Book #3: Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

This book tells the story of Julie and Maddie, two friends who meet each other working in the war effort in England during WWII. Maddie is a pilot--a girl who loves to tinker and work as a mechanic, on motorbikes and later planes--and Julie is a translator and later interrogator. The first half of the book is written from Julie's perspective, the second from Maddie's, and both halves describe how they met and got to know each other, and what happens to them after they get caught behind enemy lines in France. Julie is caught by the Gestapo and is being tortured for information, while Maddie is sheltered by the Resistance and ends up helping as much as she can. So Julie's story comes in the form of a confession about what she knows to the Gestapo questioners, and Maddie's story is a journal/record she keeps while in hiding.

I thought this was a solid, enjoyable book. However, I feel like the invented mediums (the confession and the journal) kept getting in the way of my ability to believe what was being written. I kept thinking, "There's no way she'd need to write all of this detail about how she met Maddie in her confession to the Gestapo." And "She'd never write this poetically if she's just writing in her own journal she's going to keep herself." Maddie even says at one point, (something like), "I wish I were a better writer so that I could write about the rich mixture of fear and boredom I feel every day"--and goes on to write this long detailed description about how she's scared and bored at the same time (and "rich mixture"? In a journal? From a mechanic and not a poet? Come on). It just kept bothering me the whole time, almost to the point of detracting from the story itself. I really did like the story, and learning about Maddie and Julie, both in very unlikely positions from someone of their gender. I especially liked Maddie's half more than Julie's, where Maddie is trying to piece together what happened to Julie and how to help her. It was a pretty heartbreaking climax, which actually took me by surprise (but I feel like part of it was because there wasn't enough build-up to it; it just randomly happened without any warning, but I guess that's pretty likely in real life anyways). Also, I was really feeling done with WWII novels with a female protagonist after All the Light We Cannot See (which was a clearly superior novel, no doubt). All in all, I'd say this was a solid 3 stars for me.