The Book Review Café's Reviews > The Women

This book deserves tall the ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and more

The Women by Kristin Hannah

The Women is historical fiction at its absolute best, profoundly emotional, it’s a richly drawn story with a memorable heroine. You will live and breathe Frankie’s story and feel her every emotion. It’s a story of family, unbreakable bonds, love, loss, bravery and ultimately hope. “Women can be heroes, too.” When twenty-year-old nursing student “Frankie” McGrath hears these unexpected words, it is a revelation. Frankie has led a privileged, sheltered life. But in 1965 the world is changing, and when her brother ships out to serve in Vietnam, she impulsively joins the Army Nurse Corps and follows his path. Unprepared for the horrors of war, Frankie is overwhelmed by the chaos and destruction of war.

Although this is ultimately Frankie’s story, it also shines a light on the story of all women who put themselves in harm’s way to help others. Women whose sacrifice and commitment to their country has been all too often forgotten. From the minute she lands in Vietnam, Frankie enters ‘hell’, working in the most horrifying conditions. She’s shocked and terrified, but as her confidence grows, her strength and endurance are to be applauded. The works heartbreaking, brutal, a never never-ending cycle of the wounded, ill and dying. And yet, despite all this, Frankie flourishes. We see Frankie change from a naïve, privileged young girl into a woman who is courageous. I loved the friendship that blossoms between her and Barb and Ethel. It’s an unbreakable bond that will help them through the hardest of times.

The second part of the book deals with Frankie’s trauma of coming home to a country that’s anti-war and hostile to veterans. They treat veterans like outcasts instead of recognizing them as the heroes they are. Frankie is just one of the “forgotten women” many believing only men were sent to Vietnam. She’s a different woman when she returns, grieving for lost love, and traumatised by the horrors of war. It was difficult and heartbreaking to read about Frankie’s addictions. The challenges she faced made me cry for Frankie and all the women in Vietnam who were never acknowledged or given the support they needed. Kristin Hannah has created the most incredible heroine in Frankie. She’s courageous and resilient and yet there’s a vulnerability to her that makes the reader want to protect her. The Women made for a powerful, all-consuming read, Frankie is a character who will stay with me for a long time to come and in my opinion this is Kristin Hannah’s best book yet. My top read of the year so far!

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