This is an utterly adorable novel. There are no other words for it. I can see this being a massive hit - it certainly cheered me up during a miserable November with its message of Keep Calm and Carry On but don't be afraid to ask for help if you really need it. Dear Mrs Bird is less an historical novel than an immersion in the kind of imagined 1940s that we like to reminisce about, full of plucky girls, dashing chaps and a sense of stoic commitment to a good national cause. It verges on the twee at times, especially in its chapter titles - one, for example, is called 'The Prospect of Pineapple Chunks' - but carries all of this off with its sheer good humour and the way that it really makes you care about its central characters. Because of this, it's consistently gripping, and there's a tense few chapters about two-thirds of the way through where I genuinely couldn't put it down. I would recommend this to anybody who needs a pick-me-up.

I received a review copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley. I will post a fuller review when the book is published in April 2018.

What a poignant and funny novel set in wartime London when Emmy and her friend Bunny are sharing a flat at the top of Bunny’s grandmother’s home. Life is boring in the solicitor’s office so Emmy applies for a job with the press and through a misreading of her dream job as a war correspindent she ends up working for Mrs Bird in People’s Friend. Emmy cannot obey the strict rules of who Mrs Bird replies to in her Problem Page and begins for reply to the genuinely distressed ladies who write in with funny and disasterous results. Also into mix throw a fiancé who sends her a telegram saying he is marrying a nurse plus a dour fiction writer, some delightful publication staff and one gets a great novel. Bunny and William are part of her world as she works with him in Auxilliary Fire Service and he is Bunny’s soulmate. The war is at his height and the novelist’s carefully created story against this background brings alive the “live for day” attitude of those in wartime London who still went to the pictures or went dancing. A great read!

This book is made me laugh. It is funny in places and an easy read. Emmy is a likeable character who is trying to help but does not think out the consequences of what she is doing. There is a 1940s feel about the book. It easy to imagine being there. There has obviously been a lot of research put into this book.

I enjoyed this book,a bit different from my usual reads which usually have some historical content. It was a bit predictable at the end, but an enjoyable light hearted romp. I would read more from this author when I come across her.

London, 1940: Emmeline Lake spends her days working as a secretary for Strawman’s Solicitors and her nights as a volunteer telephone operator for the Auxiliary Fire Service, but dreams of a future as a Lady War Correspondent. Her dreams seem one step closer to coming true when she spots a job advertisement for an Office Junior at Launceston Press, publishers of the London Evening Chronicle.

Emmy imagines herself in a busy newsroom, learning the business of reporting from the ground up. Reality proves rather different though, and via an unfortunate failure to listen properly at her interview, Emmy accidentally finds herself instead at Woman’s Friend magazine typing up problem page letters for the ferocious Mrs Bird, whose list of Unacceptable Topics doesn’t leave much she’s willing to answer.

But there are a lot of women out there who need help and guidance, even on Unacceptable Topics. If Mrs Bird refuses to provide it, maybe Emmy should?

I knew from the first page I was going to love this book, and love it I did. Emmy is an incredibly engaging heroine - intelligent, funny, brave and loyal, but far from perfect. I should think it’s impossible not to warm to her and to root for her throughout, even when she makes somewhat rash choices. The other characters are similarly lovable (well.... maybe not Mrs Bird) and well drawn.

The frightening reality of life in blitz-torn London is not played down, and my tears were flowing freely at points as the effects of war came horribly close to home for Emmy.

If I have any complaint at all it’s that the ending was perhaps a little abrupt, although that could just be because I really didn’t want it to end!

A delightful read which I’m sure is destined to be very successful.

A similar review will also be posted in due course on my blog http://atickettoeverywhere,blogspot.co.uk and on Amazon.

A good easy read. Emmeline Lake, eager to become a "proper" wartime journalist, by accident winds up as the agony aunt's assistant of a women's magazine that is down on its luck. Will she be able to suppress her journalistic urges, will she survive the heavy bombing of London and find "The Man"?
At the start, the book seemed to be a bit too "jolly hockeysticks" for me, but soon I was eager to follow Emmy's footsteps and root for her in her ups and downs.

I enjoyed this book. I found the main character a bit saccharine at times,, but the storyline was interesting and absorbing.

I was a little confused at the start as to the target audience for this book, the language is reasonably young and flippant and to be honest this really annoyed me to start. By the time I'd read a few chapters this didn't matter and I'd fallen in love with the characters and sobbed my way through parts of the novel. This is a wonderful addition to WW2 fiction and if you liked Their Finest then this book is for you.

