A really enjoyable book set In 1970s London mainly where a young Suyin leaves Penang to take up her place as a trainee nurse at Bethnal Green Hospital in London, What a brave girl she is although she had followed her sister Hua who went to the same hospital, but returned home.

She soon encounters many challenges as the hospital is very busy with strict senior staff. She makes friends quite easily but there is the constant worry about the family back home who are not well off. This worry is explained as she write frequently to her father, and sends a little money to him as well.

With a little nod to the TV series 'Call The Midwife' the book is beautifully written and I particularly enjoyed Part 3. No more spoilers although you may guess she falls in love,, her friend is pregnant but all is wrapped up at the end perfectly.

Thanks to Net Gallery and Bonnier Books for the chance to read and review.

This is a novel about a young woman, Suyin, who leaves her home in Penang, Malaysia, and goes to London to train as a nurse during the 1970s. Am interesting read, the writer covers the problems and barriers to success that were common during this time; highlighting the casual racism that was an accepted part of British life.

Suyin is keen to find out what happened to her sister ,Hua, who had also started training in London but then unexpectedly returned home, with only an old A-Z map as a clue.
The author draws a vivid picture of Suyin's life in London as she settles into her training, making friends and gaining new experiences.
This was an informative and interesting read, but the story really gathers pace towards the end of the book when Suyin receives unexpected news from home.
An interesting story, with characters you grow to care about.

Wonderful novel. Loved the accuracy of the nursing, the complex romances. The emotions of the characters was reall brought out with their trials and tribulations. A lovely ending which was unexpected

I loved this book about Suyin, a second daughter of Malaysian parents, who goes to London to train to be a nurse in 1971. Her sister went to London first, but has returned in mysterious circumstances, which Suyin investigates during her time in the city.
I enjoyed thinking about the fact that nurses were not permitted to have boyfriends or husbands and keep their jobs in the early 70s - it’s not that long ago. The freedom Suyin attains is explored, with her arrival in a strange land being a strong start to the book. The clash of cultures between choosing to date a Malaysian friend from home, or the dashing British doctor is depicted well.
I enjoyed this book, I’ll certainly look out for more from this author.
Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC

Set mostly in London in 1971, "Bethnal Green" tells the story of Suyin Lim, who travels from Penang to England to follow her goal of becoming a nurse, like her sister before her. Before she can leave, her sister comes home unexpectedly and without explanation. Suyin still chooses to go and adjust to her new life in London while trying to find out what caused her sister to leave.

Things I loved
- It paints a vivid picture of London in the 1970s from an immigrant’s perspective.
- Suyin is a well-rounded character with struggles that many can relate to.
- It strikes a good balance between personal growth and cultural/familial challenges.
- The book pays a touching tribute to healthcare workers without being overly sentimental.

Things I Didn't Love
- Some plot points, like the mystery involving the London A-Z map could have been more developed.

I wanted to read this book because my mother was a nurse in England in the 1970s, and this book delivered the details I wanted. 'Bethnal Green' will be a hit with readers who enjoy historical fiction, especially those interested in stories about immigration, the experiences of healthcare workers, or life in 1970s London.

Thank you to Bonnier Books and NetGalley for providing an eARC for review.

Bethnal Green follows Suyin when she travels to London from Malaysia to complete training to become a nurse. The book explores what it was like to live and work in London as an immigrant in 1970s England. As a work of historical fiction, the author includes information on events that happened and affected Suyin and her family in both England and Malaysia. This was a very emotional story, and the author takes you on a journey as you watch Suyin grow and witness the struggles she faces. This was a well written story that I really enjoyed reading.

Suyin is a strong character who clearly cares greatly for her friends and family. She is moral and always trying to do the right thing by her family and those around her. The romance in Bethnal Green is developed well, considering Suyin is not permitted to form romantic relationships during her nursing training.

Bethnal Green is like a character study of Suyin and how she responds to events and information when she finds out about it. Suyin moves to London to help her family and to also seek answers about what happened to her sister Hua, who returned abruptly from London and wouldn't talk about her experiences. This book was a very touching story about family, love, loss, and a sense of belonging.

