The Letter Carrier by L.C. Lewis – Review by Jennifer Gordon

The Letter Carrier by Laurie L.C. Lewis
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was a gripping historical novel based on the real life experiences of Michelle Naget and her family. I found this story to be a real page turner, which at times was heartwarming and at others heartbreaking. An inspirational story about an amazingly brave young women, I found this book hard to put down. A young Michelle and her family are fleeing to safety from the Germans who have marched across Europe and have now reached France, when they are captured by the Nazis. The Naget family are sent back to their house in the village of Braquis, to discover their home has been commandeered, and that they must serve the enemy. For four years the family live with the Nazis under their roof and have to endure not only this, but also their neighbours questioning their loyalty. Michelle and her family are very religious but the daily hardships test their faith, however, the family’s motto is , “We do what must be done,” and they do, by believing in God, each other and hope.
A young rebel French girl passes letters to Michelle and Légère promises that she will be free again when the Allies arrive. As time goes on the Nazis torment increases and the Naget family’s life and death is completely in their enemies control. Michelle is determined to do whatever she can to protect her family, even dressing as a boy and being a letter carrier. Told from Michelle’s point of view this is an engaging read and I felt completely immersed in the story. The setting came vividly and claustrophobically to life from the authors descriptive narrative. The characters are all realistic and well defined, Michelle is a very likeable and relatable young women. The author has obviously done her research, and the added historical details made me feel as though I had been transported back, during WWII. I literally could not put this book down, and the story and the characters stayed with me long after I had finished the book. A must read, which I definitely recommend.

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