Review of "The Postmistress" by Sarah Blake

The Postmistress is a historical novel dealing with the period of time just prior to the United States' entrance into World War II. It is set in a small Massachusetts coastal town and Europe. The main characters are Emma, a young bride; Iris, the postmaster of the small Massachusetts town; and Frankie, a young woman reporter for the Columbia Broadcasting System. It is the story of how the three women's lives become entangled and involved in a war that the United States is not yet a part. While the story seems a little disconnected at times, it reinforces the fact that history is not just treaties, Congressional acts, and military campaigns. Serious study of history involves the lives of ordinary people. A quote by Martha Gellhorn from The Face of War in the front of the book says, "War happens to people, one by one." Author Sarah Blake attempts to show how the war happens to three very different women.