Sisters in Arms: A Novel of the Daring Black Women Who Served During World War II
- Downloads：3766
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-08-10 11:21:09
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Kaia Alderson
- ISBN：1665096187
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Layne
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A decent read but I feel like a lot of other reviewers hit on the issues with the book-not a lot of depth on any one storyline， lots of jumping around， etc。 Honestly I found Charity Adams perhaps the most interesting figure in the novel and would’ve loved a novel more focused on her。
Porshea DiMera
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One great thing about the increase in representation of Black people in different mediums is that we are constantly learning about untold stories。 And on top of that， who doesn’t love when an interest turns out exactly as advertised？ I’m happy to say that when it comes to Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson， this historical fiction about Black women serving in the first troop of its kind in the U。S。 during World War II， what you see in the description is what you get。Grace Steele and Eliza Jones ar One great thing about the increase in representation of Black people in different mediums is that we are constantly learning about untold stories。 And on top of that， who doesn’t love when an interest turns out exactly as advertised？ I’m happy to say that when it comes to Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson， this historical fiction about Black women serving in the first troop of its kind in the U。S。 during World War II， what you see in the description is what you get。Grace Steele and Eliza Jones are two Uptown NYC young Black women in the 1940s， but their similar zip codes and choice to sign up for the Women’s Army Corps are where their shared qualities begin and end。 Grace is an aspiring concert pianist and composer whose prowess on the keys have her heralded as the Mozart of Harlem before she graduated middle school。 After the unfortunate timing of a telegram from the U。S。 Army spins her one in a million audition for Julliard into a disaster， Grace follows an impulse—and a flyer from Mary McLeod Bethune—to join the brand new initiative getting women into administrative roles in the U。S。 Army during World War II。 Dodging humid rain， her anxieties， and many a microaggression， she does just that at a downtown office where she bumps into Eliza Jones， the only other Black woman in line to enlist that day。 While there would be a level of bonding in this experience alone， Grace’s judgemental nature leads her to try to uppercut the other woman’s confidence。Read more here: https://blackgirlscreate。org/2021/08/。。。 。。。more
Candice
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Plot fell flat and was writing was pretty basic。 I wanted to love this book but frankly it was a challenge to get through
Monica
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This is more 3。5。 It’s got some great history and attention to racism， but it reads like a YA novel。 And it’s all tied up in a bow which doesn’t work for a book with these heavy topics。
Bookoholiccafe
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Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson is a story about courageous women。This story is encouraging but intense， a novel filled with solidarity and excitement， featuring amazing women。When Eliza and Grace are thrown together in the Army as the first black women allowed to serve their country in World War II， it’s all about fight or die。 They encountered prejudice from white soldiers， they were being criticized by their families。 I respected all the hardship and challenges these two coped with， and how Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson is a story about courageous women。This story is encouraging but intense， a novel filled with solidarity and excitement， featuring amazing women。When Eliza and Grace are thrown together in the Army as the first black women allowed to serve their country in World War II， it’s all about fight or die。 They encountered prejudice from white soldiers， they were being criticized by their families。 I respected all the hardship and challenges these two coped with， and how they looked out for each other despite their differences。 I really enjoyed the relationship between Eliza and GraceThe author did a great job creating a strong historical story。 It is a very engaging story for fans of historical fiction。Many Thanks to William Morrow for this amazing copy。 。。。more
Susan Feyrer
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A bit of a fluff novel for such a serious subject。
Yasmin
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More like 3。5 stars。 It was a good read and I enjoyed it。 Wished more time was spent on work in Europe vs。 the various relationships。
Ashley Curran
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Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson Thank you to William Morrow for this gifted copy in exchange for an honest review。 This is a WWII historical fiction story based on the first class of black female officers in the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps。 The 6888 Central Post Directory Battalion was the only all black female battalion sent overseas during WWII。 I liked this story， but I did expect to hear a little more about the day to day army life rather than the drama between the women。 I love when I lea Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson Thank you to William Morrow for this gifted copy in exchange for an honest review。 This is a WWII historical fiction story based on the first class of black female officers in the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps。 The 6888 Central Post Directory Battalion was the only all black female battalion sent overseas during WWII。 I liked this story， but I did expect to hear a little more about the day to day army life rather than the drama between the women。 I love when I learn through fiction， and while I did learn some， I feel like there could have been so much more the author could have done。 I was hoping for a more emotional， heartfelt book and this just brushed the surface。 I think this would be a good book for people branching into historical fiction。 ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 。。。more
