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

A gentle and heart felt portrayal of a Malaysian young woman who moves to London to train as a nurse in the early 1970s. I engaged with the story and the characters and enjoyed it.
Amelie Skoda's voice (and possibly family lived experience) came through and both Penang and London were well portrayed. I remember the 1970's and they were effectively captured. As were the challenges for the NHS and the reliance on immigrant neighbour (which was very familiar!)
Friendships, family and secrets were also at the centre of the book.
Bethnal Green is an easy read that would suit all ages.

I have spent long holidays in Penang for years, I also go to London quite often so I could picture and relate to the streets and the food mentioned in this book. I loved this book and have read it whilst on holiday in Penang. It is exceptionally excellently written. I turned page after page wanting to know what happens next. It was like I was there with them. It is very easy to read, it's a real gripping page turner with lots of culture.
Update: I have been in Georgetown today and stumbled upon a cafe called Emily Darling that we had not seen before. We went in and there were 3 ladies from Penang who asked us where we were from. When we said the UK they said they lived in the UK, 2 of them were on holiday from UK to Penang and the other now lives back in Penang. They said they trained as nurses in London in the 70's, I told them about the book and they found it on their phone. They said lots of girls went from Penang to London to train to be nurses in the 70's. They asked if they could have their picture taken with us and we did. They were so lovely. What a coincidence just days after I had finished this book.

A slow enough start to the book, built to the most beautiful, emotional and realistic ending.
Suyin leaves Penang in the 1970's to travel to London to train as a nurse.
It tells the story of entering adulthood, where you need to be in one location for your own life purpose, but your family are in another.
Your heart goes out to Suyin and all the others in this situation, especially in the 70's where they did not have the communications or cheaper travel of today. Think airmail letters as the primary form of communication.
An impressive work from a debut novelist, bringing through many elements to the story.

The atmosphere generated by the written words really help painting the picture of the times. How brave you had to be, to leave everything you knew in Penang to brave a city like London. Also made me nostalgic for buildings that housed nurses. Not sure such safety is available to todays travellers. Although there were restrictions, which were of the time.

The pain of having two lives that needed Suyin was so raw, I felt every emotion, and made me wonder what I'd have done in same situation. It also made me very aware of people who travelled from Ireland, where I live, 50 years ago and still live in London. To see what they went through was very poignant.

I really enjoyed this book; the author's writing style made it an engaging and easy read. The storyline felt authentic, with a clever blend of past and present that flowed seamlessly. I could easily picture the settings and connect with the diverse characters, as well as the activities they engaged in. Suyin's journey, particularly her career and the emotional tension of leaving her family behind to build a new life in London, was inspiring, especially given the time period in which the story is set. Overall, I highly recommend this novel.

Thank you NetGalley & Bonnier Books Ltd for allowing me to read this advance copy.

Bethnal Green. A book that I absolutely adored.

hen Suyin Lim is offered the opportunity of a lifetime - a place as a trainee nurse in London's Bethnal Green Hospital - she jumps at the chance to leave her job as a seamstress and unite with her sister, who left for the same path a year before. However, without warning her sister returns to Penang, a shadow of her former self and Suyin is forced to leave without any answers. Suyin soon finds herself starting a new life in London, falling in love with the vibrant city and its people and as she immerses herself in the gruelling but rewarding work of caring for her patients, she begins to understand what she really wants out of life . . .

Bethnal Green is a fantastic, hearty, warming, honest, elegant novel that spans immigration, love, family, desire, heartbreak and sacrifice.

Skoda writes with the charm and delicacy of experienced contemporary writers. It's a tale told over generations of anyone with immigrated parents/grandparents, and it is executed well.

The only downside of this book is that is doesn't come out until next year and I'm desperate to gift it to my friends and family.

A historical fiction about nursing and immigration in 1970s England. Suyin is a young girl from Malaysia seeking a better life, and therefore follows her older sister's footsteps to become a nurse in a hospital in Bethnal Green. This is a coming of age story as we go through years of nursing training with Suyin, with some shocking discoveries along the way.

I really enjoyed this one and would definitely recommend it to any fellow historical fiction fans.

This was a really lovely book, following a young trainee nurse Suyin as she trains in London of the 1970s, facing racism and sexism that was endemic at the time before having to return home to Penang. Highly recommend it!

Amélie Skoda's Bethnal Green is a vivid and poignant portrayal of life in one of London’s most historic neighborhoods. Skoda skillfully weaves together the stories of diverse characters, capturing the rich tapestry of cultures, struggles, and triumphs that define Bethnal Green. Her evocative prose brings the area to life, painting a picture of a place where tradition and change coexist, highlighting both the beauty and the challenges of urban living. Through its nuanced narrative, the novel explores themes of community, identity, and resilience, making it not just a story of a neighborhood, but also a reflection on the complexities of modern city life. Bethnal Green is a captivating read that lingers long after the last page, offering a deep sense of place and humanity.

First of all thank you for approving my request!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The authors writing style had me hooked throughout this book.

I didn't want it to end, a book I really couldn't put down.

Bethnal Green is a delightful story about a student nurse from Malaysia working in a London hospital in the 1970s. As someone who has lived and worked in the area, the author has researched the setting well—it brought back a few memories of Bethnal Green and the East End, particularly the deprivation. I enjoyed the storyline and how Suyin's character developed throughout the novel.
I look forward to reading more work from Amélie Skoda.

This is a lovely book. A real love story to the NHS and the immigrants who were recruited to work in it.

I loved the characters and the snap shot of 70s London. The clothing and living through the winter of discontent were well described. How isolating it must have been to be so far from Malaysia and family comes across.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC to review.

