Mum's Monday: Three Little Ships by Lilian Harry

This is a fictional story based around the events of the evacuation of Dunkirk during World War Two.

Part one

In all the coldness of war and not knowing at this point in the book whether London will be invaded, or if family members/loved ones who are fighting the war abroad will come home safe and sound. This part is about Olly and Effie Mears, a heart-warming story on them living in London in May 1940. Olly works on a Thames river fireboat in London.

The first three chapters set up the back stories of the three little boats that are going to Dunkirk, France, which are Olly on his fireboat, Robby Endacott with his passenger steamer the ‘Countess Wear’ in Devon and a small motor yacht ‘Wagtail’ owned by Hubert and his crew from Portsmouth.

After the heart-warming start which draws you in to reading further it goes on to describing the stories behind the ‘Countess Wear’ and the ‘Wagtail’. This is a strong start and sets the story up really well and has been well researched. In amongst all the war stories it is good to read the Devon dialect interweaved throughout chapter two.

This book cleverly high-lights that not all disabilities are visible, Charles has had TB (Tuberculosis), which prevents him from signing up to fight in the war. I can see both sides, the one where Charles wants to do his bit for the war effort, if only to stop people looking down on him, even though he has a valid reason and two that his wife is happy to have him safe at home and in his office, even though Charles feels unfulfilled.

In the nature of this story it will be nice to see Charles getting his wish to do his longed for duty for his country in his personal capacity.

Where the story of Dunkirk is all about the evacuation of the soldiers, this book gives the story a human aspect, the story and you clearly realise that real people with families were at risk. This gives a nice depth to the story of Dunkirk.

First we had backgrounds to the families in this book and now as Robby has left for France we move to read about the beginnings of the three little ships off on their rescue mission, this is a smooth gentle read, but at the end of some chapters there are what I would describe as a show of the strength of the will of the people, in the sentences which left me uplifted and with a more of an understanding of how important the mission of going to Dunkirk was, also of people sticking together and doing their bit.

This book is good in the way it describes the practicalities of going to Dunkirk. Coming from the places they were requisitioned. We learn that not all the boats came from close to the closest ports to Dunkirk. In the case of the ‘Countess Wear’ the boat first had to travel to another port before travelling to Dunkirk.

The research of the navigating the English Channel has been well done and gives depth and a sense of realism and this is when you realise there was a lot more to the evacuation than just boats leaving UK shores and bringing the men home.

In chapter seven it is nice to read about the families at home whilst the characters are getting ready to set off to France. This chapter is mostly about Olly’s family. As normally you just hear about the men in boats doing the job they were assigned to do, it is good to see it from another angle of the people left behind and working to keep the country going. Even if it is just serving food and drink in a café, people need to eat to keep their strength up. every job at home is important.

At the time during the war Paddy, as she wants to join the evacuation, has to disguise herself as a boy. It is nice to know that nowadays she would be welcomed to help with open arms. The book is in keeping for the times and it is good to know attitudes have changed since.

There is a good thread running through the start of this book of characters we haven’t met yet, but who are in France fighting the war and the families are hoping that the family members that are going to Dunkirk can bring them back to the UK safe and sound. This is really well written that it captures the realism of the situation and makes you want to read on. Even though the story of Dunkirk is well known, as this is a unique fiction we don’t know the actual outcome of this book/story.

The action part of the book is well written you really can picture the horrors of war. You also get the sense that, quite rightly there were real people involved. People with lives and families. This book continues to put the human aspect in to the story.

The story gives us an insight into the fact that the evacuation wasn’t as straight forward as just going and getting the soldiers off the beaches of Dunkirk and bringing them home. There was the enemy to contend with and the injured soldiers, even to hydrate the soldiers with water was taken into account. This is all described really well it is like you are there with them.

This book is clever in bringing war memorials to the attention of the reader. It makes the reader aware that they mean something and you shouldn’t just walk passed them, this is a good thing.

In amongst all the need to rescue the soldiers and all the destruction it is nice to read of some miracles.

Part two

When I see this book has been separated into three parts I wondered why until I started reading. Now we read about the soldiers in the families going to rescue them.

It is strange but army protocol that a soldier had to ask army permission to get married. Marriage is such a personal event and to ask someone that hardly knows you as they haven’t known you for long seems odd. There must be a reason for this, well first of all there is a war on.

This part continues with a long drawn out suspense as to how the characters in the story are getting on. It strongly points out that an army unit is like being with your brothers, but is also points out acting quickly can risk lives and it clearly mentions that it is ‘Every man for himself’ in saving your life and getting to Dunkirk. This is repeated enough that as the reader I am in no doubt as to where the soldiers are heading towards.

Part three

This part goes back to the families waiting for news of their loved ones over in Dunkirk. It is lovely to see them helping out with food and drinks for the soldiers that have already returned.

In this story you can really sense the feeling of wanting to go over to Dunkirk and rescue the soldiers, in that with all the soldiers on the beaches and thinking of there being no more ships to bring them home. The sense of urgency is well interweaved into the writing of this story.

This third part brings the soldiers and the little ships together and we find out the outcomes of the characters in this story. This is a lovely little story surrounding a heroic event in world war two ‘Dunkirk’