As a huge fan of Dear Mrs. Bird, I was excited that AJ Pearce was going to publish another book with the characters Emmy and Bunty. After reading Yours Cheerfully, I am so glad that more books are rumoured to be on the way. These books cover a time in history when there were rations and a lot of uncertainty. Somehow, the stories seem to evoke a sense of optimism which is why this book is another hit. Emmy continues her work as an advice columnist at Woman's Friend after Mrs. Bird has left the magazine. Her flatmate Bunty is still mourning the loss of her fiancé from the blitz and is also recovering physically. Together, the two women head out of London to visit Bunty's grandmother and befriend a war widow Anne and her young children. Anne is on her way to start a job doing war work with her children in tow. Relying on the help of her Mother, Anne is able to work the long hours to help support her family and her country during the war. Emmy is chosen by her boss to attend a meeting with the Ministry of Information intended to have women's magazines help encourage recruitment of women in war work at home. Emmy contacts Anne who agrees to have her come to the factory to speak with the management for apiece in Woman's Friend. While she is there, Emmy discovers that the women who have chosen either as the only way to support their families when their husbands are killed in action or their country while their husbands are off fighting, have limited options to care for their children. This leads Emmy and Bunty to start a campaign to help the women working to help the war effort at home have child care so they can work the long hours needed. This story touches on the balance of traditional roles of women and their dedication to their country in a time of war and overcoming the many barriers that stood in their way as they tried to do it all. Part love story, part perseverance story, but all heart. I look forward to many more books to come in this series. Thank you to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster Canada for the advanced copy of this book.

Doing one’s part for the war was the common refrain in World War II in Britain, and with the government pushing for women to work in factories, the sentiment becomes even louder. Unfortunately, support for women with kids, and for women whose husbands were either dead or lost because of the war, was pretty rare. These women needed to work, as their male relative's war pension was insufficient, and to work needed childcare, and requests for union support, or creation of nurseries near or associated with factories were made too bureaucratic or seen as unpatriotic, putting these women in terrible situations.

The plight of these women forms a large part of book two of the Emmy Lake Chronicles. The wonderfully positive and energetic Emmy’s back, with Bunty and Charles. Emmy’s a breath of fresh air, and she and Bunty are again solidly together in their friendship, making a fine team together.

Emmy’s busy at the magazine, this time legitimately answering letters from women around England looking for advice on what to do about moving alone to cities, or handling affairs, or unwanted pregnancies, or any number of other concerns and fears women had while their boyfriends, husbands and fathers were away at war.

This book was so entertaining — Emmy’s can-do attitude, as well as fighting spirit and her tendency to tell people off repeatedly brought a grin to my face. I loved how she listened carefully to the working women she was writing about for her magazine feature. Her compassion led her to immediately wanting to help the women get some basic consideration from factory bosses and the government. Considering the people in charge wanted women to work outside homes, it's frustrating and unsurprising that they would not think or care that many of these women were also running households and raising kids. This story also reinforces that things haven’t changed that much in eighty years.

While the premise of both this and the previous book seemed light, there are some darker, more serious points the author raises, that even though it was important for everyone to pull together, it’s impossible to harness everyone’s energies while part of the population is discriminated against.

I greatly enjoyed this book, and dearly hope there will be more adventures in store for Emmy and Bunty with this series.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for a review.

I absolutely loved returning to Emmy Lake and her friends at the Women's friend magazine set in London during WWII. In this story, Emmy gets promoted to help with two new newspaper columns and there is a lot of focus on highlighting working women's lives and the challenges they faced trying to both fill in while the men were off fighting but still manage to take care of their children and homes. There was honestly nothing I didn't like about this book. It had everything my historical fiction lover's heart craves. Based on real women's lives, strong female friendship, a swoony love story with a hard earned HEA. This was worth the wait and I hope we get more Emmy Lake adventures soon! Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my advance review copy.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Although I tend not to read a lot of WWII era historical fiction, I really enjoyed Yours Cheerfully! Although Emily, our dedicated journalistic protagonist, is interviewing female war workers and dealing with fairly heavy subject matter, Pearce has done a wonderful job of keeping the book light and easily readable!

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for access to this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dear Mrs. Bird was one of my favourite reads of 2020, so when I saw Yours Cheerfully pop I knew I had to read it.

Emmeline Lake is continuing her time at Women's Friend Magazine, living with best friend Bunty and still volunteering at the local fire station. She continues to be hilarious, and always making the most of the wartime she finds herself in the middle of. In this installment, Emmy has really taken to journalism and is given extra projects to work on in addition to the advice column she assisted on initially.