Thank you to Amélie Skoda and Bonnier Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Follows Suyin Lim who leaves her childhood home of Penang to train as a NHS Nurse in the East End of London in the 1970s
London isn’t what she expected but she soon makes friends and settles
Gives an insight into 1970s England - covering immigration and the unrest of the time
Written with such empathy and emotion
Thanks @amelieskoda @bonnierbooks & @netgalley for the fabulous moving debut novel

What a beautiful book. The writing was so warm. It was so thoughtful to both place and culture and people. It portrayed the different nuances of this plot brilliantly.
I felt for all the characters here. Especially pur main one Suyin.
Saying is overjoyed at thr chance to move to London and a chance at life there. She loves her family and is borrowed then when I stead of going to join her sister, her sister returns a shadow of her former self. What happened? Too late to find out she arrives in London. And it's here she has to navigate a new home, not always welcoming. And the grueling state of our NHS. But we'd all be lucky to ha e Suyin look after us.
A beautiful beautiful book. I loved this.

Suyin, a seamstress in Penang, is meant to join her sister as a NHS nurse in London. Before Suyin leaves, her sister returns home unexpectedly as a changed woman. Reluctantly, Suyin leaves her home and her family for 1970s London to begin her training in London. In this stunning book we get to join Suyin how she adapts to a new life in England.

Amelie Skoda writes with an immense amount of compassion and sensitivity for Malaysia, London and its people

"Bethnal Green" by Amélie Skoda is a captivating historical fiction novel set in the early 1970s. It follows Suyin Lim, a young Malaysian woman who leaves her home in Penang to train as a nurse at Bethnal Green Hospital in London. The story delves into Suyin's experiences as she navigates the challenges of a new country, the demands of the NHS, and the complexities of personal relationships and the underlying pull of home and family in Penang .

Bethnal Green by Amelie Skoda

In the 1970s, Suyin leaves Penang to take up a place as a trainee nurse at Bethnal Green Hospital in London, England. Seeking a better life is not without challenges - settling into a very different country, working in the overworked and underfunded NHS, making new friendships and relationships - and always the worry and guilt about the family she has left behind and the hardships they face.

Wow, what a fantastic story - I absolutely loved it! Such a fascinating period of history and the author creates a strong sense of place in both Penang and Bethnal Green. The characters were also brilliantly portrayed and I loved the details of their clothes, hairstyles, music and social activities. Very VERY highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

Bethnal Green is a hopeful coming-of-age story set between London and Penang in 1971. Suyin has just arrived in London as a student nurse at Bethnal Green Hospital, following in the footsteps of her sister who has recently, suddenly, moved home to Malaysia. As Suyin explores London, she finds herself falling in love with the city, its people, and the immersive, rewarding work of caring and nursing for her patients.

At its heart, Bethnal Green is a gorgeous historical fiction that brings together sisterhood, self-discovery and hope. I loved Suyin so much; she felt like a little sister to me: switched-on, naïve, relatable and resilient. And it's true what the marketing says: this is a love letter to the NHS and the teams of nurses that keep it running. There isn't too much medical speak in the story, just a warm undercurrent of just what nurses do for us all.

I read this book over the course of 36 hours and was completely addicted. I love an immigrant story and especially all of the beautiful descriptions of my own beloved Malaysia. I just wish we had a bit longer in the story: Suyin talks about her sister's London A-Z map but I didn't get a satisfactory reason to why it'd been mentioned so much. The last 'part' felt a little disjointed and rushed, too, with more of the family-between-seas thread explored than in any other part of the book.

All in all, an enjoyable debut from Amélie Skoda that really got me in the heart.

What a gorgeous book this is. We follow six years in the life of Suyin Lim who leaves her childhood home in Penang to train as an NHS nurse in England in the early 1970s. London isn’t what she expects but she soon makes good friends with other trainees, settles in her adopted country and works hard in a role she comes to love but life is anything but smooth sailing. The book gives an insight into 1970s England and the unrest and troubles of the times and covers topics like immigration, family ties and secrets, friendship, love and hard decisions one has to make in life.

I find it hard to put this book into words but I really enjoyed it and would recommend if you are looking for a historical novel written with empathy, emotion of an era not often explored.

'Bethnal Green' is an enjoyable and gentle story about Suyin, a young Malayasian woman who comes to London in the early 1970s to train as a nurse. It's a well written coming of age story with factual references to the 1970's in England and life in Malayasia. Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an early reading copy.

A thoughtful narrative which I enjoyed largely due to the geographically and historically accurate representation of Bethnal Green, a neighbourhood in which I have lived for nearly 15 years. Skoda weaves an engaging enough tale that deals with the complexities of Britain’s intertwining history of immigration and the NHS, but I ultimately found her prose and characterisation somewhat flat. I look forward to more from her though, and more stories like this one, as her talents evolve.

