Beyond That, the Sea: A Novel

My eyes are still a bit damp, after having read just now the Epilogue of this book in tears. I would give this novel 10 stars if I could! This triumphant novel is Laura Spence-Ash’s debut book although one would think she’s been writing novels for years. There is so much emotion, love, loss, grief and happiness in this story. Based on true events, this is a fictional story of a British girl being sent to live in America during the Blitz of London during WWII. All that the families live through are historical events from 1940-1977. The style of writing is excellent, alternating between each character and his/her own experiences. The book is written in present tense which normally I do not care for but in this style of writing, it works. There are no quotations for the each character’s speech, but I think I was confused only once or twice. I loved having six years at a time written on the bottom of each page, highlighting the year to which she is writing instead of announcing the years at chapter heads. I learned so much about life in this novel. We need to live fully throughout our lives, not letting one day go by when we don’t express to each other our love and desires. Memories hold dear and for me, this was particularly true, as I had similar summer experiences as did the American family. There is no obscene words or sex in this book, just wonderful storytelling about how important it is to live each day fully. I had only one issue and that is the print is small and could be a problem for some readers. Truly a masterpiece!

I had read some reviews before reading this book and was skeptical. Glad I picked it up and read it. I didn't mind how it was written, going back and forth with the characters. I think it made it easier to understand them. I loved the storyline and how over time it came full circle.

...and I read a lot! (this was my 24th book of 2023 so far) Absolutely loved this book from start to finish and read the whole thing in about two days. Because of the way the book is narrated, with eight different characters moving the story forward, the reader gains such an insight into each one of them and the way in which they relate to one another. I read another review where someone said the dialogue was hard to follow, but I had no problem with it at all. To me, the way it was written in italics (and often all in the same paragraph), it flowed together like natural speech, and I never had a problem knowing which person was talking. This is a book about family, more than anything else. About the bonds that are formed in a family that stay with us for the rest of our lives. But it's also a book about place, and the power that a certain place can exert on our memories and actions going forward. The tension in the book is so strong -- the desire that Beatrix has to remain in the U.S. as well as her desire to stay in England, and the story is so well crafted as it moves back and forth between those worlds and people. We know what these characters are thinking and feeling, even though they may not share these thoughts and feelings out loud to others. We have a special place where our family has vacationed almost each summer for over forty years, and I could relate so well to the descriptions of the Maine summers in the book -- the memories that are made there and shared long after everyone has gone back to their regular routines, and the desire to go back there, to relive those moments. "The past is prologue" is mentioned more than once in the story -- the power of the past to form us into the people we become in the future. Beatrix's parents make a decision to send her away from the Blitz into Massachusetts safety back in 1940, but that one decision causes a ripple effect that in some way impacts the life of every other character in the story, all the way until 1977. A marvelous book! I can't recommend it enough!

As London is destroyed by Hitler’s bombing of the city during World War II, Millie and Reg make the most heartbreaking decision – to send their only child, the 11-year-old Beatrix to America. There she will say with the Gregory family in Boston for the duration of the war, and where she should be safer that war torn London. The picture-perfect Gregory Family – with their huge house, and island in Maine, and adorable two sons. Beatrix takes to life in the USA, and to living with the Gregory’s rather easy, and becomes to regard them as her own family. As the war ends, Millie is desperate for her only child to return to her, to London. Beatrix is not the 11-year-old girl who left London all those years ago, and mother and daughter struggle to have a normal relationship. The London and the mother she comes home to, are not the same ones she left behind. Beyond That, the Sea is beautifully written. It is the story of immense bravery, love, loss, and ultimately acceptance and forgiveness!

The book is good but at some point in the characters lives, it’s actually depressing. The story is about WWII and how it effected the characters lives overall. One British girl is sent to America for her safety. The American family who takes her in is definitely changed by her presence in spite of the fact that they all come to love her in their own way. It’s when the British girl goes home in 1945 that things begin to fall apart for the members of the American family that adopted her. The American family consists of 2 young boys and their parents and their German Shepherd dog. It’s worth reading and easy reading.

There has been such a glut of World War II novels--especially those set on parallel timelines with a contemporary character who finds a notebook, diary, photo album (take your pick!) and investigates the past through its pages--that I was a bit wary that "Beyond That, the Sea" would be more of the same. But Laura Spence-Ash's captivating debut breathes new life into the genre, as it follows Beatrix Thompson, an eleven-year-old English child evacuated to America by her frightened parents during the London Blitz, to her new home in New England with her American hosts, Mr. and Mrs. Gregory, and their sons William and Gerald. Spence-Ash's choice of a polyphonic format is perfect for her story, allowing chapters to move back and forth between the perspectives of Beatrix's bereft parents, Millie and Reg, back in war-torn London, and those of each of the Gregorys toward their new charge. Each of these characters felt wholly-developed and I liked them all--this wasn't one of those books where I wanted to skip over some of the narrators' chapters--but the real beating heart of "Beyond That, the Sea" is Bea, who we watch transform over the years from a shy and homesick child to a self-assured young woman torn between the home she left behind and the one she's grown fiercely attached to. Those readers looking for a fresh angle on World War II won't be disappointed, even when the latter half of the book moves on to the post war years, which are equally well depicted and engrossing. Spence-Ash is a writer to watch and I look forward to seeing what she does next. Very enjoyable--I've already bought additional copies for my mom and sister.

