Thank you to Harper Audio and Netgalley for an advanced audiobook copy of Band of Sisters.

I've been a Lauren Willig fan since her Carnation days and love all of the historical details and research that she does in her books. I was very excited to read Band of Sisters and getting an audiobook of it narrated by Julia Whelan is even better. Julia is my favorite narrator out there and in a 16 hour book, you need a narrator you love.

Based on letters from the Smith College Relief Unit, this is a historical fiction about the Smith College alumna who go to France in 1917 to help with the villagers in rural France recover after being destroyed by the Germans. This group of women arrive with money, supplies and absolutely no idea of what they've gotten themselves into.

Through the novel and with each chapter having an introduction from an actual letter we see as this group comes together to help the villagers, soldiers and find themselves a little closer to the Battle of the Somme than the Army wants them. The main theme in this book is friendship, sisterhood and how to take care of the chickens!

If you're a historical fiction fan, check out this book, you won't be disappointed. And now I'm off to learn more about the Smith College Relief Unit!

Lauren Willig did an amazing job with this Historical Fiction. She stumbled on some letters from the members of the Smith College Relief Progam while researching a project and wrote this book based on the letters. She did mention that the events really happened according to the notes and the characters are fictional but based on real people.

Emmeline Van Alden attended a rally by Miss Betsy Rutherford. Miss Betsy was recruiting Smith College Women to join what she calls the Smith College Relief Unit. The unit traveled to Paris, France to help the villagers in the area recover World War I. Emmeline, or Emmy, was immediately hooked but was afraid to go alone so asked her friend Kate Moran to join. 18 women joined.

I loved this book! I felt like I was right there with the women helping the villagers and soldiers. I couldn't imagine what they witnessed or had to go through. From the beginning when their hotel that they were supposed to stay at didn't have enough room for them, things escalated. The bravery, endurance and perseverance of these women are amazing. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator, Julia Whelan, does a great job. Definitely recommend!

Loved this book in print and audible. I want to learn everything about the real life smith women! Great story. And great characters

Band of Sisters: A Novel

by Lauren Willig

Alright Lauren Willig I'll give you four historical birds out of five for Band of Sisters. I received this one as an audio book - advanced copy from Netgalley for free in exchange for my honest review. This had a similar feel to The Giver of Stars. If you liked that one, you would enjoy this one. One of the major themes in this book is friendship- the longitivtiy of it through the highs and the lows. To be honest... I've never really read anything about World War I so this was kind of new territory for me. There were times the many characters got confusing and it was long.... Maybe too long. But OVERALL I enjoyed it and think my history loving friends would love it the most. I'd put it on your to-read list! It comes out on March 2nd, 20201!


#amreading #mrsbirdswords #booklover #Bibliophile #bookaddict #bookreccomendation #goodreads #fiction #bookshelf #book #bookaholic #historicalfiction #bandofsisters #smithcollege #laurenwilig #netgalley

This story satisfied everything that I was craving - well-written historical fiction about friendships amid the awfulness of war, romance, and medicine! I love all things Lauren Willig and her latest is definitely one to enjoy and share! I heartily recommend it and will get my own paper copy as soon as it is released! (Which can't come too soon!)

A story of privileged women who volunteer to join the war effort to provide services to survivors in small villages in France. Many learn new skills and to depend upon each other.

I really loved this book. The only reason that I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 stars is because it took me a little while to really get invested in the characters. By the end though, I was rooting for them and audibly gasped a few different times. The narrator was wonderful and really gave a voice to each individual character.

I found this to be a lovely book of sisterhood and it made me very interested to look into other books about the aid work that was done by civilian women in both WWI and WWII.

I received a copy of this e-audiobook in exchange for an honest review
I think this would have made a great book to listen to but I couldn't get comfortable with the narrator.

I loved this book about the “Smith Girls” - the Smith College Relief Unit that brought relief efforts to France during and after World War I.

There was a little bit of everything in this book including history, friendship, and love. The writing was beautiful - rich and descriptive. A treat to read for historical fiction lovers!

Band of Sisters follows a group of Smith graduates who embark to the countryside of France as a war relief unit in the late summer of 1917. Their journey is fraught in many ways and yet they continually prevail in their work to assist the people in their worn torn region. The beauty of all this - it is based on a true story!