On a trip out of London to visit with Bunty's grandmother, Emmy and Bunty meet Anne Oliver, a recent war widow who is moving out to her mothers, with her children, to take up work in an ammunition factory. The three of them become friends, and end up spending more time together than expected throughout the book and show Emmy more ways the war is affecting women that she wouldn't have seen without meeting Anne.

These books are perfect for someone looking for WW2 historical fiction that is cheerier than most. Emmy, Bunty and the rest of the cast of characters are hilarious and bright, but still tackle the real issues from war time in London.

I received this book free from from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I just want to preface this by saying nowhere on Netgalley did this say this was book two in a series. It only stated “from the author of Dear Mrs. Bird”, so hopefully I am not missing key aspects of this novel by not reading the first one. I will still give it a go.

Okay so the beginning of the story felt like I the reader had just been dropped in, which knowing now that’s it’s the second book in a series would make sense. I’d say the first half was kind of boring nothing really happened. The second half got better but it was still just an okay read. I thought there would be more going on as far as the war efforts but it was a more skimmed over happy read.

I’d recommend this to readers who don’t like any stories with any type of sadness or unhappy things happening.

Good read but it just didn’t capture my attention or engage me. Not sure why as it was well done but could be my mood. I am sure that others will enjoy it.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
This was a really enjoyable book! Yours Cheerfully by AJ Pearce is the sequel to Dear Mrs. Bird. Even though I haven't read the first book, this didn't seem to harm my enjoyment of this one. Yours Cherfully takes place in London during WWII. The women are holding down the front in homes and the workplace and this book delve into the struggles women felt when being left behind and thrust into new roles. Despite the war being such a crucial part of this book, it still manages to be a light and easy read. Most of the characters are typically very cheerful and happy throughout. I really enjoyed the writing style of the novel, some great humour included. I definitely would recommend this book! I guess now I have to pick up the first one.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: Aug 10, 2021
A.J Pearce brings the delightful Emmy Lake back with the second novel in the “Emmy Lake Chronicles” series, “Yours Cheerfully”.
Emmeline Lake is living with her best friend, Bunty, working as a journalist with a women’s newspaper, and volunteering with the fire service to contribute to the “war effort”. She relishes the brief moments she gets to spend with her solider boyfriend, Charles, as she knows that others around her are dealing with the immense loss of their loved ones. When Emmy gets offered the chance to write an honest portrayal about women and their war effort, she is ecstatic to be asked. However, she continues to face numerous obstacles when she realizes that the War Ministry has an agenda- and that all of her articles will be scrupulously reviewed. Up against the government itself, Emmy and her friends decide to take things into their own hands and make things better for women who are “doing their part” for their country.
Emmy immediately became one of my favourite historical fiction characters when I met her in “Dear Mrs. Bird”. Emmy is utterly optimistic and sees joy in the little things, and I admire her for that. She takes the ultimate stand against the government and the male-led system in “Yours Cheerfully” and she most definitely deserves all of the cheers.
“Yours Cheerfully” is a historical fiction novel, which is why it is so disheartening that the issues being faced by the women in this novel are not much different than they are today, more than seventy years later. Women who want to work, or are forced to due to circumstance, yet must still provide for their children, with workplaces that refuse to accommodate them, working the same jobs as men for less pay was a sad state of affairs during World War II, and sadly, it remains a sad state of affairs today. I desperately rooted for Emmy and wanted her to succeed, and was overjoyed with her chutzpah and bravado when faced with powerful men who sought to defeat her.
“Yours Cheerfully” is well told, narrated from Emmy’s perspective, with the occasional letter or two thrown in from one of the newspapers female readers. I loved the way this novel was written, and each page oozed with positivity and charm, yet still managed to remain realistic and emotional. This is a rallying, thought-provoking novel and I am so glad AJ Pearce continued her “Emmy Lake” story! I so look forward to more!

Yours Cheerfully is the sequel to AJ Pearce’s debut, Dear Mrs. Bird. It picks up a few months after the end of the first novel in 1941. Set at the height of WW2, Pearce’s sequel continues to focus on the bright spots on everyday life. Full of light-hearted chatter, the Londoners are portrayed with big hearts, working together to support each other during wartime. There’s a real feeling of solidarity in everyone’s efforts to lift each other up in the most challenging of times.