I really wanted to love this book. The cover drew me in, the storyline had so much potential but I am afraid it fell flat for me.

I DNF’d about 38% in. I hoped something would happen to keep me engaged but the storyline didn’t develop fast enough for me.

It may be because I can’t relate to the characters and to the timeline this book is set in. I am sure others will relate and love it.

#netgalley #bethnalgreen #bookreview.

Centring on a Malaysian girl who comes to London to work as a nurse in the 70s, Bethnal Green is definitely a light and at times quite simplistic book in terms of both prose and character development. But I found it really engaging and readable, especially in its evocation of 70s London.

Bethnal Green is the tale of a Malaysian immigrant, Suyin, who moves to London to train as a nurse in the 1970s, and has to find her way to reconcile her 'previous' identity and relationships, including those with her family back in Malaysia, with the identity she comes to build in her time there.
I always enjoy a good story rooted in the reality where I live and, as an East Londoner who hangs out in Bethnal Green quite often, its setting was a big part of the reason why I was drawn to this book. And I'm glad I chose it because it was so much more than I had expected!
Sure, East London is present and depicted really well through the eyes of a newcomer; but the book had so many more merits.
At its core, it was a story about immigration and how the immigrant's identity develops through the process of adapting to live somewhere new and unfamiliar. The dilemma between Suyin's two 'identities' is explored really well and, as an immigrant myself (albeit in different circumstances) I could relate to it, it made me reflect. This ability to create a relationship with the reader is quite hard to come by, and it made the book really stand out to me.
I also enjoyed how the choice was explored through her two love interests, and how her final choice reflected the resolution of her inner journey.
My only critique is that there's a number of Malaysian words that are not explained, so I found myself zoning out at times
Thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Bethnal Green’s title intrigued me as I remembered long train lines on the Central line going out to the east end of London to visit my grandparents when I was a child, and when I read the synopsis, I thought I would enjoy this tale of Suyin, a young Malayasian woman who comes to London in the early 1970s to train as a nurse.
Given that this is Skoda’s first novel, I was impressed by the way she crafted the narrative and wove the secrets of Suyin’s family alongside the day to day ins and outs of being a trainee nurse in the 1970s. My mother-in-law trained at a very similar time and I know that the detail is accurate and heart-warming.
I felt a bit frustrated at Suyin’s lack of agency in following through with the decisions she had made but I wont’ give away the ending .

Overall I felt that this was a well-researched and crafted novel, with a likeable heroine and a cast of supporting characters that are interesting and historically accurate. 4 stars from me. Many thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Novel set in 1970s EAST LONDON & PENANG

1970s: Suyin is offered the chance to leave Penang, where she is working as a seamstress, and widen her horizons by training as a nurse at the Bethnal Green Hospital. She is following in the footsteps of her sister, who departed a year ago, only to return unexpectedly shortly before Suyin’s departure, a shadow of her former self. She was based at Dulwich Hospital, which really took me back in time because that was my local hospital when I was a child.

The author beautifully configures the London of the 1970s, with Charrington’s Pubs and graffiti relevant to the era. An inevitable greyness in the weather assaults her (she has to deal with ‘cold and dread‘, observing the ‘gloom, these slum streets‘), all such a contrast to her country of origin. The author captures that real sense of being dropped in a new country, where everything feels so different and alien, and she paints a really cold and wet East London, which is of course a huge contrast to Malaysia. There are new people to meet, hierarchies and dynamics to fathom, friendships to be made, learning to be had, exams to sit, essentially she has to create a new life for herself.

She finds a slip of paper in her sister’s London A to Z (remember those?), which she has brought along and she understands that something must have happened during her sister’s time in the capital, something so significant that it drove her to return to the safety of her home in Malaysia – and a much diminished person.

She manages to leave behind the family dynamics for the duration of her stay but several years later returns home to face considerable change. The self confidence that she has built whilst in London serves her well as she forges a new life.

This is an easy to read novel that is poignant and nicely thought through. It perhaps lacks a little character depth, which would have raised the storyline to the next level but is good on era and setting and at times really quite poignant and heart-rending. “It is also a powerful love letter to dedicated NHS workers from around the world, whose work touches countless lives every day”.

Firstly, some appreciation for the cover - beautiful

A story about home and nursing in 1970s London. Then and now the NHS recruits nurses from around the world

The novel begins with Suyin, who recently arrived from Penang to train as a nurse at Bethnal Green Hospital. As the story unfolds, we meet her student colleagues and understand why and how Suyin came to the UK. Suyin and her friends navigate nurse training and life in London, and we appreciate what has happened in the past for Suyin and her family. Over time, life’s twists and turns cause Suyin to re-evaluate her choices and make tough decisions, in the end, the wrap-up was a tad commercial.

I enjoyed this novel – a walk down memory lane around being a student nurse, life in the nursing home, strict tutors and caring for vulnerable people. There was a poignant scene when Suyin performed last offices and took me back to my own experiences. The author’s research was on point.

A quote from the book resonates with me - ‘We’re here to give our patients comfort and dignity, no matter what, for as long as they’re in our care’.

This story also explores the meaning of home to the characters, to mean family and a physical building or the people chosen to be in their life who love, support and care for them. The author provides a voice for those who sacrifice so much to build a better life for themselves and their families and work in the NHS. It also highlights women’s roles in two diverse cultures, submissive and strong, finding a voice to do things differently.

This work of fiction has such heart and love and is equally pertinent now as it was in the 1970s.

Thank you, Netgalley and Bonnier Books UK, for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.