I absolutely loved this book. The women, their relationships to each other and their work made for such interesting reading. I couldn’t get enough of seeing how the women navigated difficult circumstances and got things accomplished in not only a designated war zone but also during a time women were most certainly not thought to be able to do this.

I appreciated the information shared regarding the origin of this tale and the letters that helped create it. It did send me down a bit of a rabbit hole searching more about this!

I was fortunate to listen to an advance listening copy from William Morrow books. I can’t share enough how well done the narration is. I had anticipated it would be good but Julia Whelan knocked it out of the park and made this book come alive to me. I would highly recommend picking up it up when it comes out and if you are audiobook fan - you must get it as it is a fantastic listening experience! Thank you William Morrow and Netgalley for my ALC.

Band of Sisters is a great historical fiction novel about the Smith College Relief Unit who went to France to assist with the recovery process during World War I. I encourage everyone to listen or read the historical note at the end of the novel. Willig deftly mixes the stories of the real relief unit with the fictionalized drama of her main characters. The characters themselves because they are based in reality are compelling and complex. The horrors they face are often times hard to imagine, but give a sense of what people gave for their country during WWI. The narrator of the audiobook did a great job giving each character a distinct voice and capturing their complexities.

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Band of Sisters was a such a fun book to dive into. Without knowing, I got to dive into a story that ended up being true. I also got to meet some pretty wonderful characters that lived in France during the World War I.

In it, you will meet Kate Moran. She is from Brooklyn, NY and went to Smith College on a full scholarship. Then you will meet Emmie, who became her true friend in college. Although after they graduate, they tried to write to one another whenever they could.

Not long after, they are reunited. From that moment, Kate's life has changed forever. So much happens along this journey that I had to stop and think about it all. Some of it was sad and I almost drop a tear or two. Others were pretty interesting to hear about since I wasn't alive back then and I don't remember much from my history classes in high school or college.

These girls showed so much bravery throughout the book. Even if they knew something was beyond dangerous, they still went into it without hesitation. It was amazing to read about and I am so happy that I got the chance to dive into this book.

Now I feel like I need to dive into more historical fictions books when it comes to NetGalley.

The Band of Sisters by Lauren Willig was such an amazing story. It centers around a group of women called Smith College Relief Unit – that were sent to Northern France during WWI to assist the villagers there whose town was nearly destroyed. These women were professors, social workers, physicians, and archaeologists but while in France were simply volunteers.

This Band of American Women traveled to France to assist in the recovering war effort in the small town of Grecourt. The main characters are Kate, Emmie, Alice and Julia. After arriving, they witnessed the Chateau they were supposed to stay in had half burned down from the bombings, but the girls wanted so badly to stay together, they agreed to set up house in the attic.

Told they would be helping the local villagers and their assignments were planting gardens, building shelters and schools, and driving supplies where needed. They had to learn all of these things including how to administer First Aid. Most of this was all new to them including purchasing chickens and when there were no eggs, later realizing they needed a rooster too… “our hens are not great layers...we can’t think why?” and then later, something even funnier… which shall not be revealed here! I really enjoyed the humor in this story. But the book does reveal true incidences, the real devastation that occurred and the difficulties the women had to endure to help these poor villagers after the egregious retreating German army plundered and destroyed everything in their path. The author does an amazing job weaving the stories of these courageous women and what they did to contribute to the war effort and help villagers and refugees.

The children of the villages were a part of the story as well. The women taught them games, how to sew and even offered them carpentry classes. They had cows, pigs, goats, and one special goat that thought he was a dog!

I really appreciated the author’s use of letters before each chapter begins. These are letters relating to the real heroes, these women. That was such a special touch to make their story come alive to me. I will be recommending this book to all my historical fiction reading friends.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

Band Of Sisters by Lauren Willig
Narrated by Julia Whelan
Genre - Historical Fiction
Format Audiobook
Release Date March 02, 2021
I rate the book a 5 of 5 stars
I also rate the Narration 5 of 5 stars

This book was amazing. It has a little bit of everything. War, Friendship, and even a little bit of Romance. I absolutely loved it. It is actually based on true stories of the Smith College Relief Unit going to France to help with the war effort.