The Ministry of Information is recruiting women for the war effort and Emmeline Lake (Emmie), an aspiring journalist for the Women’s Friend magazine, encourages readers to sign up. However, the unforeseen realities of women in the workforce threatens her plans, causing her to fight for their rights. She discovers that women are working longer hours for less pay and have few, if any, benefits. I loved reading about the power of an inclusive workspace in both the magazine team and the factory.

I think the success of Pearce’s writing is that she writes with authentic characters and this allows readers to have a realistic portrayal of the issues the girls’ experience. Readers are swept back in time and confront the societal issues prevalent, especially the equality between men and women.

I experienced the gamut of emotions - giggling at the capitalized phrases and the British dry wit and tearing up at the hardship, grief and devastation of wartime.

I was gifted this advance copy by AJ Pearce, Simon & Schuster Canada, and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

Publishes August 10, 2021.

I was fortunate to get an eARC from Netgalley. This is an enjoyable book but not quite what I expected. It's actually quite a light read for a WWII historical novel. This is the 2nd in a series but I haven't read the first one. It didn't seem to really matter. It covered some more difficult topics but rather gently and some interesting topics related to women working in the war effort including lack of childcare, loss of income and shortage of food/other staples. Overall a good book.

As someone who was a Big Fan of Dear Mrs. Bird, I was excited to see that there would be a sequel. I highly recommend reading the aforementioned first as a big reason this book was so delightful is because we got to revisit characters we loved. Emmy & Bunty are just as charming, and it was an easy read.

Dear Mrs. Bird is one of my most beloved books of all time so my expectations were quite high for this book sequel, Yours Cheerfully. Such a lovely title which absolutely captures the uplifting spirit shown by the characters. Wit, likeable and believable characters, various relationships including those at work and lovely writing tugged at my heart so I was invested in a nanosecond. But there's more to it than that...though the story and subplots are delightful, sorrow, heartache and living in a state of fear is reality during WWII.

Set in 1941 London, Mrs. Bird is no longer working at the Women's Friend magazine and there has been shuffling of positions. Mr. Collins is now Emmy's boss but he treats her like an equal colleague, especially as she is in charge of a new and special project, one which gives her scope to use her skills and passion. Her enthusiasm and youthful energy remind me of when I was young with my first large work assignment, very relatable. She loved the magazine and had fresh marketing ideas and was encouraged to utilize them. Bunty, Emmy's best friend as well as other friends make appearances as well, emphasizing the value of friendships. How I love the historical details including the letters and card...pure gold!

Charles, Emmy's boyfriend, along with most men are actively engaged in the war, leaving the women to take care of business matters and family. Charles does get a bit of time off which he cherishes. Many women worked but, like today, were paid much less than men doing the same job. Women gradually became known to naturally be more suited to particular jobs, including working in highly-skilled positions in munitions and those requiring compassion. Employees had to live by the 1939 Official Secrets Act at all times, which meant absolutely no sharing of duties or assignments with anyone other than colleagues. The feeling of intrigue must have been scary yet thrilling! Many women strongly desired to be part of it but more were needed which calls into question of childcare when mothers are not at home. Advocates pushed hard for women's rights.

If you enjoyed Dear Mrs. Bird (and even if you haven't read it yet), you will surely love this just as much. Yet you needn't read it to fall in love with Yours Cheerfully, either. It is a feel good book but with extra oomph and verve. The author includes both the good and the bad aspects of life during this tumultuous time which is great as it aligns with real life.

My sincere thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this splendid book. What a refreshing treat!

This was a new author to me but I am very happy to say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book! You can tell that a lot of research has gone into this book giving us an honest look at what it was like for women during WW2. The government wanted women to step up and take the place of the men that were fighting. Our heroine in this book is Emmy a young lady trying to make her way into the world of reporting. With lots of humour the author tries to keep the book from being totally heart wrenching and she has succeeded! I really enjoyed learning more about what it was like when my parents were young children. I totally recommend this book to anyone that has an interest in true historical fiction with a side of humour and suspense.
I received a free download of this book from the publisher and Netgalley. This review is my own honest opinion of a book I thoroughly enjoyed.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this novel. The review is my own and was not influenced in any way.

This novel was a complete delight that I did not want to end! It sensitively balanced difficult material with wit, humor and empathy that just left me wanting many more chapters. If you are a fan of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society or TV shows like Home Fires, Land Girls and Bomb Girls, then this is for you!