Shannon Dyer
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Round up to 4。5 stars。
Autumn
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I REALLY wanted to like this。 The storyline intrigued me from the time I first stumbled across it。 I am a big historical fiction reader and haven’t read anything along this line。 I have had this book on my TBR for MONTHS and have anxiously been awaiting the release。 I was so excited to see it as a BOTM choice。 Coming from this perspective， when I started to read it I was surprised to see it read like a whiny high school drama， but figured the characters would enlist and things would change。 AND… I REALLY wanted to like this。 The storyline intrigued me from the time I first stumbled across it。 I am a big historical fiction reader and haven’t read anything along this line。 I have had this book on my TBR for MONTHS and have anxiously been awaiting the release。 I was so excited to see it as a BOTM choice。 Coming from this perspective， when I started to read it I was surprised to see it read like a whiny high school drama， but figured the characters would enlist and things would change。 AND…。 It didn’t。 The characters were unlikable。 They were whiny， full of drama， and pettiness。 This novel did not focus on the WAAC， but rather on 2 spoiled brats。 There was so much inconsistency too。 For example， Grace seemed like a meek， unsure girl， but then became loud mouth and pushy to get her way or speak her mind， but other times she was anxious and didn’t want to project herself？？？？ I can’t even describe it because I was getting so frustrated。 Don’t even get me started on the inconsistency between Grace and Eliza。 They were in their 20s in the military in the 1940s but spoke like teens in today’s age and had the maturity of a middle schooler。 Ugh， I wanted so bad to DNF and shelf this book， but pushed through HOPING it would get better and at least end well。 No such luck。 Very amateurish。 Shocked it was a BOTM pick。 Surprised the editor didn’t catch the character inconsistencies and plot holes （SO many of those， if there even was a plot hmmm）。 Anyway， I would have given it One star， but bumped it to 2 for an original idea， then felt generous and bumped to a 3 star due to this being a debut and knowing the effort Kaia put into this， stepping out to try her hand at writing。 Will I recommend this？ No。 Will I give to my daughter when she enters high school？ Yup。 This read like a Young Adult novel and that should really be the target audience here。 。。。more
Margret
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I loved this book！ It was the kind you can't put down。 True friends with issues but always supportive of each other。 I loved this book！ It was the kind you can't put down。 True friends with issues but always supportive of each other。 。。。more
Cait Dohmeier
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I really， really， really wanted and tried to like this book。 I loved the premise and had really high hopes。 Maybe too high？ I really disliked the romance subplot， which weirdly became the main plot for several chapters。 All the selling points came across really shallow。 The racism and sexism that Black WACs faced were touched on but never really explored。 Like being lied to about segregation in boot camp， a few pages were dedicated to their frustrations and then it was never really mentioned aga I really， really， really wanted and tried to like this book。 I loved the premise and had really high hopes。 Maybe too high？ I really disliked the romance subplot， which weirdly became the main plot for several chapters。 All the selling points came across really shallow。 The racism and sexism that Black WACs faced were touched on but never really explored。 Like being lied to about segregation in boot camp， a few pages were dedicated to their frustrations and then it was never really mentioned again， thought they spend a significant chunk of the book in boot camp。 The women didn’t like each other for SO MUCH of the book！ Neither main character was that likable to me either so I don’t blame them， though。 I don’t normally need likable MCs but since so much felt lacking， there wasn’t really much reason to continue。 。。。more
Darcy
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I saw where this book kept getting a lot of buzz， so I wanted to give it a try。 I have to say now that I'm done with the book， it deserved all the buzz it got！ WWII books are like cat nip to me， not sure why， but I love to read about the time period and what people were doing during that time。 This time around we have 2 Black women who join the army and while they are from the same city， they couldn't be more different。 I really liked how despite their differences Grace and Eliza become friends， I saw where this book kept getting a lot of buzz， so I wanted to give it a try。 I have to say now that I'm done with the book， it deserved all the buzz it got！ WWII books are like cat nip to me， not sure why， but I love to read about the time period and what people were doing during that time。 This time around we have 2 Black women who join the army and while they are from the same city， they couldn't be more different。 I really liked how despite their differences Grace and Eliza become friends， reluctant friends at first， but they start to depend on each other and help each other out。 They along with the other women in WAAC became a force to be reckoned with。 They did what they needed to， tackled every job handed to them and even managed to put certain people who looked down at them in their place。I did hate the bumps that Grace and Eliza had along the way， how each one hurt the other when they didn't mean it。 So seeing how this one ended was great！ I liked that they were able to talk in peace time and be happy for their friend。 I sort of wish there was more， another epilogue， would love to see how each one is doing some years in the future。 。。。more
