We Must be Brave

An English city under attack sends its women and children by bus to safety in a village further inland. When it is safe to return to the destroyed city, the buses pull away, but a small child is left behind. Set in WWII England, this novel explores what it means to be family as it navigates the stories of this abandoned little girl, too small to understand, and the woman who cares for her, tries to find her family, comes to love her, and ultimately has to let her go. One of the most well-crafted, beautiful books I have ever read, this breathtaking novel is at once devastating and exquisite; surprising, happy, and heartbreaking. —Karen Mamaras, arts grant coordinator and assistant to the director of the arts

Karen and several others this summer submitted book recommendations to Lafayette Today after originally being asked to share summer reading picks for a Spirit Lunch meeting led by the Rev. Alex Hendrickson, College chaplain.