My Rating: Really Good
Synopsis: In the days just after the end of World War Two, a young Texas Navy pilot named Jack Sweeney falls crazy in love with a California girl just before he is shipped off to the Pacific with his squadron. He woos her with letters and makes away with her heart. He returns safely; he marries her.
Over thirty years later, a young woman returns to her childhood home in California for her mother’s funeral. Before leaving the house for the last time, without knowing what she’s looking for, she opens a dresser drawer in her mother’s room. Towards the very back of the drawer she discovers a packet of old letters tied up with a pink ribbon. In these letters she meets the man she has forever longed to know and love, the man her mother rarely spoke of during all the years of her childhood. In these letters she meets her father, Jack Sweeney, for the first time.
As Always, Jack is in part the bittersweet story of a daughter’s search for her father, an account of her struggle to unlock the mystery of his disappearance on the eve of her birth. Preserved in this story, however, is another, more universal one: the sweet and classic tale of true love in a time of war.
My Review: I like to read love stories that take place in the past, as well as stories that are told through letters/emails. As Always, Jack is a great love story that is told through letters during WWII. Emma Sweeney (author) never knew her father as he died when his plane went down near the Bermuda Triangle. Here mother was pregnant with her at that time.
When her mother passed away, she found a bundle of letters her father wrote to her mother during WWII. The letters are what makes up most of As Always, Jack. They are written from the heart, but with a sense of humor too. I really think my favorite part was the last 20 pages. Emma opens up about what she did and knowledge she obtained after finding the letters. She seemed to find peace and closure that she never had. For me, the last 20 pages wrapped the whole book up and made it a great read.
If you are looking for a quick read, love/war story, memoir, and a great read - pick up As Always, Jack. You will not be disappointed.
Meet the Author: Emma Sweeney is the author of several gardening books as well as a literary agent based in New York. She formed her own agency in 2006 and has had five New York Times bestsellers, including the #1 New York Times best seller, Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. She is a member of the Association of Authors’ Representatives and the Women’s Media Group, where she served as its president in 2003. She graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a BA in English Literature. She divides her time between New York City and Rhinebeck, New York.
Connect: You can connect with Emma on GoodReads.
Purchase It: You can purchase As Always, Jack from Barnes & Noble for $15.95.
Giveaway: I am so lucky to have one copy to give away! Complete the form below. Contest ends August 2nd, midnight (EST).
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Check out the other blogs that are part of the TLC Book Tours:
Tuesday, July 3rd: The Book Garden
Wednesday, July 4th: I Read. Do You?
Monday, July 9th: missris
Tuesday, July 10th: Write Meg
Wednesday, July 11th: Reviews from the Heart
Thursday, July 12th: Savvy Verse & Wit
Monday, July 16th: Lakeside Musing
Tuesday, July 17th: Diary of an Eccentric
Thursday, July 19th: Book Reviews by Molly
Friday, July 20th: Booktalk & More
Monday, July 23rd: The Written World
Tuesday, July 24th: Lesa’s Book Critiques
Thursday, July 26th: Seaside Book Nook
Friday, July 27th: Amused By Books
Tuesday, July 31st: The Book Bag
Wednesday, August 1st: Reading to Know
Wednesday, August 1st: Walking With Nora
Definitely WWII stories....I love the combination of war and love :)!
ReplyDeleteBridge On the River Kwai. What a great book and movie!
ReplyDeleteThe Notebook
ReplyDeleteWhat a treasure these letters must be to the author!
ReplyDeleteThanks for being on the tour.
I would have to say Gone With the Wind even though it didn't end with a HEA!
ReplyDeleteI prefer the memoir love stories.
ReplyDeleteThe Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
ReplyDeleteby Mary Ann Shaffer. This is the loveliest book I have read and it's set in one of the World Wars! Sorry for the ignorance, I forget.