Little Souls by Sandra Dallas ~ a Review

by Susan Roberts

 

"Little souls?

It means the poor, the homeless, the common people nobody ever notices.  In truth, it applies to all of us.  We're all lost little souls" (p 36)

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

April 2022; ‎St. Martin's; 978-1250277886
audio, ebook, print (304 pages); historical fiction

Sandra Dallas's Little Souls is a gripping tale of sisterhood, loyalty, and secrets set in Denver amid America's last deadly flu pandemic.

This wonderfully written novel takes place in 1919 in Denver Colorado. Sisters Helen and Luttie moved to Denver after the death of their parents in Ohio. They are very close despite the fact that they are very different from each other - Helen is a serious nurse and Luttie is a carefree advertising designer. Soon after the move to Denver, they both find boyfriends -- Helen's beau is a doctor and Luttie's boyfriend is a student. Helen's boyfriend spends most of his time tending to the sick while Luttie's boyfriend joined the Army so he could do his part to help America win the war. The sisters also have a rental apartment in their basement, and when the woman dies from the flu. they decide to take in her 10-year-old daughter, Dorothy. The young girl is very traumatized from some events in her life and the sisters work hard to make her part of their family.

This novel is a look at how the pandemic affected the lives of the people. It's about sisters and family - not just family by blood but family made up of the people you care about. The two sisters are very well written - their struggle to keep their family afloat and the attitudes toward women in the workplace present a picture of life at that time. Both sisters are brave and resilient and sacrificed for the people in their lives.

If you enjoy historical fiction set in the United States, you don't want to miss this book. You won't want to put it down once you've started it but warning - you need to have a tissue close at hand. This well-written and well-researched book will give you characters that you won't soon forget and a look at life when people had to deal with a world war and a devastating flu at home. I loved it and plan to go back and read some of this author's earlier books.

Buy Little Souls at Amazon

Susan Roberts lives in North Carolina with her husband of over 50 years.  She grew up in Michigan but now calls North Carolina home. She enjoys reading, traveling, and spending time with her family. She reads almost anything (and the piles of books in her house prove that) but her favorite genres are Southern fiction, women's fiction, and historical fiction. Susan is a top 1% Goodreads Reviewer. You can connect with Susan on Facebook.

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