Angie Knapp
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3。75 I enjoyed this look at a group of women I did not even know existed。 While Grace and Eliza had interesting lives I wish there would have been more。 I just felt like I wanted to know more， and feel more about them than I did。
Sue Plant
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Would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this very interesting book concerning how black women were drafted into the war and how they were treated Some of the characters in this book are based on real events that happened to the women and it’s keeps you thinking about how they carried on regardless to how they were treated by everyone even to the higher up generals It’s well worth a read and will keep you engrossed right to the endWill be keeping an eye out for more of Would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this very interesting book concerning how black women were drafted into the war and how they were treated Some of the characters in this book are based on real events that happened to the women and it’s keeps you thinking about how they carried on regardless to how they were treated by everyone even to the higher up generals It’s well worth a read and will keep you engrossed right to the endWill be keeping an eye out for more of this authors work 。。。more
Cayley Causey
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This book was amazing！ If you loved the Rose Code， you'll love this book。 This is the first time I was annoyed so see so many 4 star reviews - it completely deserves all 5 stars！ Learning about the history of the 6888th was so interesting。 The characters were interesting and so well-developed。 The writing is beautiful and engaging。 I was so invested in this book， I loved it！ This book was amazing！ If you loved the Rose Code， you'll love this book。 This is the first time I was annoyed so see so many 4 star reviews - it completely deserves all 5 stars！ Learning about the history of the 6888th was so interesting。 The characters were interesting and so well-developed。 The writing is beautiful and engaging。 I was so invested in this book， I loved it！ 。。。more
gwendalyn _books_
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Historical Fiction At its Finest Sisters in Arms！By @kaiawrites Thanks to the amazing people， #partner @williammorrowbooks for my gifted copy。。This is the incredible story of the Six Triple Eight， the first and only all-black battalion of the Women’s Army Corps！ Love every minute of this stunning historical fiction read！！
Danielle Schumann
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I love this author’s writing mission and knack for uncovering a good story in history - the first women of color company to serve in WWII and their work overseas to get mail to soldiers？ Sold。 The storytelling is simple， relying on emotions vs actions as plot drivers， and I can see why others say that leans it heavily YA。 I too would have loved more dialogue， depth and focus on their international assignment in the story。 I adored Grace’s character aspects — balancing the rigor of the army with I love this author’s writing mission and knack for uncovering a good story in history - the first women of color company to serve in WWII and their work overseas to get mail to soldiers？ Sold。 The storytelling is simple， relying on emotions vs actions as plot drivers， and I can see why others say that leans it heavily YA。 I too would have loved more dialogue， depth and focus on their international assignment in the story。 I adored Grace’s character aspects — balancing the rigor of the army with the soft creativity of the arts， and how it played in her progression throughout。 Thankful for BOTM introducing me to this book， one I otherwise didn’t have on my radar。 。。。more
Kathy
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I loved this book。 Eliza and Grace endured much and still kept their friendship。 I never realized that black women had their own battalion and how upsetting to have to segregate even in the military。 The fact that both of these women had special talents （Grace-piano）， （Eliza-writing） they still were not given the respect they deserved。 They did persevere and they were like sisters。 It was heartbreaking what happened to the 3 women from the battalion after the war in France and that part of the s I loved this book。 Eliza and Grace endured much and still kept their friendship。 I never realized that black women had their own battalion and how upsetting to have to segregate even in the military。 The fact that both of these women had special talents （Grace-piano）， （Eliza-writing） they still were not given the respect they deserved。 They did persevere and they were like sisters。 It was heartbreaking what happened to the 3 women from the battalion after the war in France and that part of the story was true。 The author did right by those women。 This book was insightful， fun， heartbreaking and powerful。 This is a must read for historical fiction fans。Thanks to #netgalley， #williammorris， #bookclubgirlsearlyread and @kaiawrites for an ARC of this book 。。。more
Lynn Spencer