The narrator was perfect for this book. She did the voices perfectly and drew you further into the story. She also very upbeat and kept you wanting to listen. Not like some narrators that put you to sleep 5 minutes in.

There are somethings that have been changed in the book but it is kept true to the story as possible as the author used correspondence from the real ladies who did these incredible things. Although it was a fictional work.

I was a little disappointed that the Spanish Flu pandemic was not mentioned in the book. Although it may not of made it’s way to France. I will have to look that up to get the facts on it.

This is an expert off of Wikipedia about the actual group. They have more information if you want to research more for yourself.

The Smith College Relief Unit (SCRU) was a group of Smith College alumnae who aided in humanitarian relief work in France during and after the First World War. Funded by the Smith College Alumnae Association, the SCRU worked throughout the war serving under both the American Fund for French Wounded (AFFW) and later under the American Red Cross. The Unit was founded in 1917 by Harriet Boyd Hawes (1871-1945) who acted as the Unit's first director.

Band of Sisters by Lauren Willig is based on a real group of women, The Smith College Relief Unit. The Smithies went to France to give aid to the villages that took the brunt of the destruction during the Great War. Willig found letters and other documentation to base this book on although she did take some literary license. The book was a fascinating insight into what the Smithies endured during their time in France. There were some times that I became frustrated with the women for being catty when they all needed to pull together, but I suspect this too was based on what really happened. I found it to be very realistic and recommend the book! I appreciate #NetGalley for allowing me to give my honest opinion on #BandOfSisters.

I really enjoy reading Lauren Willig’s books! This is the first time I have listened to one of them and it was a great experience! The narrator was very good, and I could hear Ms. Willig’s sense of humor coming through. This is a fascinating story based on an actual group of women from Smith College that went to France during WWI to help the locals. Of course they encounter all sorts of awfulness and are in danger as they are so close to the front lines. These women were very brave and it is a story of heroes. The main characters of Kate, Emmy and Julia learn they have amazing strength and they form deep bonds. A riveting story!

This is strictly a review of the audiobook Band of Sisters, by Lauren Willing and narrated by Julia Whelan.

Julia Whelan, does an incredible job narrating Band of Sisters, by Lauren Willig. The story is about a group of Smithies, alumnae of Smith College (for women), who, volunteer to head to France, to help the recovery effort in the small villages, at the height of WW1 (1917). The entire story is based on actual alumnae and the letters that they wrote home,describing their experiences, (which were much more demanding (and frightening) then they could have possibly ever imagined). Lauren Willig stumbled upon the letters, and used them to create this story.

Narrator, Julia Whelan, is top notch, and this is extremely helpful, because Band of Sisters is a long book, 15+ hours, (with many characters), so the book needs a narrator who is "nice" to listen to

Thank you #netgalley and @harperaudio for an early copy of the audiobook #bandofsisters in return for my honest review. I really enjoyed it, however, I think, actually "seeing" a hard copy of this book would have been helpful.

Lauren Willig has done it again! I have read a few books by Lauren Willig and have enjoyed them all. Band of Sisters was no exception. She started researching something entirely different when she accidentally stumbled upon letters and journal articles written by women who were members of the Smith College Relief Unit stationed in France during World War I. Her interest was piqued and the seeds for Band of Sisters were planted and started to cultivate. Band of Sisters was based on the true story and events of eighteen incredible, determined, and courageous Smith College alumni women. I listened to Band of Sisters as an audiobook read by Julia Whelan. Most of the characters in Band of Sisters were based on the actual women of the unit. There were a few characters that were purely part of the author’s creativity and imagination. The combination of the two made the book believable and added a little favor.

Kate Moran attended Smith College on a full scholarship. She had grown up in Brooklyn, New York. Her family was far from what might be considered well off or well connected as most of the Smith College students were. Kate had never felt comfortable at Smith College or that she fit in. She had one true friend, Emmeline Van Alden. After graduation from Smith College, Kate secured a teaching position. Kate and Emmeline, or Emmie as everyone called her, kept in touch through mail. As the years progressed, their letters became less frequent and shorter and shorter in length.

