2003-03-23 Exemplary piece of revisionism

From a literary perspective this book may be frustrating, the prose does not flow and this is not a comfortable book to read. This sense of unease throughout the book is its genuis however. Bowen is the first writer to suggest that the second world war for many was a time of distrust, anxiety, despair and angst - Louie can only feel part of something via the newspapers, Stella is enticed into a web of intrigue and hopelessness which brilliantly collapses around her.
A vital antidote to the 'national unity' wartime myth.