The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry is set in 1940 England when children were sent, during WWII, from London and major cities to rural areas for safety. Unfortunately, the name given for this exercise was Pied Piper. The Pied Piper is a poem/fairy tale where he led the town's children to the river and they all perished.
Fourteen year old Hazel and her five year old sister Flora were evacuees, sent to a small hamlet in Oxford. When Flora vanishes it is thought she has fallen into the river and drowned. Hazel and her mother continue to look for Flora. When Hazel comes across a children's book 20 years later she realizes only her sister could have passed on to the author the mystical village of Whisperwood that Hazel had told Flora many times. In 1960 Hazel begins her search again for her missing sister.
My thoughts:
Although the novel is fiction it drives me crazy when authors do not research English history. There are many things that someone who didn't grow up in London might not notice but I found it took me away from the story over and over again. One name that constantly comes up in English novels written by an American author is Brighton Beach. Brighton Beach is in Brooklyn. Brighton in England does have a beach but the name of the town is simply Brighton.
England did not have pre-schools in 1960 - they were primary schools.
The zebra crossings are not called crosswalks.
Red and white British Union Jack flags? The English flag is white with the red Saint George's Cross. The British Union Jack is red white and blue.
The London to Paris Night Train left from London Victoria Station platform 2 not Charing Cross platform 7. I used to work near Victoria Station in the 1960s and saw the train many times. And the door would not hiss open. They were opened by hand.
