We Must Be Brave

Frances Liardet Fourth Estate €18

Set almost entirely in a small Hampshire village, Liardet’s novel charts one woman’s dignified journey through the uncertainties and travails of the 20th century. At its heart is the courageous Ellen Parr, whose chance discovery of a young girl abandoned on a bus during World War II changes everything. Occasionally ponderous but with some lyrical descriptions of the countryside, this is a quiet, old-fashioned tale of love, loss and resilience, and of the enduring bonds of friendship and community. Along the way, Liardet manages to reveal something of the essence of Englishness.