Title: The Foxhole Victory Tour
Author: Amy Lynn Green
Major Themes: World War II, USO Variety Shows, Musicians
Synopsis: When two musicians join a USO variety show aimed at encouraging the US troops in North Africa during World War II, friendships and professional achievements are tested as they attempt to keep up a rigorous concert schedule.
After reading Things We Didn’t Say earlier this year, I was interested to read The Foxhole Victory Tour when it came out. It took a couple of months to get around to reading the book, but I’m glad I took the time for it! It wasn’t as good as Things We Didn’t Say, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the book—my only real complaint about the story was how quickly I got through it!
Publisher’s description:
Based on true World War II stories of life in the USO variety shows, worlds collide when performers from around the United States come together to tour North Africa.
Vibrant and scrappy Maggie McCleod tried not to get fired from her wartime orchestra, but her sharp tongue landed her in trouble, so an overseas adventure with the USO’s camp show promises a chance at a fresh start. Wealthy and elegant Catherine Duquette signs with the USO to leave behind her restrictive life of privilege and to uncover the truth behind the disappearance of the handsome pilot whose letters mysteriously stopped arriving.
The two women are joined by an eclectic group of performers—a scheming blues singer, a veteran tap dancer, and a brooding magician—but the harmony among their troupe is short-lived when their tour manager announces he will soon recommend one of them for a coveted job in the Hollywood spotlight. Each of the five members has a reason to want the contract, and they’ll do whatever is necessary to claim it. As their troupe travels closer to the dangerous battlefront in Tunisia, personal crises and wartime dangers only intensify, putting not only their careers but also their lives on the line.
My thoughts:
This was something of an unusual book for me. I haven’t read many stories that have a musician as the main character, so that was a fun element. It was also interesting to get to see another aspect of World War II through this story—while I’ve heard of the variety concerts put on during the war, it was fascinating to get to see a peek “behind the scenes” as it were through the perspective of these characters.
I must say—these characters made the book. Each of the different ones in this fictional group was unique, and I never had trouble sorting out who was who. I loved Maggie’s spunk, Catherine’s grace, and Gabriel’s determination. It was interesting to get to see how each of the members complimented and tested each other—their interactions felt realistic. Of course, I had favorites that I rooted for, but it was hard to be rooting for two different characters at once when it came to the contract that everyone wanted!
I also found the setting interesting. It was fun to get a peek at North Africa through the characters’ eyes, and equally fun to get a glimpse at the hard work it takes to put on a show.
Though this book is billed as Christian fiction, I didn’t find a very strong faith element in the book. There were a couple of mentions of Christianity throughout the book, but for the most part, the characters weren’t overt in their faith.
In many ways, The Foxhole Victory Tour was a gentle read, but it never lost my interest, and I finished it in record time. If you enjoy historical fiction and stories with well-developed characters, I’d recommend you check it out. It wasn’t necessarily the greatest historical fiction story I’ve ever read, but I enjoyed it.
WARNING: Chapter 4: how the heck. Chapter 6: dancing, a kiss. Chapter 7: gee, lying. Chapter 8: a devil of a, golly. Chapter 9: where the devil, darn, golly. Chapter 10: blasted. Chapter 11: blast, holy Joe. Chapter 14: lying. Chapter 17: confound it, men forcing scorpions to fight to the death. Chapter 18: lying, for goodness’s sake. Chapter 20: lying, woman hurt in an air raid. Chapter 22: gosh. Chapter 23: I swear it, poor devils, heaven knows. Chapter 24: what the dickens, a woman sees a seductive picture drawn of herself. Chapter 27: lying. Chapter 28: smoking, lying. Chapter 33: good grief. Chapter 34: get the devil. Chapter 35: I swear, people being bombed, man hurt. Chapter 36: those poor devils, man has a flashback to war. Chapter 37: holding hands. Chapter 38: I still swear, drinking champagne. Chapter 39: drat. Epilogue: one heck of a, a woman joins a woman’s branch of the military.
Age levels:
Reading Independently—Ages 15 and Above, Adults
Links to buy this book:
Amazon: Paperback | Kindle | Hardcover | Audible Audiobook (unabridged) | Audio CD (unabridged)
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com
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