MarilynW (The United States)’s review of Good Night, Irene

Good Night, Irene by Luis Alberto Urrea
Narrated by Barrie Kreinik

In 1943, free spirited New York reluctant socialite, Irene Woodward, fled her abusive fiancé and demanding mother, by enlisting successful nan Red Cross. Irene and her caller friend, Dorothy Dunford, arsenic different arsenic could be, deed it disconnected correct distant and aft intensive training go Donut Dollies, manning (womanning) subject buses called Clubmobiles, astatine nan beforehand line. The 3 female crews are to supply camaraderie and a spot of location distant from location via donuts, coffee, candy, and a happy look and demeanor.

There is truthful overmuch joke successful this story, it's arsenic if everyone is joking each nan time, nan women almost 1 of nan guys pinch nan jokes while besides having to fend disconnected eager hands from men who are truthful acold distant from home. But down that joke from nan women and nan soldiers is nan emotion of homesickness, devastation astatine what is being done and endured, nan interest astir friends and strangers, nan bodies, truthful galore bodies, truthful overmuch death, and nan request to support connected doing what needs to beryllium done nary matter really 1 feels. The writer includes truthful overmuch history that I was already alert of and I emotion seeing what I cognize against nan backdrop of nan Clubmobiles and nan female persevering because it's their job, to support nan soldiers during nan brutality and bleakness of war.

In this fictional story, nan writer draws connected nan written and verbal words of nan existent life women who worked nan Clubmobiles, letters from thankful soldiers, and different documents to soma retired this communicative that was inspired by his mother's acquisition earlier he was born. At nan extremity of nan audiobook, nan writer tells america that nan happy spell fortunate female he sees successful aged pictures and from speaking pinch her champion friend who worked pinch her connected their Clubmobile, is not nan female he recognizes arsenic nan mother he knew. Obviously, aft reference this story, it's easy to spot that nan women who served connected these buses went done overmuch of nan trauma and threat that soldiers connected nan beforehand statement went through. Many times nan women were correct location amongst bombing and bullets and seeing ne'er ending horrors of nan war. Yet while nan solders came location to fanfare and nan expertise to talk pinch galore different soldiers what they had been through, nan women came location and were instantly forgotten. Actually, it was arsenic if they were ne'er location connected nan beforehand lines. It's evident that nan author's mother suffered from PTSD for very bully reasons yet conscionable held it each successful and became much and much isolated. I admit this communicative that gives america penetration into nan Clubmobiles and nan women that risked their lives to springiness nan troops truthful overmuch much than conscionable donuts and coffee.