The War Artist

I was first drawn to this book by the striking blues and red of the cover, then the intriguing title. The blurb sealed the deal.

Sybil is a young artist, all alone in the world, having received a telegram that her husband missing. World War 2 is raging, affecting everyone.
Needing a means to support herself, Sybil is fortunate to win an assignment from the War Artists' Advisory Committee (WAAC) to cover the length and breadth of the country, sketching women and how their lives have been affected by the war.
She encounters brave women wherever she goes, who are just getting on with things because they have no other option. Women working at airfields, on assembly lines, repairing locomotives or farming. Whatever is needed to be done.
Sybil gives these women a voice, telling their stories through her brilliant sketches.

I absolutely adored Sybil and the other central characters she becomes close to. They became like family to me, and I was totally invested in all of them.

I read this over 2 days, unable to tear myself away. I laughed and cried along this journey. It was a history lesson like no other.
I hadn’t read any books by Jan Casey before, but I will certainly be searching for them now.

Thank you to NetGalley and Aria for the digital ARC of this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

I loved this next book in this Saga by Jan Casey.
It follows the true story of a female war artist in World War 2 and is enthralling and captivating. I truly couldn't put it down.

Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.,

I loved the cover of this book and was hooked from the beginning.

Sybil, is on her own, she gets informed that her husbands whereabouts are unknown as WWII is ongoing,

She needs to do something so that she can look after her needs.

As she is an artist, Sybil is the winner of an assignment from the War Artists' Advisory Committee. It is to travel the country and draw pictures of women showing how the war has affected their way of living.

Throughout her journey, the women she meets have to be valiant and go on with their lives, as there’s nothing else they can do.

Her sketches depict these women and their individual tales.

I highly recommend this book.

Sybil,a young artist is devastated after receiving a telegram from the war office informing her that her husband is missing in action. While out she bumps into her mentor, Dame Lily who advises her to send her painting to the War Artist's Advisory committee in the hope of getting war work. She wins an assignment to travel up and down England sketching women doing war work and make some of her sketches into paintings.
What a good read this was, Sybil was determined to show the world how good women are at the jobs they were doing to keep industry going while the men went to fight. She meets lovely lifelong friends along the way who give her a place she can call home until she is strong enough to start again.
A great insight into what people like us did and put up with during WW2. The strength of women who looked after a home and children and did what was classed as men's job. The War Artist was a very important part of recording their lives for future generations.
A great read.

Sybil Paige meets her former art teacher Dame Lily Brampton who’s visiting London from Norfolk and she suggests Sybil apply to join the War Artists Advisory Committee and they want female artists to travel around England recording what’s happening to everyday British citizens and from a woman’s perspective.

While she waiting she teaches at an art school in Luton, here she meets Blanche and Ellen, two fellow teachers and artists. The three women become close friends, Blanche is offered a position in the Recording Britain Project and Sybil joins the War Artists Advisory Committee and Ellen keeps honing her skills.

Sybil is given a six month commission, with her passes and sketchbooks she sets off by train. During her travels Sybil visits airfields, assembly lines, farms, pop up cafes, and sees a woman shoveling ashes from a furnace, when she takes off her helmet she's shocked to see the lady is middle aged, she worked during The Great War and returned to help during the Second World War. Where ever she goes Sybil witnesses terrible suffering, all of England is being bombed, she sees a women pushing an empty pram, a man scrambling through rubble looking for his family and much more!

Sybil’s confidence grows, she has a purpose and the War Artists Advisory Committee is very happy with her work, her friendships with Dame Lily, Aunty Myrtle, Blanche and Ellen are meaningful and the women are kindred spirits. But it’s hard to feel safe, when the English coast is covered by landmines and barbed wire and they could be invaded.

I was given a digital copy of The War Artist by Jan Casey from Aria & Aries and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This is the author’s fifth novel, I think it’s her best, I felt a real connection to the characters and I cared what happened to them. It makes you about how Sybil felt when she received a telegram, informing her husband is missing in action, her despair and wondering if she will ever know what happened to him and did she rush into marriage? Sybil wasn't alone, thousands of wives and mothers dreaded seeing the telegram boy and hoped he would ride past their house.

Art is a way to express feelings, and how a person comprehends the situation or subject, preserving it for future generations to see, to never forget the suffering and sacrifices made, the narrative has an overall theme of strong and resilient women, and five stars from me.

Excellent! Jan has written a memorable story about a war time artist that’s so descriptive you are completely immersed in it. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Sybil is an extraordinary woman taking on this role, travelling to and working in extremely dangerous and difficult situations.

"Excuse me," the man interrupted her as if there was absolutely nothing she could say to comfort him. "I have to get on with my digging." Then he stabbed violently at the sketchbook with his finger. "Get it all down," he snarled. "Every single disgusting, pathetic detail, and shove it in their faces."

London, 1940: Following a chance meeting with her former art teacher, young painter, Sybil Paige wins a coveted assignment from the War Artists Advisory Committee, so begins her journey across the length and breadth of the country, sketching everything from air fields to assembly lines to farms and factories. Sometimes it's the milkmaids and poultry keepers, brave and hopeful: sometimes it's the harrowed faces of those digging through the rubble to find their loved ones and livelihoods. But armed with her sketchbook, Sybil catches all, determined to tell the stories of the thousands of women fighting their own battles on the home front. Above all, she wants the voice of her subjects to shine through.

When Sybil Paige met her former art teacher, Dame Lily Brampton, she advises Sybil that she could be a great help to the War Artists Advisory Committee as they want women to record events that are occurring all over Britain. Sybil makes friends with Blanche and Ellen at an art school.

What a well-written and entertaining read this book was. Sybil travels the country, painting the scenes she comes across. The characters were well-developed and likeable. Sybil witnesses the worst kind of suffering during WWII. This is a thoroughly enjoyable read.

Published 9th May

I would like to thank #NetGalley #Aria&Aries and the author #JanCasey for my ARC of #TheWarArtist in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you for the chance to read this ARC in return for my honest opinion.

This was a fascinating insight into an area of wartime work about which I had no idea.
It tells of artists, often women, who were commissioned to paint either views of War or the lives of those living through the War. In a way it’s a snapshot of time in a period of upset and in some ways the inevitability of the effects of war.
Sybil had met her old tutor and then two other ladies who became part of her life and art.

The book was well written and well researched and kept me hooked till the end.

Thank you