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Loading... Switchboard Soldiers: A Novel (original 2022; edition 2022)by Jennifer Chiaverini (Author)
Work InformationSwitchboard Soldiers by Jennifer Chiaverini (2022)
   None No current Talk conversations about this book.   ) shazjhb | May 10, 2024 |  nothing about these women of the Army Signal Corps, who were called switchboard soldiers. Their story is patriotic, inspiring, and educational. This is historical fiction based on true events and real, courageous women who served faithfully in extremely difficult circumstances during WWI in France. I highly recommend this book. (  ) LuLibro | Jan 22, 2024 |  ) njcur | Oct 24, 2023 | Aah...I was transported back to the front lines of World War I with a group of women switchboard operators who, with their skills as well as their ability to speak French, became soldiers in their own right. Chiaverini has a masterful way of combining historical events with personal stories. I learned a lot about WW I, including the use of passenger pigeons to send messages! I was also not aware of the ravages of the influenza epidemic during the war. Chiaverini includes it as part of her story. I did a little searching on one of the real-life characters and found the very fascinating Gjenvick-Gjønvik archives that includes a wide variety of ephemera related to topics like the military and the influenza pandemic. It covers the "hello girls" and has a tribute to that particular character. ( ) witchyrichy | Aug 30, 2023 | Through Grace, Marie, and Valerie (and a few others) we get to see their decisions to answer the call, their training, their transport to Europe and the war zone, their work, their relationships, and their devotion to duty. The one thing that bothered me a little was not knowing how the relationship between Marie and Giovanni ended up. For some reason, I kept forgetting this was WWI (not WWII). I also found the side story about influenza/Spanish Flu intriguing--it reminded me quite a bit of the COVID19 pandemic. It was a bit ironic that one of the people who was so diligent about recommending masks ended up succumbing. I found it sad that these women enlisted "for the duration" and were some of the last ones to leave France/Germany but the US government decided they weren't veterans and didn't qualify for benefits or medals. (Which was kind of odd since Grace Banker was awarded a medal while still in France.) It took until 1977 for them to get the recognition they deserved (under then President Jimmy Carter). ( ) JenniferRobb | Aug 9, 2023 | no reviews | add a review
Notable Lists
Fiction.
Literature.
Historical Fiction.
HTML: From New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Chiaverini, a bold, revelatory novel about one of the great untold stories of World War I—the women of the U.S. Army Signal Corps, who broke down gender barriers in the military and battled a pandemic as they helped lead the Allies to victory. "An eye-opening and detailed novel about remarkable female soldiers. . . Chiaverini weaves the intersecting threads of these brave women's lives together, highlighting their deep sense of pride and duty."—Kirkus Reviews In June 1917, General John Pershing arrived in France to establish American forces in Europe. He immediately found himself unable to communicate with troops in the field. Pershing needed telephone operators who could swiftly and accurately connect multiple calls, speak fluent French and English, remain steady under fire, and be utterly discreet, since the calls often conveyed classified information. At the time, nearly all well-trained American telephone operators were women—but women were not permitted to enlist, or even to vote in most states. Nevertheless, the U.S. Army Signal Corps promptly began recruiting them. More than 7,600 women responded, including Grace Banker of New Jersey, a switchboard instructor with AT&T and an alumna of Barnard College; Marie Miossec, a Frenchwoman and aspiring opera singer; and Valerie DeSmedt, a twenty-year-old Pacific Telephone operator from Los Angeles, determined to strike a blow for her native Belgium. They were among the first women sworn into the U.S. Army under the Articles of War. The male soldiers they had replaced had needed one minute to connect each call. The switchboard soldiers could do it in ten seconds. Deployed throughout France, including near the front lines, the operators endured hardships and risked death or injury from gunfire, bombardments, and the Spanish Flu. Not all of them would survive. The women of the U.S. Army Signal Corps served with honor and played an essential role in achieving the Allied victory. Their story has never been the focus of a novel...until now. . No library descriptions found. |
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 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.54Literature American literature in English American fiction in English 1900-1999 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage: (4)
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