This has been described as "a love letter to the NHS", which makes it sound cornier than it is, but I can see why. We follow Suyin, who moves to London from Penang, Malaysia, in 1971 to train as a nurse in Bethnal Green Hospital. She works hard under strict rules - no dating, no boyfriend - a rule she eventually breaks -, the open racism she encounters, the long hours, to send money back home and build a better life for herself. Her sister Hua had attempted to take a similar course a few years prior but left abruptly, something that Suyin is trying to get to the bottom of.

It's definitely a light-hearted book, and the darker aspects of life for the characters are evoked but brushed aside quickly. I enjoyed the main character and the optimistic tone, the writing was light and smooth. I felt I learned a bit about Malaysia that I didn't know and enjoyed the family connections within the novel.

I’ve been really looking forward to reading this novel and it did not disappoint! Suyin’s story is told with warmth and empathy and plenty of historical detail. It was particularly interesting to see the lives of people at that time, as my parents and family were also immigrants from Malaysia, and I recognised some of the stories they would tell me about, such as the Malaysian curry pot lucks among students. Beautifully written and a real joy to read.

I had recently read quite a few hard-hitting intense books and I did wonder if my next read should have been something a bit more light-hearted, maybe a nice festive romcom. But I went with this one, slightly worried it would be quite depressing. But it's anything but. Yes, there are difficult topics - being away from home, women on their own, death, illness, racism - but it's wrapped up so well in this love letter to the NHS that the overwhelming effect is joy and hope.

It is very prose heavy, more narrative than dialogue - which is how I write - which was delightful. I really drew me in and I could walk alongside the characters.

Normally I note down my opinions on a book as I read it, and then put together the review at the end. But this was so addictive and I was so absorbed in it that I hardly wrote a thing.

It is a beautiful story and she's given equal weight to the characters and the plot. The main character of Suyin is gorgeous. She's so relatable (even if I am not from the same place or have the same job or are anything like her at all) and familiar, like a friend or sister. I was really willing her own to do well. There wasn't a dud character amongst them. Too many to go into detail here, but believe me when I say you'll fall in love with the lot of them.

It's historical yes, there's romance, family tensions, as well as adventure - and by adventure I mean similar to if Bilbo Baggins decided to eat a second fish for second breakfast kind of adventure, rather than the Bilbo Baggins fighting Smaug the dragon kind of adventure - I'm hoping some of my Tolkien fans are here too, otherwise I just sounded completely nuts.

Some bits are given more time than others. Overall the pacing works, but I do wish there had been slightly more detail on things - for example, she frequently talks about her sister's A-Z guide to London, but it's never fully explored. So things like that would just take it up a notch, but it didn't harm the enjoyment of the book.

It is true what the reviews are saying, it is a complete love letter to the NHS and to the nurses that keep it running, and it's not corny or oversentimental to say that. It's the book that I can imagine people will be buying for their nearest and dearest. I certainly will be.

It was really beautiful and I thoroughly enjoyed it and I read it in one day. It's so addictive. And yet I still think she's got room to grow, and I mean that in the most positive way. This is just her debut and it's amazing. Amélie is fabulous and I think she could be even more so, and I really cannot wait to see how she follows this up.

As someone who is a nurse I wholeheartedly can resonate with this 'love letter' to the NHS as it touched upon a lot of very serious and heartbreaking realities nurses have to face and also discusses difficulties Sujin faced as an immigrant nurse whilst also having to deal with her own familiar issues. Having made a lot of friends with nurses who have left their native country to come to the UK to work, I can understand (to a degree) the difficulties faced as I have heard so many stories from friends. I also loved the familiarity being based at Bethnal Green Hospital as I myself have worked at multiple hospitals (NHS and private) in London including completing my degree at King's college uni so that added an extra element to me.

I did my nurse training in London in the 70's and was looking forward to reading this book, perhaps as a nostalgic look at nursing in that era particularly from the viewpoint of an "overseas" nurse. I was slightly disappointed that, for me, it was as much about Sunyin's past and family traumas. which made it a different but equally interesting story to the one I expected, but I have to admit I did struggle slightly with the writing style which felt quite stilted at times.
Thank you to netgalley Bonnier books for an advance copy of this book