Yours Cheerfully: The Times Bestseller from the author of Dear Mrs Bird (The Emmy Lake Chronicles, 2)

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A fabulous account of history within this fictional writing with an updated role from Emmeline now that the formidable woman from the previous book is now gone. We see more strength of character from Emmeline and when you have other women, strong women and support from other avenues it’s clear what can be achieved with the help of Yours Cheerfully in the forefront. In 1941, Britain had been at war for two years and London had just survived the Blitz—a brutal series of German air raids that dropped more than 12,000 metric tons of bombs from September 1940 to May 1941, killing nearly 30,000 civilians. What do you imagine Londoners were feeling and thinking at this time? I loved Dear Mrs. Bird and was thrilled when I was asked to spend more time with Emmy and Bunty in Yours Cheerfully. AJ Pearce shines a light on the hardships that women factory workers faced during World War II and uses it as a segway to spotlight the plight of working mothers even today.

You do need persistence to get published as it is quite tough to get an agent, but if you keep going, keep reading and writing, you give yourself the best chance

Now enjoy Claire’s chat to A. J. Pearce about her writing and inspiration…

Discuss the competing demands Emmy faces in her work, such as the Ministry recruitment campaign versus the women workers’ welfare. In what ways does Emmy try to strike a balance? Does she succeed? I think the direction that the author A.J. Pearce took with the story as well as with the characters this time around made so much more sense than the first book. I’m not sure how best to put it, but I felt like most of Emmy’s actions in the first book were too over the top, to the point that it felt unrealistic and contrived. With this second go around though, her actions were more in line with her role in the sense that it made sense for her to constantly insert herself in situations, but in a more tempered way. Just for the record…I don’t have a problem with Emmy’s personality — in fact, I like the way her character was headstrong, curious, assertive, and always willing to stand up for what she believed in as well as help others, which was especially significant given the time period — what I actually had a problem with was the “bull in a china shop” approach that she seemed to apply to every single situation, especially at work. For example, in the first book, Emmy’s job as a newbie at the magazine was to open letters and give them to her boss to review and type up a response, however because she doesn’t like the restrictive (and rude) nature of her boss’s responses, she decides to take matters into her own hands by deliberately defying her boss’s instructions and writing letters to readers on her own (as well as sneaking some of her letters into the magazine itself). While it’s fine to disagree and question how her boss does things, it’s not fine, especially in her position, to go in and start changing things on her own (obviously, there were more rational ways to approach the situation than the way she did). In the second book, I assume because she has learned her lesson, Emmy’s approach was a little more mature and above board (and as I mentioned earlier, definitely less grating on my nerves). I point all this out because I appreciate seeing characters grow and evolve in stories and even though in this case, it took a sequel for it to happen, I’m still glad to see it. I definitely enjoyed this sequel much more than the first book, Dear Mrs. Bird, which I had read right before this one. While the story continued more or less where the first one left off and the characters were all the same (with the exception of Mrs. Bird of course), I think I took to this book better perhaps because I kind of knew what to expect already — and perhaps that’s also why I found the main character Emmy Lake a little less annoying this time around (though yes, she did still frustrate me at certain points).

Set in London, this begins in April of 1943, as World War II continues. This is the third book in the Emmy Lake Chronicle series, with Emmy’s husband, Captain Charles Mayhew, off fighting in the war. Emmy sends him letters often, and spends much of her time writing the ’Yours Cheerfully’ column for the ’Woman’s Friend’ magazine as the war continues on. Emmie is still running the advice column, and is devoted to both the column and actually listening to the reader’s stories, their problems and concerns. She considers what she does as helpful, occasionally crucial, and often heartbreaking, but her ability to truly listen and often sound advice is not insignificant. The mail they receive for the ’Woman’s Friend’ column is not just needed for some of those who write of more difficult problems, but also some not quite as urgent.