I thought this was a lovely story. I was a little bemused by the style initially until I realised it was aimed at the children's market. The story, set in wartime London, follows the fate of Emmy who wants to be a Lady War Correspondent and applies to work at a newspaper. The Blitz is going on but life continues with love, arguments, and growing up. It's a very gentle tale and I would recommend it for 10-13 year olds.

I really enjoyed this lighthearted, sweet story. Emmy is a very likeable character, and her friendship with Bunty is a perfect best friend friendship. I also really liked the various characters at the magazine where Emmy works, who were easy to imagine, even with just small sideline roles. The dark desperation of the London bomb raids was there, and yet they're written with a light touch. You see the horror, but it doesn't become such a depressing read that it's unbearable.

My only complaint was that I often felt like Emmy sounded too contemporary...although there are lots of bits of vocab from the period liberally sprinkled throughout they felt forced somehow. I'm probably being far too picky because I see lots of readers have already absolutely loved this. It was just a personal feeling, that something didn't quite sit right in the way the characters were talking. Perhaps there were just too many phrases that made it seem like the author was trying too hard to evoke the period? I'm not sure. It's a shame because otherwise I really did enjoy the story very much, and I was extremely anxious towards the end, worried for Emmy and the resolution of her story.

The Second World War may not seem like the most obvious place to start for a cheery read, but Dear Mrs Bird is a tonic for these doom-and-gloom times. The resilience of the characters, their optimism and their determination to make the best of what life throws at them is uplifting and refreshing. This book is like a hug, a cup of tea, and a ‘pull yourself together’ pep talk in book form. I’d definitely recommend!

I read this book in one sitting as it is such a great read. Living in London through WW2 Emmy aspires to be a journalist and is excited when she lands herself a job with a newspaper only to discover that there is a misunderstanding and she is employed as a typist to Mrs Bird who writes the advice column for the newspaper’s failing sister magazine. Mrs Bird is set in her ways and Emmy soon starts pushing the boundaries by answering the incoming letters herself. Will she be discovered? This book captures the effects of the blitz so well and walks us through the terror and pain experienced by so many but somehow manages to remain comforting and cheery. Thank you to Pan Macmillan for providing me with a free copy of this book for an honest review.

A few years ago I went on a writing retreat and one of the other people there mentioned the book she was working on - a book set in WW2 based around the problem page of a magazine. How interesting thinks I and forgets all about said book until the author pops up on Twitter having sold it as her debut. And this, dear readers, is that book. Let me just make it clear that a fleeting acquaintance three years ago hasn't influenced this review a jot. This is a clear and unbiased review.

Dear Mrs Bird is a beautifully written, original and poignant book set in the nineteen forties. What really sets it apart is the absolutely fantastic narration. AJ Pearce doesn't just tell us or even show us how Emmy (the heroine) feels, she inhabits her so completely that every word feels as if it comes straight from Emmy's diaries. At no point do I feel that I'm not reading the authentic voice of a young woman in the early 1940s. The cultural references, the tone, the morals, the slang - the gorgeous slang - the preoccupations, the sights, smells, fears and joys of the London Blitz are vividly brought to life and real. The book reminded me in that way of Eve Rice's The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets (and there can be no higher praise) in the way the past is so perfectly conjured up. It is superbly done.

Emmy lives with her friend Bunty (real name Marigold) in a flat near Pimlico. The war is raging and the two young women juggle jobs with their volunteer duties. Emmy spends three nights a week volunteering for the fire service whilst dreaming of being a war correspondent. When she sees an advertisement for a Junior at a leading paper she knows this is her chance - only to find herself not a junior correspondent in a busy newsroom but a typist for a failing women's magazine. Gamely she sticks it out hoping it might lead to Better Things, braving the terrifying Mrs Bird who runs the magazine and who answers the readers' letters on her advice page. But Mrs Bird is very strict - there mus be No Nastiness in her paper and so many problems go unanswered. Emmy is one of life's fixers and destroying the unanswered problems gets harder and harder. Surely there must be something she can do...

Emmy is a really engaging heroine - the book is full of fully-realised characters. My new literary crush is the dishevelled Mr. Collins, journalist, writer and, according to Emmy, mortifyingly old at around forty five, but I am also very fond of Roy, firefighter with a nifty foxtrot and poor Clarence the Post Boy with a Crush.

I really can't recommend this absolute delight of a book enough. Fingers crossed there is a sequel (with a lot of Mr Collins in it!) because I would love to know just what Emmy Does Next.

I'm not a huge fan of wartime fiction, but every now and again something extraordinary comes along, like The Book Thief or All The Light We Cannot See and the description grabs me and I want to read it. This book is one of those. It is really well researched and written. The language throughout is consistent with how I imagine people spoke back then. The descriptions, actions and narration bring the time to life and make you think about what it must have been like to live in London during the blitz. Added to that, the storyline is unique and different. It is the sort of fiction that will stay with me for a long time - a book I will remember.

