Letters Across the Sea by Genevieve Graham

 This story brings the little-known chapters of Canadian history which happened right after the Great Depression as an effect of it and during WWII.

Toronto, 1933. Molly, at fourteen had to drop out of school and contribute to the pot as their family and as other families have been struggling around the world due to the Crash. The Great Depression has affected everyone including children. Some, including Molly and her best friend Hannah, try to hold on to some normalcy while playing baseball. But anti-Semitism is on the rise. Signs against Jews keep appearing in the store windows. Molly’s brother after weeks of looking for a job suddenly finds one. But as it turns out it is possible because Jews are being fired. There is an emergence of the hateful Swastika Clubs. One night, a baseball game turns into a riot.

The story alternates between Molly and Max, Hannah’s brother. Molly and Max have mutual feelings for each other. Her family is Irish Protestant and his is Jewish. And Molly’s family wants her to distance herself from her best friend and her brother.

1939. Molly works as a journalist. The Riot of 1933 “marked a change for the city. Things were still tumultuous, noisy with continuing protests and prejudice…” Molly reports mostly about the local news, but she craves something more ambitious. As she remembers a morning encounter, an idea materializes. One ambitious report turns into many and uncovering about certain events during the war.

When Max enlisted with the British forces, he expected to be sent to Europe, not to Hong Kong. When Japanese attack Hong Kong, the Canadians are unprepared, lacking in proper training and weapons. They are outnumbered greatly by “Japanese forces with far superior firepower and training.”

This story vividly captures the stolen years during the Great Depression and the stolen lives during the war. It captures Toronto’s simmering with hateful tensions and leading to the Christie Pits Riot, the largest ethnic riot in Canadian history. It captures unprepared men being sent for something they should have not been sent for. It also brings the Japanese inhuman treatment of POW, not respecting the Geneva Convention; and also their attack on hospital leading to St. Stephen’s Massacre.

It’s a poignant story bringing heartache, but also showing us that even during the worst times you can find acts of human kindness. This touchingly woven story with moving characters also shows us the power of love, what it can endure and how far it can go. It’s interestingly written with well-developed characters which expose a reader to the little-known pockets of history.

Release date: 27 April 2021

Source: Simon & Schuster