Bobby's War: An uplifting WWII story of a female ATA pilot. Winner of the RNA romantic saga award

Description

On the ground, the crowd of men stood with their mouths agape, watching the wings soar into the air, the tail kept impressively steady and the small plane with a woman at the controls disappearing into the May sunshine. It's 1942 and World War Two is in full swing. Roberta 'Bobby' Hollis has joined the Air Transport Auxiliary in a team of pilots known as the 'glamour girls'. Just as capable as the men, these amazing women pilot aircraft all around the country. After a childhood being ignored on the family farm by a withdrawn father and a traumatised mother, Bobby had always wanted an escape. And the ATA seemed like the perfect opportunity to realise her dreams and help her country win the war. But there's always something standing in her way. Her friend Harriet, who attracts chaos wherever she goes. Her father, who would like to marry her off to a rich farmer's son from the next county. And the family secrets that threaten to engulf everything. Not to mention the danger she's in every day as part of the ATA. As Bobby navigates her way through life, and love, she has to learn that controlling a huge, four-engined bomber might just be easier than controlling her own life . . .

Shirley Mann is a Derbyshire-based journalist who spent most of her career at the BBC. She now makes short films for organisations such as the Heritage Lottery Fund. Her first novel, Lily's War, was inspired by Shirley's mother, who was a WAAF and her father who was in the Eighth Army. Her second book, Bobby's War is about a young ATA pilot.

Rich in period detail, nostalgia, intrigue, romance and the realities of life in a perilous and unpredictable corner of the home front, Bobby's War is a saga full of history, heart and our proud national heritage. * Lancashire Evening Post * What a brilliant read! Shirley Mann has given such a well-researched and comprehensive picture of the lives of the courageous women of the ATA, and Bobby is a wonderful heroine. Brave, clever and opinionated, I absolutely loved spending time with her. * Ginny Bell, author of The Dover Cafe at War * Shirley Mann has given us in Bobby Hollis an inspiration. Plucky and resourceful as she delivers her WW2 aircraft, Bobby is exactly the sort of person you'd want at your side in real life today. This is a perfect read when all you want to do is curl up to enjoy a lovely novel. Brava! * Kitty Danton, author of The Evacuee Christmas *