A delightfully easy to read sequel to Dear Mrs. Bird.
In Yours Cheerfully we go right back to our loveable characters, two best friends Emmy and Bunty and their life as the war continues. Emmeline continues to work for the Women’s Friend magazine answering questions and queries from the women who are carrying on with life and war work.
When the ministry asks for help in aiding with recruitment of women to help the war effort, Emmeline is excited to help but discovers that it isn’t just as easy as signing up. The women are experiencing some very real challenges and leaves Emmeline stuck in the middle of her duty to help recruit and the friendships she has made.

A great look at female factory workers during the war and the hardships they endured while following that lovely cast of characters we have come to love from Dear Mrs. Bird.

Thanks to Net Galley and Simon and Schuster Canada for the advanced copy.

I read Yours Cheerfully as an ARC
It's a lightweight, enjoyable novel that follows two young women friends during the worst days of WW2 in London. One has lost her fiancé to the war, the other beginning a serious relationship. The reader follows their crises and successes, despair and joys at work and at leisure.
An easy read and a decent plot.

I was thrilled when I received the ARC for this long-awaited sequel to <u>Dear Mrs. Bird</u>!. Most of the characters are back. Emmy and Charles and Bunty were all doing their bit for the war effort. Pearce's light, bantering style carries the reader through some difficult scenes. The British stiff upper lip is ever present!

<img src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRvtMBQjHoa7H3WJZqmQzAbjLUQPRuDrjElXLNiL6X-m9Z37Zq3bCgS8VKLgv6_oefj-PI&usqp=CAU"/>

The main focus of this story is the plight of the female factory workers: all those women who stepped up and worked long hours - for less pay than their male counterparts, and with few or no benefits.

<img src="https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files//research/image.jpg"/>

Despite the lessons learned in WW1, women were still not permitted to join any existing unions and child care and other basic services for working mothers was almost non-existent. Furthermore, the red tape involved in setting up nurseries during the war was a minefield in itself. Government officials would often fluff off any requests to simplify or escalate the process as being unpatriotic.. Women's requests for fair treatment were shut down and disregarded: "Don't You Know There's a War On?" was the consistent rebuff (The rampant feminist in me was outraged.)

<img src="https://i.pinimg.com/originals/8f/e4/25/8fe425894e6f53c050ade5417757456d.jpg"/>

Emmy cracked me up so many times: so irrepressible! She came from a long line of strong women. Emmy's mother was a true firecracker. "Your Grandmother didn't chain herself to fences.... " That line put an approving smile on my face every time. No wonder Charles loved Emmy so! I enjoyed this sequel. The middle seemed to stall a bit, but once Emmy was able to find a way to expose the bureaucratic injustices and still maintain her patriotism, things sped along nicely to a very satisfying ending. (Although something tells me there might be yet another sequel? There are another three years of war left when this story ends.... I suspect Bunty will feature more prominently in any potential sequel. Hint, hint!)

<img src="https://i.pinimg.com/originals/ab/15/53/ab1553096a329219c5cad85b274a4ff8.jpg"/>

My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Get yourself a good cup of tea and sit down with"Yours Cheerfully"! It is a delightful *sequel to the bestselling book “Dear Mrs. Bird”. Set in England during the Second World War, we become reacquainted with the main characters Emmy Lake and her good friend Bunty. Emmy works at the British magazine, Women’s Friend where she works diligently to assist readers who write into the advice column, Yours Cheerfully, to get council in solving many of their problems. In this book Emmy begins to branch out in the world of journalism and begins to write propaganda news pieces to enlist women to go to work in support of the war effort. Emmy involves herself with the women who are working in the munitions factories while trying to look after their children and worrying about their husbands and loved ones overseas. Through Emmy's reporting, we get a glimpse into the lives of these women and the struggles they faced.

This book is a lovely light read that touches on some more serious historical perspectives. You will fall in love with Emmy and Bunty and cheer for them through all their adventures. If you enjoyed Dear Mrs. Bird, you will be delighted with this sequel…..and I feel like there may even be a third book coming in this series! This will be a good summer read!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Due out on August 10, 2021

* This book could be read as a standalone and you do not necessarily have to have read the previous book to enjoy and understand "Yours Cheerfully". But if this description interests you- then read "Dear Mrs. Bird"- you will thank me later.

A delightful book set during WW11 in London England. The story of a young reporter, her friends and family standing up for what they believe in, This book delves in to the lives and the many challenges of the women working on the home front while their husbands, brothers and friends are off fighting in the war. I love how humour, grief, frustration, love, empowerment, and reality are woven throughout this historical fiction. A thoroughly enjoyable read!