nursenell's review against another edition
3.0
I read a lot of books about the Holocaust and the Resistance. I liked this book OK but it never really grabbed me. It's told through the experience of an American pilot who was shot down and lands in a farm field near the French border. He is saved by members of the French Resistance and eventually is one of those who is able to cross the Pyrenees to Spain and back to Britain. The main thrust of the book is this pilot is now a retired commercial pilot, widowed, and he returns to France to see if he can find some of those who helped guide him to safety. In particular he wants to meet the high school girl, the girl with the blue beret, and her Resistance partner, a high school boy. The majority of the story is set in the present with glimpses back to the war.
randybo5's review against another edition
3.0
The interesting subject matter of both the French and Americans looking back on the experiences of downed pilots during World War II almost made up for the simplistic writing stye.
eerupps's review against another edition
5.0
This book tells the story of an American pilot who crashed landed a plane in Belgium in 1944 and the events that followed. The story begins in 1980 when he is forced to retire from being a commercial pilot at age 60 and decides that his life is incomplete, so he goes back to Belgium and then France to retrace his steps with hopes of reconnecting with people from the French resistance that sacrificed so much to save his life and the lives of his fellow aviators. I loved the way this story flowed and the entire time I was reading, I could not help but wonder about other people who have lived through wars and how the things they experienced must affect and change the course of the rest of their lives. The author's message seemed to be that facing the difficult things head on can be very rewarding and therapeutic.
kelliepalmer's review against another edition
1.0
Couldn't even finish it. I was bored. It also didn't really follow a clear time line, so I was confused when certain events occurred.
brad_mckay's review against another edition
1.0
so disappointing, this story had potential, but nothing happens in this book. the characters are never really developed and the story lines that are started are abandoned.
apetruce's review against another edition
4.0
A perfect example of the difference defining literature and "chick lit." This is literature. Immaculately researched with divine character development and unique observations. Like the difference between a storyteller and a writer. The French Resistance is a topic done and re-done in pop culture as a romantic trope. But here, I learned about it. And there are enough peeks into how chilling and horrific it was as to knock the Casablanca right out of you. I adored how the couple was older -- grandparents and yet little was made of their ages. I loved details, such as Mason's description how memories alter with time -- our hero is shocked to find parks a block away from where he pictured them time and again as he relived scenes his whole life and then, suddenly, there, 40 years later it all morphs back into his head the way it is. There are many writers gems such as this. Excellent description of architecture, clothing, food. Seemingly banal and needless details that somehow fill in the gaps that would exist in a poorly written book on the same topic. The flashback style in the front of the book is flawless, using letters and phone calls to generate them. The grittiness of today's world displaced by the horrific nature of war. What a great book -- it was just published in 2011 and I suspect there are still awards to come.
palliem's review against another edition
2.0
Unlike the other reviews of this book I have seen, I thought this novel started really strong and then tapered off. I liked Marshall's story and was invested in his journey to finding out what had happened to those in the French Underground who had saved him during WWII. Halfway through the novel, however, Mason basically abandoned this storyline and introduced a new one. At this point, we find out what happened to everyone, but there was still over 150 pages left in the novel! Mason had to introduce a new "conflict" into the book, but it never quite gelled for me. I was less interested in Annette's story (perhaps just because by the time it was introduced it was late in the story and I hadn't had a chance to start to care about her as a character) and then the whole thing turned into a love story. I was expecting strong historical fiction and got a tepid love story. Disappointing.
naelany's review against another edition
It's never easy to read these books (or in this case listen to them), yet I always seem to be drawn to them. The Girl in the Blue Beret was no different.
shelfimprovement's review against another edition
2.0
This book was just...boring. I don't really even have strong enough feelings about it to write any kind of insightful review. The prose didn't do anything for me, I didn't find Marshall to be an interesting character, and the plot moved so slowly that I didn't have the motivation to keep going. Really disappointing.
pamelajobrownlee's review against another edition
3.0
Very interesting topic, but I often lost my way in the story.