“Men tell stories. Women get on with it. For us, it was a shadow war. There were no parades for us when it was over, no medals or mentions in history books. We did what we had to do during the war, and when it was over, we picked up the pieces and started our lives over. “
” In love, we find out what we want to be. In war, we find out who we are.”

Vianne Mauriac in The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah.

These are two of my favorite quotes from the historical fiction called The Nightingale which is written by Kristin Hannah. I love historical fiction. It is like reading two stories at the same time. The incident that actually happens is a story in itself. Good storytellers do complete justice to both stories. With World War 2 and the German invasion of France as the backdrop, Kristen beautifully pens the story of two sisters Vianne and Isabelle. This book is the story of love, war, courage, friendship, and humanity ( and at times, the lack of all of it).

During difficult times, a question that constantly pops up in our minds is ” will I be able to rise to the occasion or will I fail” or “am I good enough? ” One thing that all of us forget is that we are much stronger than we think we are. Rising to the occasion is the only way out of difficult situations. Like Kristin says in the book, “If you are going through hell, keep going”.

Vianne and Isabelle fight their own battles during the war. It was not a shadow war for the sisters. They were part of it in more ways than just surviving during those times. One of them fighting it with German soldiers staying in her house and the other taking fallen airmen of the allies across the borders into Spain. The story of a broken family, torn apart by one war, that comes together during the next one, only to be separated forever.

A war can have survivors, but their life changes forever.

It is a heartbreaking story that will leave you teary-eyed. I highly recommend reading this book.

The Lemon Tree – An Arab, a Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East by Sandy Tolan, The Kite Runner and A thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, etc are historical fictions that I have read in the last couple of years. These books teach us that we cannot correct the wrongs of history. But if we do not learn from them, then we know exactly what future awaits us.

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