of journalism, but she hasn’t bargained with Mrs Henrietta Bird. Never has she met a more cantankerous, narrow-minded and prudish woman. The poor young girls and women who write to Mrs Bird aren’t aware that their letters are judged and discarded within a moments notice. Never shall there be a mention of anything in any way scandalous or inappropriate.

Emmeline finds herself drawn to the worries, questions and concerns of the women. She makes an impulsive decision, which could potentially end her budding career.

This all takes place in London during WW2 and the heavy bombing of the town by the Germans. Trauma and fear play a poignant part in this story, and also the bravery of the men. women and children who tried to survive in the bomb plagued areas of England.

In a way this book puts the whole agony aunt column into perspective, well actually it shines a completely different light on it. That it might be a way of crossing the boundaries of oppression when it comes to topics which may be controversial or being the confidante for people who have no other person to confide in.

I wonder how many of us would do the same thing as Emmeline given half the chance. The possibility of easing the worried minds of a few women here and there, and of course the act of defiance against the patriarchy of society. Just the simple feeling of knowing that one isn’t alone with a problem, be it a mundane one or one of a more serious nature. Women supporting other women.

It’s amusing, and yet also a tale of bravery at the same time. Mrs Bird is an endearing story of hope, spontaneity, determination and courage.

This is a gorgeous novel and I enjoyed every minute that I spent reading it. Emmy applies for a job on a newspaper but is shocked to find on her first day that she isn’t going to be a war correspondent but an assistant to the resident agony aunt. She overcomes her disappointment and finds that she wants to help the women who write in. The novel is set during WW2 so there are some sad moments but the novel on the whole is heartwarming and is such a comforting read. If you haven’t already read this then I recommend you grab a copy and read it asap!

A really quirky book - liked the main characters and the whole premise of the story. Did not always follow the path I thought it might.

There are some books that you just know you’re going to enjoy as soon as you start reading, and Dear Mrs Bird is one of them. The story is a simple one- Emmy is a young woman living in the early 1940’s and desperate to be a journalist she applies for a job that she thinks will be the first step to becoming a war correspondent. Instead she finds herself working for the very unpleasant Mrs Bird on the agony aunt column for a failing magazine. Given that Mrs Bird won’t even look at any letters she deems ‘inappropriate’ she is providing no help whatsoever to the readers and Emmy takes things into her own hands, despite the advice of her best friend Bunty and it goes on from there. The writing is easy, the characters are likeable (apart from Mrs Bird, obvs) and to be honest there isn’t a huge amount of complexity or nuance to any of them. However, the story doesn’t shy away from the realities of the Blitz where danger, tragedy and courage are part of the everyday, and the portrait of Emmy and Bunty’s friendship is engaging and emotive. It was just an incredibly enjoyable reading experience and I would really recommend it as a nice quick read which will pull on your heart-strings.