In December 1940, Southampton is being bombed and bus loads of evacuees travel to the countryside for safety. Childless Ellen Parr, assisting people from the bus, finds a dishevelled five-year-old girl abandoned at the back of the bus, asleep. She appears to belong to no-one, and reluctantly she is taken into the Parr household with other evacuated children Ellen cares for. Ellen had always told her older husband that she didn’t want children, but as the little girl, Pamela, establishes herself firmly in her affections, she realises that it is just this particular child that she wants.

Three challenging but happy years pass, with coupons and rations. Despite initial efforts, no family can be found for the little girl. But of course, people are separated during times of war and the reality of Pamela’s family is devastating for all concerned. By the end of the war the world has changed. Ellen and the Parr family realise that Pamela was never theirs to keep.

This is a beautiful and poignant book, quite different to the other novels of World War II that I have read of late. It focuses on how relationships are viewed differently in times of crisis, and how new, incredibly strong ones are made where in other, more stable times they would not be possible.

We Must Be Brave is a story of the many different kinds of love, loyalty and devotion, and how our experiences in life make us who we are, particularly in times of unspeakable horror.

Reviewed by Lesley West