It's beautifully told, but I don't know the story's purpose. Bea, a child during the London bombings of World War 2, is sent to New England for safety. She finds herself in a happy family with property off the coast of Maine. For five years, she becomes the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Gregory, living a life full of adventure and memory-making as the war draws to its conclusion. At 17, she falls in love with the elder of the brothers, but he is troubled, despite movie-star good looks and an offer from Harvard that he doesn't want to take. Bea's mother, back in England, harbors guilt for sending Bea away, even though it was at Bea's father's insistence. Bea's father takes a position in a neighborhood watch for the war effort, and he exchanges letters and chess moves with Bea's American host father, Mr. G. until he dies suddenly of a heart attack in his early 50s. Bea misses the funeral (there's a war on) and responds by withdrawing for a time, talking to her father near a local chapel. Bea's mother moves, marries a much younger man, and appears to move forward. Eventually, Bea's life with the Gregory family returns to equilibrium. Bea returns to England where she fights with her mother, takes a job at a nursery school, and struggles to be independent. She takes on a few lovers but pines away for William, the golden boy. Several years later, Mr G. also dies young of a heart attack. Bea also misses this funeral. William, however, is on holiday with a friend, and so makes his way back to New England via London, where he and Bea reconnect long enough for him to admit he is engaged and his first child will be conveniently born prematurely, just to ensure the math works for the neighbors. Bea is crushed but carries on, stiff upper lip and all. William marries and has two children, whom he adores, but the marriage is not happy -- And that is enough summary. The scenery is lovely, and the characters are well-rounded, especially considering how many there are in the story. But what's the purpose? There are too many scattered plotlines for a single message. If I had to decide on one, I might say that the author wanted to explore the effect of London's dispersed children in the 1940s over time and among all participants. Spence-Ash covers at least 40 years of normal family events across two countries, each affecting Bea differently. Spence-Ash includes major U.S. events: the admiration for the Kennedys, the Civil Rights movement, and desegregation, but the political events don't serve the plot in any meaningful way. More than anything, they serve to note the passage of time. The story skips decades, which is probably good considering how many years and characters are involved. I kept waiting for the AHA moment, but the book ended at the Maine house with family gathered for the summer. I'm sure there's a sense of what makes a home involved somewhere, but the central character, Bea, didn't seem much altered between her teen self and her mid-life self; she still had family on both sides of the pond, so, is she really home for good? Or will she again find herself longing for more?

A wonderfully written story that draws the reader into the actual experiences of folks who lived through WWII in England and made the decision to send their children to America to keep them safe. To flesh out in novel form with endearing characters a realistic possibility of what could have happened after 5 years away from your family, in another country, integrated into another home and culture. What are the long term implications of that on the family? How did the impact of the war on those who remained and the changes to the landscape itself affect the child when they returned home 5 years older not having lived through the experience of their countryman? This is a moving story of a child, two families, two countries. a world war, daily happenings, happenings over decades, death, loss, grief, tragedy, joy. As complete a novel as one could want. And needed no explicit sex or violence or language to accomplish that feat.

Great book, very touching!