In April 1917, Miss Betsy Rutherford, an archeologist and humanitarian, gave a very enthusiastic speech at the Smith College Club. In record time, Miss Rutherford accumulated enough volunteers, funding, backing and supplies to launch the formation of the Smith College Relief Unit. Emmie was determined to convince Kate to join the unit. One of the members had backed out and Emmie begged Kate to take her place. Reluctantly, Kate finally agreed. Little did she realize how much her life was about to change from this experience.

The unit arrived in Paris in July 1917 to find out that half of the inn they were to stay in had burned and was a big pile of ruins. There also were not enough rooms for all the girls in their unit. One of the members of the unit convinced the proprietor to house them dormitory style in the attic. At least they were all kept together. When they arrived at their final destination, their challenges would only begin to occur. The women who were to become the drivers for the unit, had to actually build their own vehicles from scratch. This was more than any of the women had bargained for. Nothing could have prepared the for the challenges the were about to face. Their agriculturist was delayed so the woman filling in for her, having little prior experience with farm animals before arriving in France, bought roosters instead of hens. No wonder why there were no eggs! They set out to build libraries with lots of books for the children, schools, and houses. The women provided food, milk and medical supplies to the people in the villages. There were two female doctors that were also part of the eighteen women in their unit. They all wore uniforms that were gray with a touch of French blue. One time a group of the women went to one of the nearby towns. They were greeted by a group of children. Someone threw a ball to one of the children and a child began to cry uncontrollably. The ball had been mistaken for a bomb. The children had gone through so much and had seen things that no child should have had to witness. When France became very dangerous with the imminent invasion of Germany, the women of the Smith College Relief Unit were told to evacuate. They ignored the warnings and instead drove into danger to the surrounding towns and villages to help evacuate those in the most danger from the Germans. All of these things really happened. What incredible and strong women they were. What a difference they made in the lives of those they were able to help. The women were always up for the challenge and always went the extra yard to make it happen. All the women from the Smith College Relief Unit survived the war.

This was an incredible story about bravery, determination, kindness, friendship, love, thinking outside the box, courage and strong women. I was so glad to have learned about these women and their involvement in the war effort. They should be commended.

Thank you to Harper Audio for allowing me to listen to Band of Sisters by Lauren Willig through Netgalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

During WW1 a group of women from Smith College formed the Smith College Relief Unit that traveled to France to help civilians rebuild after the Germans destroyed their towns, land and people. The Smithies provided basic needs to the civilians such as food, blankets, medical attention and love. These women were so strong and faced so much during their adventures in a time that was so unsure. When gunshots were heard from only a few miles away and when bombs were dropped overhead, they chose to face danger and didn’t back away. Instead, they went in with their heads held high and their hearts open and while doing so, formed the bonds of sisterhood which would last for many years. The book closely follows two women of the Relief Unit – Emmi Van Alden and Kate Moran. Emmi and Kate are college friends although Emmi comes from a wealthy family while Kate is on scholarship to attend college. Their friendship is torn open and tested throughout the story. Based on true events, Lauren Willig, did an amazing job portraying the thoughts and actions of these women. This was a beautifully written piece of historical fiction, more historical than fiction, about friendship, perseverance and empathy. I highly suggest you put this on your TBR as soon as it is published!

Thank you @NetGalley and @laurenwillig for my audiobook copy! The narrator did an amazing job sharing the story. Pub date: March 2, 2021

Wow I don't even know where to start. First off thank you NetGalley and author Lauren Willig for gifting me the audio book version of the story. The narrator did an amazing job! I loved this book so much! The way the author described the scenery and characters were just breath taking. I had no idea that a band of women from America got together like this and went over to France to help out. All the events in this book are real. The authors historical notes at the end of the book explain everything. I can't believe how brave these women were and I can't imagine all the horrors that they saw while the war was going on. I love reading gems like this and now I blame the author because I have a feeling I will be going down a historical rabbit hole now after reading this book, because I want to now read up all about these fantastic ladies! Thank you so much Lauren Willig for writing this masterpiece and I look forward to reading more of your books. I think you have become my favorite historical writer. I felt like I was taken back in time during 1917-1918 helping along side the women and going on all their adventures with them. Thank you for sharing this with the world!