Book Review: The Helsingør Sewing Club by Ella Gyland

About:

The Helsingør Sewing Club by Ella Gyland is a historical-fiction book taking place in Denmark during World War II. Ms. Gyland grew up in Denmark, moved to England, and is now an author, translator, and linguist.

• 322 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter
• Language: English

My rating for The Helsingør Sewing Club – 4
Buy The Helsingør Sewing Club from Amazon.com* (The Day the Germans Came*)
More Books by Ella Gyland*

Thoughts:

It is a well-known fact that the Danish underground, and the Danish people have managed to save most of Denmark’s Jews from the Nazi killing machine. This novel personalized this momentous achievement. It is a wonderful introduction because one does not need to know anything about these events, as The Helsingør Sewing Club by Ella Gyland walks you through in an easy-to-read manner.

The book tells the story from two points of view. One in 2018 of Cecilie Lund who is trying to unearth whatever surprises her grandmother has in store for her posthumously. The other is that of Inger Bredhal, the grandmother, and her experiences during World War II.

While I appreciate the story, as well as the hardships the Danish people faced while the Nazis are tightening their stranglehold around the country, the narrative was somewhat bloated. I didn’t enjoy many of the flowery descriptions, as they did not setup a scene or even a sense of time and place; in addition, I found myself skipping some of the war romances.

I did, however, enjoyed the interaction between Ingrid and David. I thought that plot device worked well not only to personalize the events, but also to highlight the history.

I would have loved it if the author had added a list of sources, as well as notes. It is always a benefit to have a few pages highlighting what was real history, and what was fictional. I feel that it adds much to the story at large.

Please note that on Amazon, this book also called .

Synopsis:

Cecilie Lund is clearing her grandmother’s flat when she discovers her diary. It turns out that Inger Jensen, Cecilie’s grandmother has a secret.

Inger Bredhal moved from Copenhagen to a small village for safety and work. Living with her aunt and uncle, Inger  assimilates in village life when she discovers something strange is going on.

Risking her life, Inger than joins the Danish underground helping to smuggle Jews o Switzerland.

Buy The Helsingør Sewing Club from Amazon.com* (The Day the Germans Came*)
More Books by Ella Gyland*

Zohar — Man of la Book
Dis­claimer: I got this book for free
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account, the money is usually spent on books