Showing results for "Songs" in 20th Century

In this Pulitzer Prize-winning classic, a convicted killer becomes the first prisoner to be executed in the United States. The Executioner's Song follows the true story of cold-blooded murderer Gary Gilmore, who, after being tried and convicted, insisted on being executed for his crimes. To do...

Connie Fitzwalter never imagined that her passion for music would lead her into a world of danger and intrigue. When her old family friend, Stephen, who works for the foreign office, tells Connie the true scale of the violence against Jewish people in Germany and Austria, she can stand aside no longer. Together, Stephen and Connie devise a daring mission to help families escape the clutches of Nazi persecution. Under their cover as music enthusiasts traveling to high-society concerts in Europe, Connie and her sister Dottie begin by smuggling money and valuables for families over the border.

Rejected, frustrated, and no longer confident about God's plan for his life, John Sweet takes a year-long assignment in Atlanta, Georgia. The city is bustling with preparations for the Cotton States and International Exposition to be held in the autumn of 1895. Sarah Fuller is also new to the city but is trying desperately to make a home for her lonely father and motherless little sister. When a special assignment for the Exposition puts John and Sarah in close contact, they discover that while their pasts are completely different, their future dreams are much the same.

Calliope Adham—young, strong-willed, and recently widowed—is schoolmistress in the village of Molyvos when Hitler's army invades Greece in 1941. Well-read and linguistically gifted, she is recruited by the Germans to act as their liaison officer. It is the beginning of a personal and national saga that will last for several decades. Calliope's wartime duties bring her into close contact with Lieutenant Lorenz Umbreit, the Wehrmacht commander. The schoolmistress is an active member of the Greek Resistance, yet her friendship with the German blossoms against all odds.

She played for love. She fought for freedom. Inspired by incredible true events, The Lost Song of Paris is a heart-wrenching story of lost love, danger and espionage and one remarkable woman's bravery in World War Two, from the bestselling author of The Missing Pieces of Nancy Moon and The...

When World War II breaks out, Suzanne’s dream of attending the Royal Academy of Music crumbles. Determined to do her bit, she joins a swing band that entertains troops in some of the worst-hit cities of Europe. Through singing, Suzanne finds a confidence she never knew she had, and she soon wins the admiration of Britain’s brave servicemen. But her heart already belongs to a Navy officer who is serving out at sea. The question is...will they meet again?

Set off the coast of Wales between the 1940s and present day, The Last Song of Winter is a beautiful, romantic story from the author of The Winter Children. 'Completely unputdownable, every Lulu Taylor novel grips you to the very end' – Lisa Jewell, author of None of This is True 'A book to...

A wartime family saga, perfect for fans of Rosie Goodwin and Val Wood Shaftesbury, 1936. Mansfield House Hotel has been a refuge for Emily ever since she was orphaned at the age of 16. Not only did they give her employment as a chambermaid, but it’s also where she met her fiancé Tom. When...

When Clara Newton’s American pilot fiancé died during the war, she thought she might never heal. But now she has a new life looking after orphans in a children’s home named in his memory. Like wide-eyed, musical little Rita, who refuses to believe her mother died during the Blitz. With the Festival of Britain approaching, Clara is delighted to see the children singing and preparing to audition together. And with D-Day war hero and handyman Ivor living next door, she begins to open her heart once more.

Set against the backdrop of gathering war, A Song for Summer is an unforgettable love story from master storyteller Eva Ibbotson and read by actress Emilia Fox. When Ellen Carr abandons grey, dreary London to become housekeeper at an experimental school in Austria, she soon knows she's found her...

Against the simmering backdrop of the impending WWII, blind virtuoso pianist Chaisley Frappier embarks on a concert tour through a rapidly changing Europe despite the dangers. When she learns that Hitler's escalating regime of injustice is targeting other disabled people, Chaisley realizes she is in a prime position to help those who are threatened reach safety. But the Führer's growing fascination with the celebrated musician endangers her undercover mission and forces her to walk a tightrope between her fame and her calling.

An island full of secrets. A truth that could change everything… Nursing a broken heart, Romy is living alone in a windswept cottage on an island off the coast of Pembrokeshire. Once the site of a haunting monastery, the island now serves as a bird sanctuary, where Romy and the enigmatic...

In the glamorous world of 1940s New York, Hattie James is a rising star, enchanting audiences at the iconic Copacabana Club. But her glittering life is shattered by a shocking phone call: her father, a respected diplomat, has been arrested for espionage, accused of aiding Nazi Germany. As her world crumbles, Hattie is plunged into a whirlwind of danger and deceit. Following her father's dramatic escape and alleged betrayal, Hattie is coerced by the FBI to aid their hunt. Her mission: infiltrate Rio de Janeiro's high society and uncover the truth about her father's loyalties.

Maggie's Mountain Song takes the reader on a journey through the Appalachian Mountain region near Boone North Carolina during the 1930's-1940's. The story is told through Maggie's Mountain dialect as she recalls her idyllic childhood ,and the highs, and lows of her life from her later years. Maggie takes the reader on a descriptive ramble over the farm she grew up on and the days of family togetherness, work, school, community, and human relationships and World War Two.

“Kirsty Manning weaves together little-known threads of World War II history, family secrets, the past and the present into a page-turning, beautiful novel."— Heather Morris, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz A gripping historical novel that tells the...

"I'm waiting for my life to begin. Waiting for the train to come in," Ava Stilwell, a young woman eager for life, sings a popular song with the big band that reflects her heart. In the midst of a world at war, Ava finds love, a passion for her music, and new opportunities, but the war still looms over her, threatening to take it all away. It's 1943, and World War II has gripped the nation, including the Stilwell family in Jacksonville, Alabama. Rationing, bomb drills, patriotism, and a changing South barrage their way of life.

How will Lanya live through this war? The Germans are stationed outside the city walls, choking the city and expecting surrender. Her sister is killed, her brother is like a three year old, and all she wants to do is be singing on stage again. When she is on stage, there is no war, only music and applause. That is what she wants. But will it ever happen again?

A story of tragedy and triumph, love and war. The long-awaited sequel to Light and Shadows, begins in 1922 during the Asia Minor Genocide, when Maria, a twelve-year-old Greek Orthodox girl, witnesses what she believes is the total massacre of her family in Smyrna. Although haunted by the death of her family, Maria grows up to be a spirited, independent-minded archeologist. In 1941, as Germany invades Greece, Maria falls in love with Rob, an English spy. She is recruited by British intelligence, and Maria and Rob become entangled in the dangerous world of espionage.

In 1915, waitress Francie Forrester has a voice like an angel, but few people in her small Midwestern town have ever heard it, outside of church. Between working and keeping an eye on her irresponsible mother and younger brother, who has time for music? Her misty daydream of becoming an opera singer must remain exactly that—a dream—until a new friend unexpectedly sets her on a rocky path leading to Chicago’s glittering opera stage. To rise from slinging spaghetti to singing grand opera takes a lot of courage and hard work, but Francie’s up to the challenge. At least, she hopes she is.

Just as it seems life is opening before Violet with unlimited possibilities for her future, her hometown of Atlanta is devastated by a citywide fire, and her idolized older brother heads off to France as an officer in the Great War. Violet's safe, tight-knit family is about to be tested beyond anything they have ever experienced, and her dreams for the future keep colliding with forces outside her control and a rapidly changing culture.