Brilliant!

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

A lovely book I thoroughly enjoyed. Although sad at times the humour lifts it and I laughed out loud.

What an ebullient novel this is. It fairly fizzes off the page! I have already recommended it to several friends.

Resolutely upbeat young Emmy does her best to maintain her equilibrium as London “keeps the Luftwaffe busy”. Her day job is assistant to the formidable Mrs Bird, an agony aunt with ‘Woman’s Friend’ magazine, who bins any letters that smack of ‘unpleasantness’ (i.e. sex or even just romance). Emmy secretly dispenses advice to the lovelorn or lonely-hearted readers, such as recommending that a young woman marry her Polish airman sweetheart in the face of parental disapproval.

Meanwhile, in her free time, Emmy doubles up as a volunteer with the fire service, and this brings her face to face with the ever-present dangers of the London blitz. It’s so well researched, giving a real sense of what it was like to live, work and love in war-time London, with appealing humour and without ever tipping over into sentimentality.

I really warmed to Emmy. She is always putting her foot in it, with the very best of intentions. I also enjoyed the letters from readers; they show what exercised people’s minds in the 1940s.

I wasn't sure about this book as it is written in a 'jolly hockey sticks' style and was a little old fashioned in the telling with somewhat predictable conclusions. However, one does warm to the characters, particularly the main character Emmy who tackles life with gusto and a lot of naivety in wartime London. It is quite funny and humorous which is well written in a style of the period. It is a very light read and quite charming in it's way with forgotten values and spirit of helping others within a difficult time. There is also an wonderful 'do gooder' in Mrs Bird herself who is formidable, it would have been nice to know her background and why she was such an old dragon. Underlying everything is lasting friendship which, despite ups and downs, wins through. It seems well researched and one can only imagine the horrors of London during the Blitz with people trying to make the best of it and surviving.

I love this book so much. It's so much fun to read. Emmy and her friend Bunty are making a go of it in London, sharing Bunty's granny's flat and doing their bit for the war effort. Emmy is a volunteer fire officer, but dreams of being a war correspondent, and when the chance of an interview at a well known publishing house comes up, she jumps at it, only to find she is working for the irascible Mrs. Bird and her fearsome and old fashioned problem page. Emmy, ever resourceful, decides to make her job a little more than it should be. This is funny and perfectly mannered in style. It has a fantastic back story, which actually, as the book progresses, becomes the meat on the bones and gives this depth and drama. My only criticism is that it was over too soon.

I found this a very entertaining idea for a story, and indeed, the story was told in a very entertaining way.

When Emmeline Lake, known as Emma to her friends, excitedly turns up for what she thinks is going to be her first day as a War Correspondent, she discovers to her great dismay that a teeny omission in the advertisement to which she’d replied, meant that she was going to be working for a woman's magazine with a dwindling readership, and not in a mainstream London newspaper.

And for the work she’d be doing, rather than delving into the world of foreign affairs, she’d be handling letters which dealt with a different sort of affair, as she was to assist Mrs Henrietta Bird, the magazine's larger-than-life Agony Aunt and Acting Editress.

A woman of strong opinions, from the outset Mrs Bird made it clear to Emma that she would not countenance a reply to any letter containing anything 'disagreeable' or 'unsuitable', and Emma soon realised that Mrs Bird's definition of those terms meant that every letter dealing with any of the real problems faced by women, young and old, in wartime Britain, would be binned.

Needless to say, resourceful Emma, who had a tendency to act first and think afterwards, soon finds herself breaking free from her confines and doing exactly what she shouldn’t, and her first attempts to reach out to distressed readers form much of the first half of the novel.

The mood changes in the second half of the novel, when the reader sees Londoners suffering under the onslaught of German bombs, and lives with Emma through the many difficulties faced by those still living and working in London, difficulties which touch Emma and her close friends, Bunty and Bill.

There is a lovely gentle humour running through the first part of the novel, which endears the reader to the characters, and because of that, the second part of the novel, in which the horrific effects of war are clearly depicted, is very moving.

A most enjoyable book which will make you laugh, and also move you to tears.

A lovely slice of wartime life - familair enough to appeal to fans of family saga etc, but fresh enough to garner a wider readership. Emmeline is one of those derring-do girls from Blyton etc, all grown up and with the problems of her age and era. But she has Bunty to keep her steady, and a new job to embrace. Alright, it might not be exactly as she was expecting, but it still allows her to do a lot a good. Maybe. On the quiet. So lovely to read a book with a strong friendship at its heart.