The author gives us a moving and original glimpse into the haunted peace after the Great War, her characters drawn by the gravity of the unmarked, the unknown, and perhaps, finally, the unhoped for.” -Chris Cleave, author of Little Bee “ Wake is a tender and timely novel, full of compassion and quiet insight.
Hope reaches beyond the higher echelons of society to women of different social classes, all linked by their reluctance to bid goodbye to the world the conflict has shattered.” - The New York Times Book Review “Hope’s unblinking prose is reminiscent of Vera Brittain’s classic memoir Testament of Youth in its depiction of the social and emotional fallout, particularly on women, of the Great War. The lives of these three women are braided together, their stories gathering tremendous power as the ties that bind them become clear, and the body of the unknown soldier moves closer and closer to its final resting place. But when he utters the name of her son, Ada is jolted to the core. Then one day a young man appears at her door, seemingly with notions to peddle, like hundreds of out-of-work veterans. Helpless, her loving husband has withdrawn from her. Ada is beset by visions of her son on every street, convinced he is still alive.
Embittered by her own loss, she looks for solace in her adored brother, who has not been the same since he returned from the front. Evelyn works at the Pensions Exchange, through which thousands of men have claimed benefits from wounds or debilitating distress. But there is something distracted about him, something she cannot reach. One night Hettie meets a wealthy, educated man and finds herself smitten with him. Many are still haunted by the war: Hettie, a dance instructress, lives at home with her mother and her brother, who is mute after his return from combat. The city prepares to observe the two-year anniversary of Armistice Day with the burial of the unknown soldier. Wake: 1) Emerge or cause to emerge from sleep. Anna Hope’s brilliant debut unfolds over the course of five days, as three women must deal with the aftershocks of World War I and its impact on the men in their lives.
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