Watch War Comes to London, City Bound, or London 1942, available from the British Council Film Archive at https://film.britishcouncil.org/resources/film-archive/war-comes-to-london, https://film.britishcouncil.org/resources/film-archive/city-bound, and https://film.britishcouncil.org/resources/film-archive/london-1942. What does the narration in these short films try to convey to the viewer? What does it imply about British culture and values at the time? Yours Cheerfully is a testament to the strength of women and the importance of lifting each other up, even in the most challenging times. As Emmy visits the factory she speaks with the women and one of the things that is most needed is nursery care for their little ones. Everyone doesn’t have a family member available to care for the children and they also work very odd shifts at times. Miss Lake, I have also heard that whilst you are just starting out in the role you have been invited to a meeting at The Ministry of Information with the newspaper editor. I have heard The Ministry wants to focus on encouraging women to take up the roles that have become vacant in the country as more men head off to fight in the war. How much truth is there to that rumour??? I have no doubt Miss Lake that you will love your new role and I look forward to reading your amazing hard-hitting articles featuring women working in places like the munitions factories and the injustices women face, plus their childcare issues.

I haven’t read Dear Mrs. Bird but I was assured that this book would be fine to read as even though they are part of the same series Yours Cheerfully could be read as a standalone. From my encounter with this book I totally agree. When the Ministry of Information calls on Britain’s women’s magazines to help recruit female workers to the war effort, Emmy is thrilled to step up and help. But when she and Bunty meet a young mother who shows them the very real challenges that women war workers face, Emmy must confront a dilemma between doing her duty and standing by her friends. Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review. Though this book is second in a series, I have not read the first and it read very well as a standalone. There were a few instances where I suspect references were made to the prior story, but it didn’t retract from the novel and I never felt confused or lost.

This is another charming and moving novel by AJ Pearce. I absolutely loved returning to the old characters and old places, it felt like going home. But I also loved meeting the new characters (Ruby being a personal favourite of mine). Pearce’s writing transports you to a different time, I really felt like I was living alongside Emmy and Bunty. This uplifting sequel is just as charming and delightful as the original and makes for a light, humorous read about women's friendship and support for each other during trying times. Emmy's romance with Charles is progressing nicely now that he is stationed in London and her best friend Bunty is recovering well after losing her fiancé and being badly injured in the Blitz. As the novel finishes at the end of 1941, after the bombing of Pearl Harbour, I hope there will be further additions to the series as I can't wait to catch up with Emmy and her friends again. Yours Cheerfully continues where Dear Mrs. Bird, left off (sans Mrs. Bird). It is WWII, circa post Blitz and the focus is on the women, wives and mothers, who work in munitions factories (and other factories aiding in the war effort). It is about the highly motivated and patriotic women workers who raise their banners high in support of their troops, but also need the money to keep home and family together while their husbands are at war. The women are basically taken for granted – filling the jobs of men at inferior salaries and under inferior conditions (at the risk of sounding snarky, I might add, “so what else is new”). A chance meeting with a young war widow, off to begin work in a munitions factory, and her two young children spark an idea for Emmy. Woman’s Friend will run a series of articles (after passing the censors) on these women to show how it really is and also answer the questions in the barrage of letters the magazine has been getting from women around the country who are hesitant to sign up and need some encouragement.

This reading group guide for Yours Cheerfully includes an introduction, discussion questions, and ideas for enhancing your book club. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. We hope that these ideas will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book.

There are so many great characters in this story, some of the same characters from the first book, with new characters mingled in specific to this one. This author does a great job of including quirky, stoic, lovable and unlikable characters ensuring there is a happy mix of eclectic-ness! This was a really beautiful story about friendship, women’s rights, the impact of the war on those left behind, and love. Compare Mr. Terry and Mr. Rice. Are they equally at fault in the issues facing the women at Chandlers? Thanks #NetGalley @ScribnerBooks for a complimentary eARC of #YoursCheerfully upon my request. All opinions are my own. There were some interesting challenges illustrated here that I didn’t think about – who cares for the children while the women work at the factory? And women faced workplace discrimination – lower pay, etc.