Deschutes Public Library

Canary girls, Jennifer Chiaverini

eng

no index present

fiction

Canary girls

1391330713

Jennifer Chiaverini

"Early in the Great War, men left Britain's factories to enlist and arsenals hired women to replace them. Their recruiting slogan: Be the Girl Behind the Man Behind the Gun. Thousands of women – cooks, maids, showgirls, and housewives – answered their nation's call. These "munitionettes" worked grueling shifts, handling explosives with little protective gear. Among them is teenage housemaid April Tipton. Impressed by its higher wages and plentiful meals, she takes a job at Thornshire Arsenal near London, filling shells in the Danger Building – difficult, perilous, and absolutely essential work. Joining April and her friend Marjorie – another former housemaid – is Lucy Dempsey, wife of Daniel Dempsey, Olympic gold medalist and soldier in the Footballers' Battalion. Her coworkers invite her to join the arsenal ladies football club, the Thornshire Canaries. The Canaries soon acquire an unexpected fan in the boss's wife, Helen Purcell, who is deeply troubled by reports that Danger Building workers suffer from serious, unexplained illnesses. One common symptom, the lurid yellow hue of their skin, earns them the nickname "canary girls." Suspecting a connection between the canary girls' maladies and the TNT they handle, Helen joins the arsenal administration as their staunchest, though often unappreciated, advocate. The football pitch is the one place where class distinctions and fears for their men fall away. As the war grinds on and tragedy takes its toll, the canary girls persist despite the dangers, proud to serve, determined to outlive the war and rejoice in victory and peace." --, Inside front jacket flap