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I had seen buzz about Sisters in Arms on Twitter， and I was excited to pick this one up as my Book of the Month Club pick。 The author does a good job of shedding light on a history that really needs to be remembered。 However， awkward plotting does sometimes undermine what is otherwise a fascinating tale。This novel follows two officers through the formation and later deployment in Europe of the Six Triple Eight， the only Black Women’s Army battalion to be sent to Europe。 They were a Postal battal I had seen buzz about Sisters in Arms on Twitter， and I was excited to pick this one up as my Book of the Month Club pick。 The author does a good job of shedding light on a history that really needs to be remembered。 However， awkward plotting does sometimes undermine what is otherwise a fascinating tale。This novel follows two officers through the formation and later deployment in Europe of the Six Triple Eight， the only Black Women’s Army battalion to be sent to Europe。 They were a Postal battalion， tasked with matching up huge piles of stalled mail to the units for whom it was intended。 I went back and read up on the history of the battalion after reading this book， and it was fascinating stuff。 This battalion was clearly made up of intelligent， accomplished women who got a difficult job done well despite having to deal with difficult conditions and the widespread racism and sexism of the time。 The book primarily follows two of the battalion’s officers – Grace Steele and Eliza Jones。 Both are from New York， but they come from very different backgrounds and rub each other the wrong way right off the bat。 Grace is the daughter of a Pullman porter and a seamstress。 Her brother， with whom she was very close， has been reported missing and presumed dead， so she is somewhat adrift。 After botching an audition， she learns of the officer training program and uses that as her ticket out。Eliza， on the other hand， is the daughter of the owner of a prominent Black newspaper。 She dreams of doing real， meaty reporting， but her family instead shelters her to the point of suffocation。 When she is invited by Mary McLeod Bethune to apply for Army officer training， she jumps right in。 She and Grace meet in the early days of training， and there is always an edge of distrust and competition between them。Up until the very end of the book， the interplay between Grace and Eliza works quite well。 They come from different backgrounds and through their eyes， readers get a very good view of what their life in the Army was like。 One could understand why these two would have trouble understanding each other and even as they came to respect each other’s ability， that tension between them felt believable。 Less believable were the romantic subplots for both women。 In Grace’s case， one particular man keeps popping up again and again often enough that it’s obvious he’s meant to be a love interest。 However， there isn’t much chemistry there。 When I thought back over the plot， I realized that this book would have been quite enjoyable without the romantic plots。 If the novel can do without its romantic subplots， that may be a sign that they didn’t need to be there。 Eliza， Grace and their fellow soldiers were honestly fascinating enough without the half-hearted love interests。My biggest quibble with this book came near the end。 The first half or so of the book takes us through the leads’ training and initial stations in the United States。 Then， all of a sudden， we jump forward a year and everyone rushes off to Europe where lots of things happen。 That second half of the book felt rather rushed and since the events it covers are very interesting， I wish that more pages could have been devoted to that portion of the story。 In addition， there is a conflict toward the end of the book that arises quickly and then resolves so weirdly quickly that one almost gets whiplash。 Given the amount of fascinating and very real drama already in the story， that whole bizarre episode just felt superfluous。However， even with these rough spots， Sisters in Arms was a memorable book。 This is an episode of history that deserves more attention and while horrified at some of the treatment these women endured， I found their story fascinating。 In addition to enjoying the novel， I came away admiring the real women who served in this battalion。 。。。more
Shannon
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I loved the two main women in this book， I just can't do military。 Got this for my July book of the month hoping I could get in to it。 I just cringe at anything military。 Nevertheless， it had some cool plot points。 It's always interesting to read anything based on real history， especially with women braking barriers， and double especially WoC breaking barriers。 I loved all those parts， and the proud moments the characters felt within themselves。I did feel it was a bit rushed somehow。 Though I'm I loved the two main women in this book， I just can't do military。 Got this for my July book of the month hoping I could get in to it。 I just cringe at anything military。 Nevertheless， it had some cool plot points。 It's always interesting to read anything based on real history， especially with women braking barriers， and double especially WoC breaking barriers。 I loved all those parts， and the proud moments the characters felt within themselves。I did feel it was a bit rushed somehow。 Though I'm sure it'd be even more of a struggle for me to get through if the author got into more detail about military life， so I am oddly grateful for it？ But still felt off。 。。。more
Kiandra Halstead
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😍😍😍😍😍I loved this story！ The courage and fortitude it took for these black women to be the first ones to enlist in the 6888th Women's Army Corps against all odds I f 😍😍😍😍😍I loved this story！ The courage and fortitude it took for these black women to be the first ones to enlist in the 6888th Women's Army Corps against all odds I f 。。。more
Leigh Mcnett
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Loved the historical fiction of this book and how the story of these historic women was told。
Amber
