The Lost Children is a beautifully written story about the children sent away to the English countryside during WWII. The story is told in such a way that it grips your heart from the very beginning.

Shirley Dickson has taken a story that is not too often told and made it into a story that once the reader picks this book up you can’t put it down.

Thank you to #netgalley and #forever(grandcentralpublishing) for allowing me to read the eARC of this book. All opinions expressed above are my own.

I love reading historical fiction books that take place during WWII. This is an emotional read. From an out of wedlock pregnancy, difficult relationships, loss of life due to bombings in WWII, and physical disabilities, the characters in this story will tug at your heart. Jacob and Molly are twins and you will find yourself amazed at what they must endure. Their strength and determination, and the willingness of Jacob to assume the role of caregiver for his sister, is admirable. The storyline is well written and engaging and the characters so richly developed that you will be absorbed in the story until the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookoutre for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

Molly and Jacob are 8 years old twins when their mother decides to send them to live in the country. She does this to protect them from the bombs that are exploding near their home. The twins are scared to leave their mother to live with strangers until the war is over. The twins discover that living in the country is not so bad once they are there. When Molly hears that they might be sent to an orphanage, she tells Jacob. They decide to have a backup plan to keep from being separated from each other as they would be if they had to live in an orphanage.

The author has written an excellent historical novel. It is at times an.heartbreaking story of what happen to children during World War 2. I loved the positive experiences the twins had and how faithful they were to each other. It is very well written and researched. It’s a story about friendship, family, parenthood and loss that stayed with me.

The Lost Children is a story that is simple, yet stirring. The war rages on, shrouding this heartbreaking narrative in bleakness, showing yet another side to this monstrous war. With multiple narratives, both young and old, these voices lend a sincere depth to an otherwise simplistic tale.

Molly Moffat finds herself in a tough situation. After a night spent with the bosses son Molly finds herself in the family way, and on the day she is going to tell the man she loves about the baby growing inside her, she is fired by her boss, when he sees that she is pregnant. Having no other options she is sent away to give birth, and it is during her time away that she realizes she is having twins, and her heart knows there is no way she can give them up.

From their conception, Jacob and Molly have a hard life, but they have each other, and that’s all that matters. The Lost Children is the story of these two sweet cherubs and their harrowing journey to find where they belong. They both have such bravery, but Jacob is clearly wise beyond his years, having seen so much in his short life that many won’t see in an entire lifetime, and feeling the burden of not only caring for his own well-being but his sisters as well, as she has a handicap.

There is so much loss in this novel that it’s almost unreal, but such is how things were during the second world war. I hate how so many lost so much during this time, the war affecting every single person in one way or another, and for what? My blood boils when I think about the injustices from this time, and this story is just another example how far reaching this war went.

The heartache compounds as the story rolls on, one event after another that suppresses your psyche with sadness, wondering how much more loss can these children take. There is a sweet love story that is a nice breeze through an otherwise heavy story, a vital breath of fresh air.

My heart belonged to Jacob and Molly throughout and I craved to see these two get their happily ever after. The ending was predictable but appreciated, a contented sigh leaving my lips as I closed this novel. Shirley Dickson did a masterful job of putting you there into these characters minds, feeling what they feel, and seeing what they see. It was truly an immersive experience that I will not soon forget.

Dickson has told a different WWII story in this novel, which was a nice change. Focusing on the children, the soft voice makes it an easy read.
3.5 Stars

We often read books about previous wars dealing with soldiers, resistance fighters, women left behind, but not many, that I have read, deal with children. This book has children at the heart of it, twins who lose everything and only have each other to hold on to.

These twins were born out of wedlock, but had family behind them, until bombs changed their world. Thankfully they found good people to care before them, unlike some, and their lives were changed forever.

This is a clean story, thought provoking about how disabilities were dwelt with in the 40's, and painting a kind picture of the evacuation program for children. It was interesting to see how so many could be so prejudiced not just by nationality, but by disability, even during a time of war. I will look for this author's other books.

The Lost Children was a beautifully written novel about the Children who were sent away to the countryside during World War II. It follows the story of a set of twins, Jacob and Molly. Molly has Cerebral Palsy and struggles to walk and thus gets a lot of attention (and not always positive).

Jacob and Molly are born to a "single" mother and raise by their mum and grandmum prior to the war. During the early part of the war their mother works in factories related to the war and they are living with their grandmother and their is a bombing which brings her closer to home. Then she sends them away to the countryside for their well-being. The twins find themselves bounced around a bit but they find happiness where they are. After the end of the war a few surprises happen which is why you must read this honest, heart-wrenching, beautiful, yet genuinely touching novel.

Shirley Dickson has written a novel that is out pf my normal realm/genre and it was such an amazing novel. I cannot wait to read the others she has written!

What is more sad than two siblings, fraternal twins, losing their grandmother? Read The Lost Children and find out. Molly and Jacob know nothing but loss and being shuffled around during WWII.
They are lucky to land in a special, caring village, where they make friends and even maybe find a new family.
There’s a lot of sadness but also great joy to be found.

This book will make you feel so many things: happy, sad, mad, hopeful. Although this book is a WWII HistoricalFiction, it brings to light a side of war rarely talked about. Jacob and Molly are twins who are born to an unwed mother. They are sent away for their own safety during the war. From here, this story has twists and turns that will pull at your hear strings. The characters are realistic and likable, making me feel as if I can see the story happening right in front of me. This is a must read!

With twists and turns, both all over England and in the plot itself, this is a story that will tug at your heart strings and keep you on the edge of your seat right through the very last page! Jacob and Molly are twins born illegitimately just prior to WW2. They grow up in a loving home, and cope with the blitz and other wartime issues of London before being sent to live in the countryside for safety and shelter. Their adventures mirror many of the same as other evacuees, but with some added stressors (such as disability). It's a sweet story of adventure, heartbreak, and the search for belonging...

Impossible to put down even at the end! I wanted more from the moment I started reading and even more when I finished.

We know that war and peace are both incompatible notions. However, author Shirley Dickson shows us that war and compassion are definitely compatible. She examines how war often calls for human compassion to help one another to ensure survival.

This book focuses on twins Molly and Jacob who are evacuated during WW2 and sent to complete strangers far away in the countryside. Dickson captures both the bewilderment of the children and the fear and lack of control a mother would feel at sending loved ones away, not knowing if she’ll ever see them again. It’s a tender account of how a boy cares for his differently-abled sister during wartime and learns to rely on strangers to survive. I appreciated that Dickson took a different approach to child evacuation stories; she tells of a positive ‘home children’ experience. I was caught up in homefront life in Northumberland during the war and although I was able to set the book down, I slipped back into the setting and story easily.

Yes, it’s predictable and yes, it’s sad, but hidden in the often meandering and verbose prose is a blaring message for us when we find ourselves in the midst of senseless calamity. I think Mr. Rogers said it best, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” My takeaway is that together we can survive anything.

I was gifted this advance copy by Shirley Dickson, Forever Publishing, Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this read. It was an enjoyable read just a little too predictable. Good for a quick, easy read.