1940, and as bombs fall on London, Reg and Millie Thompson decide to send their eleven year old daughter Beatrix to America, to stay with the Gregory family, who have kindly volunteered to take her in. So Bea arrives in Boston, scared and alone, however, for the next five years she finds herself ensconced into the warm and loving household of the Gregorys. There is the motherly Mrs G, the quiet Mr G, and the two boys, William and Gerald, both worlds apart and yet both so dear to her. There are idyllic summers spent at the Gregory's island house, off the coast in Maine, and it is in America, that Bea grows into the woman she is to become. However, then the war is over and it is time to return to London. Over the years Bea tries desperately to move on with her life, yet her heart seems to be torn between two places, two families, the past refusing to let go. This was an evocative debut novel from Laura Spence-Ash, and one that I enjoyed taking my time to savour. A character-driven book, the story itself is slow-paced, and stretching across an expanse of over 3 decades, can seem meandering at times, however, I found myself deeply invested in the myriad characters' lives from start to finish. The book is told from multiple character perspectives, which I think really helped to connect with all the main characters and bring each voice to life. Beatrix as the central character was particularly easy to like from the off, this young girl finding herself on a different Continent in a time of war, separated from her parents and away from everything she has ever known. She grows into a thoughtful young woman, and yet that sense of displacement never quite leaves her, for returning to London five years later, it is not the same place and she is not the same person, and yet she is expected to simply forget the family she has grown to love. It was fascinating to get the different parents' perspectives too. There are Millie and Reg in London, desperately missing their daughter and yet doing what they believe best for her. It was interesting to see the strain this put on their marriage too, particularly as Millie is more resentful than her husband on missing out on her daughter's growing up, and later we see the tensions this causes in her relationship with Beatrix too. At the same time you see Mrs G, who has always wanted a daughter, completing embracing Bea, whilst Mr G, aware that she is only with them for a short while, urges his wife to be more cautious. Spence-Ash does a really good job of exploring all these different perspectives, but also shows growth and change in her characters over time, as well as changes in the relationships depicted, such that nothing is ever static, and no character seems one-dimensional. For instance, where Millie could often come across as dislikable in her resentment almost of the Gregorys, as the story went on, her longing to forge a closer relationship with Bea was actually quite touching, and I liked how in the end she helped to ease the way for Bea to finally reconnect with the Gregorys. Yes, perhaps she should have done so a long time before, however, she got their in the end, and I liked the complex mother-daughter relationship portrayed. Other characters too were far from perfect, but all the more real for it, William for instance, always longing for something else, never quite content with his lot. Rose is introduced as a new character voice in the second half of the story, as a new addition to the family, and did take a little warming to, however, I liked that she proved to have more depth and inner resources than initial impressions suggested. The first half of the novel focusing on Bea's initial stay with the Gregory's was perhaps the part I enjoyed the most, perhaps because it is the part the author takes her time with most, and is important for what comes later. There were parts in the middle that perhaps seemed a little meandering, and yet in the overall context did make sense, and even when not much was actually happening, the characters' thoughts and feelings still shone through. The book does overall have a somewhat melancholy feel to it, in particular the second half. There are character deaths, characters with regrets and a continuous theme of displacement. However, there was a lot of warmth and moments of joy too. The book, particularly, the second half is filled with a lot of nostalgia for childhood days and more innocent times, and the passage of time seems to be a theme of the book in and of itself, in terms of how it changes people, and how much no matter how hard you wish it, there can never be any going back. Romance does feature in the book, but is certainly not the main aspect. I enjoyed the different depictions of Bea's first love, and later in the story the more mature love that evolves with another character. I liked how the novel ended, though perhaps found some of the later chapters a bit more rushed and would have liked to spend more time with the characters in the latter parts, however, perhaps that was just because I had grown so attached to them by that stage. A coming of age story, a story about families and love in many different forms, told in a gentle but evocative way. I shall certainly keep an eye out for any future offerings from the author.

This is a beautiful heartfelt story that will stay with you for a long time after you finish reading it. I can’t say enough about how much I enjoyed both the story and the writing style. A beautiful novel, well worth the read.

What a beautiful book! Well written, enjoyable and heartwarming...

Virginia Woolfs Zitat aus dem Roman „The Waves“ ist titelgebend. Leider führt der Anspruch, der damit erweckt wird, in die Irre. Erzählt wird eine Geschichte von verlorenen und wiedergefundenen Lieben, von Sehnsucht und Erinnerung, von der Bedeutung von Bindung und Familie. Beatrix wird zu Beginn des Zweiten Weltkrieges von ihren Eltern zu ihrem Schutz aus London in die USA verschickt. Sie wird dort von einer Familie aufgenommen, der es finanziell viel besser geht als ihren Eltern zuhause in England. Die Familie nimmt Bea herzlich auf. Ihre Gastmutter behandelt sie wie die Tochter, die sie selbst nicht bekommen hat. Auch die Söhne entwickeln eine enge Bindung, die nach den fünf Jahren, die Bea dort verbringt, nicht stirbt. Bea kehrt zurück, wird erwachsen, kann nicht vergessen … Einer der Hauptschauplätze ist eine Insel vor der Küste von Maine, die der Familie gehört. Idylle pur. Gelesen habe ich den Roman am Ufer eines österreichischen Sees an heißen Sommernachmittagen zum Plätschern kleiner Wellen gegen die Segelboote in der kleinen Marina. Auch das idyllisch. Trotz dieser beinahe kongenialen Umgebung konnte mich das Buch nicht überzeugen. Es besteht aus Kapiteln, die oft nur zwei oder drei Seiten lang sind, überschrieben mit den Namen der Figuren. Schnipsel ihrer Erfahrung, die nicht zu einem Ganzen werden. Die Charaktere bleiben fragmentarisch. Prägende Ereignisse werden nicht ausgezählt. Die Außenwelt, der Krieg, später die Rassenunruhen, die Wahl Kennedys zum Präsidenten werden wie beiläufig erwähnt. Und der Schluss – nun ja. Da ich beim Lesen am Bootssteg saß, hätte das Buch leicht ins Wasser fallen können.