The Women by Kristin Hannah

Pan Macmillan

9781035005697

480pp

I actually picked up The Women initially thinking that it was a dystopian novel, but was pleasantly surprised to discover it’s historical. I know very little about the Vietnam War, so this story was an absolutely brutal kaleidoscope of emotions for me. The story begins as we follow Frankie into the Vietnam War as a nurse. What occurs is harrowing and visceral. But there is also hope and love in there too.

Frankie’s brother is killed in Vietnam, and, hoping to make her family proud, she signs up as an army nurse and is shipped out just a matter of weeks later. What begins as a romanticised view of wartime, rapidly gets shattered by the brutal realities. Frankie is thrown in at the deep end, with an influx of patients, and is stunned to discover that the war is not what the American government is portraying. In fact, they are losing the war.

Frankie goes on to meet other nurses and doctors, finding friends and lovers alike. Despite the bloodshed, despite the trauma of war, Frankie finds lifelong friends and falls in love for the first time. But along with that comes loss and heartbreak. And then Frankie goes home. And things get harder. The mood toward the war has changed, and Frankie is faced with ridicule and dismay. Even from her own family.

Frankie’s endeavours to find herself, suffering with PTSD and battling the opinions of others, are almost as harrowing as the descriptions of the war. From a lover back from the dead, but not as he seems, to a family embarrassed by her participation in the war, Frankie turns to her girl friends for support.

It is through the power of friendship (of, arguably, platonic soulmates), that Frankie rediscovers herself. It is through activism, through finding her caring side again, that Frankie begins to thrive. This story is gorgeous, if gruesome, and reinforces the power of female friendships. More than the romantic relationships, more than the familial relationships, it is the female relationships that make this story so brilliant.

I loved this story. I loved Frankie, and I loved the narration of the Vietnam War and its aftermath. This is worth reading … and then I recommend watching M*A*S*H.