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This was a good historical fiction account of what it was like for African American women in the army during WW11。 I liked how the two characters were so different， but were able to become like sisters throughout their time in the war。 The fact that they got to fulfill their dreams after the war was very heartwarming。 I've always loved historical accounts on WW11。 I found this book entertaining， educational and an overall good read。 This was a good historical fiction account of what it was like for African American women in the army during WW11。 I liked how the two characters were so different， but were able to become like sisters throughout their time in the war。 The fact that they got to fulfill their dreams after the war was very heartwarming。 I've always loved historical accounts on WW11。 I found this book entertaining， educational and an overall good read。 。。。more
Connis Dayton
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I liked this book very much。 Loved the main characters。
Erin
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Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson is a WWII historical fiction about the first class of black female officers in the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps - WAACs。 When it comes to WWII history， I know the least about the WAACs/WACs then other areas women served so I was excited to read this。 It was based on the 6888 Central Postal Directory Battalion， the only all-black female battalion sent overseas during the war。 I wanted more out of this book。 It was good， but I wanted more details about their army l Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson is a WWII historical fiction about the first class of black female officers in the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps - WAACs。 When it comes to WWII history， I know the least about the WAACs/WACs then other areas women served so I was excited to read this。 It was based on the 6888 Central Postal Directory Battalion， the only all-black female battalion sent overseas during the war。 I wanted more out of this book。 It was good， but I wanted more details about their army life。 About the day to day and more on them being officers too and what it was like to lead others。 It felt a little too YA for me at times with Grace & Eliza being frenemies。 I wished there was a little more character development too。 I did like how she showed some of the differences in segregation around the country and their experiences with racism especially being officers。 I'm definitely interested in learning more about the actual women in the 6888 so I'm glad I read this as an introduction to find out about these women but I wanted more！ 。。。more
Sandy H
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I wanted to like this， I really did。 I was rooting for it。 But a third of the way through and I’m still not feeling at all engaged with any of the characters and the writing doesn’t have much depth to it。 I feel like I’m getting a surface level read on what these women should have felt like in this situation rather than really being drawn into it—in other words， I’m being told what they feel rather than shown it。 Perhaps if the author had picked one character and really dug into her heart and so I wanted to like this， I really did。 I was rooting for it。 But a third of the way through and I’m still not feeling at all engaged with any of the characters and the writing doesn’t have much depth to it。 I feel like I’m getting a surface level read on what these women should have felt like in this situation rather than really being drawn into it—in other words， I’m being told what they feel rather than shown it。 Perhaps if the author had picked one character and really dug into her heart and soul…。 Be that as it may， too many books， too little time。 I’m moving I 。 。。。more
EL
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I’m a huge consumer of WW2 fiction and non fiction and love the chance to learn more and read about the war heroes who aren’t so well known and whose stories aren’t so well publicised; so when I saw this book I thought it would be the perfect read！ The book centres on the characters of Grace and Eliza， two African American women who enlist in the newly formed Women’s Army Corps。 They are stationed in the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion， the only all black female battalion to serve over I’m a huge consumer of WW2 fiction and non fiction and love the chance to learn more and read about the war heroes who aren’t so well known and whose stories aren’t so well publicised; so when I saw this book I thought it would be the perfect read！ The book centres on the characters of Grace and Eliza， two African American women who enlist in the newly formed Women’s Army Corps。 They are stationed in the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion， the only all black female battalion to serve overseas during the war。 It’s based on true life but is a work of fiction， but the lines are somewhat blurred as the author uses the names of real people who served and real situations which happened to them within the story。 It’s an important story to be told and although I enjoyed it， I thought the book lacked a little impact and focussed too much on the romance elements of the character’s lives。 （The latter being entirely personal preference）。 I have high expectations in terms of the language used in that period， but it felt a lot more modern than I was expecting。 I was therefore surprised at the end to read the author’s personal link to this story！ Overall a great introduction to a slice of history I wasn’t aware of - it’s made me want to learn more and that can only be a good thing。 Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher， Headline， for the advance review copy。 。。。more
Becky Hunter
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Love learning about history through historical fiction， and I had never heard about this division of the WAC before。 Storytelling felt a bit clunky， though。
Alyssa
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